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| - Words cannot express the sense of fulfillment I had when I got to the top of Tinjana Peak at the Calico Basin of this range.
It was me, my backpack, cameras, and a little bit of ambition...for you see I'd never climbed anything higher than a tree. Keep in mind, it was a pretty high tree at Smokey Mountain National park - when I was balsy little 13 year old Boy Scout...LOL...but I digress.
It took me about an 2 hours to get to the tip top of that peak, and when I got there I was SPENT, but man, did it feel good to feel nothing but the bright sun and wind on your face.
I wanted to do something cool for my 50th Birthday sabbatical, and this was pretty much it, bros. I'm sure many of you have climbed higher peaks and mountains and such, which is cool, but this was one hell of a fulfilling way to start the journey to the next half century of my life.
I met two very endearing and supportive ladies who were veterans at climbing. They schooled me on rock formations, soil erosion, continental rifts, baby dinosaur footprints, and how to take cool photos of yourself from the top of the world. Awesome chicks!
While up there, I stretched my arms to the heavens..
...said a prayer
.., shed a tear
...and then pondered how the hell I was going to get down off that mug.
On the way UP you can see, feel, finesse, and muscle your way up...but on the way down, that sucker is straight down and you're mostly blind doing it. It was a total bitch and it was starting to get dark too, so I had to man up and handle the biz! My body hurt for two days afterward, bros.
I'm grateful. I'd do it again though.
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