Perseverance

This past Saturday morning in Vermont was chilly and brisk compared to the dense humidity of the day before. As I sat by the fire in our clearing at 7 AM, watching the flames curl and twist, the wood crackling and popping, I felt I needed to get out and do some hiking, not unusual for me, but I wanted to hike somewhere I hadn’t been before. As I sat there mulling over my options, my mind drifted to a hike I had found online a couple years ago that was maybe a 30 minute drive away. I looked up the hike again, 1200+ feet of elevation gain over a short distance, all uphill, but with magnificent views at the top. The app said it should take about 2.5 hours, plus 30 minutes there and back, figuring maybe it might take up to 4 hours overall if I was slow, I said why the hell not, I could get there and back in time before the rest of my family arrived in Vermont for the weekend. So without further ado, I banked the fire, filled a water and a coffee, grabbed Bernard and headed out. Driving anywhere in Vermont on a nice day will always at some point afford beautiful views of the countryside. Saturday was no different, paved road to dirt road, through wooded valleys and up and down mountain passes, the sun at times absent only to reappear around the next bend, I made my way to the trailhead. It wasn’t much to speak of, a dead end with a few parking spots cut into the tree line, but it served its purpose. I loaded on the bug spray, and Bernard and I were off.

The description of the hike wasn’t lying when it said it was a constant uphill climb. It never seemed to end, up and up the trail went, a few switchbacks here and there, and every so often the steepness dissipated somewhat, the trail almost approaching level, but before long, the incline would increase again. I focused on posture, back straight over the legs, letting my gluts do the lifting, decreasing strain on the knees. I almost stopped to take a break once, but the moment I did, mosquitoes started swarming around my head and that alone was enough to drive my legs forward again, any movement enough combined with the gentle breeze to keep the mosquitoes generally at bay. The first half of the hike was all in the shade up the side of the mountain until Bernard and I got to the ridge at which point it continued climbing along the ridge towards the summit. By now the temperature was beginning to rise, beads of sweat already formed on my brow began to coalesce and form rivulets running down my cheeks. And still the trail went up. By this point I think Bernard began to question life, he slowed down, kept glancing back at me and every time he did, despite his canine mental capacity, I told him it was only 3 more minutes. At one point, the three minute proclamation became true and within that time frame we arrived at the summit, a little fire pit and a picnic bench tucked near a tree with a shaky viewing platform nearby. (The picture above is from that viewing platform).

I never doubted I would make it to the top, but its funny how motivation comes in different ways at different times, instigating perseverance when we least expect it. Saturday morning it was mosquitoes. If it wasn’t for those pesky insects whose only goal in life it seems is to inflict agony upon humans and other animals, I would have taken many more breaks and taken much longer to get to the summit. Who knows, maybe I would have even stopped before the summit (although I doubt it). Regardless, I found motivation that day in mosquitoes and avoiding the inevitable itch that would come if I stopped frequently for breaks and allowed them to swarm my head and bite away. Whatever and wherever the motivation comes from, it is incumbent upon us to find it, grab hold, and utilize it to our advantage, letting it drive that perseverance within us to accomplish whatever goal we have before us. For me on Saturday, it was getting to the summit, and I’m glad I did as the view was amazing. How often do we lost motivation, our perseverance dwindling, our goal moving farther and farther away? We need to stop when that happens and find that source of motivation that will propel us forward whatever it might be. It could be the smallest thing, and it is different for everyone, but whatever it might be, we need to search for that motivation and grab hold, letting it drive us forward. It obviously isn’t even just about hiking. Reading a good book could motivate us to change course and take the next step we’ve been meaning to take for some time. Talking to others, to different people could reinforce an idea we have held dear and push us forward, galvanizing our reserve, instilling that perseverance necessary to move towards completion. We just need to search a little, dig deep, we all have it within us to reach our goals, sometimes it just takes a little more effort to light the fire of motivation and drive the engine of perseverance forward.

As for the hike on Saturday, the app said the average time was 2.5 hours, but due to mosquitoes and my drive to avoid getting bitten, the total hike time for me was 1.5 hours. I hiked up almost 1300′ in 1.15 miles without stopping, Bernard cursing me under his stale dog breath, and my legs complaining at the lack of break. But I persevered, got the hike done, and almost made it longer on the way down by going to a different peak. However, I saved that one for another day, confident that I would be back to climb Rochester Mountain again.