Humbled by a hiking trail
Humbled by a hiking trail
I have a confession.
I'm a slug. I don't want to be a slug. But I am, in fact, a slug.
Do I walk my dogs everyday? Yes, we very rarely miss a day. However, that is not due to the fact that I'm highly motivated to leave my couch. Nope. If I don't walk my tiny jerk of a dog, she will walk all over me. If I try to ignore her, she will escalate the situation to scratching and licking my face because she knows that's guaranteed to get my attention. If I try to buy more time by half playing/half pushing her away from me, she will bite me or stick her little butt right in my face.
There's nothing like being tortured in your own home by a dependent that not only doesn't pay rent but also spends the majority of her time making sure we humans can't have nice things.
Anyways, back to hiking trails.
The traveling version of myself does not forget that my daily physical activity isn't what most would label as "great", but the combination of wanting to see all of the things and my belief that I can overcome most physical limitations with my mind requires me to push myself sometimes.
That situation presented itself in Scotland.
I read the sign at the Old Man of Storr trailhead that said 2.75 miles/2 hours and thought "huh, this might be steep because otherwise there's no reason it should take that long to hike that short of a distance."
Sure enough, as we rounded the first corner as far as my eyes could see were some steep uphill stairs constructed out of boulders.
I muttered something that you shouldn't say in front of your mother and instantly thought that this was the universe reminding me to have more empathy for my tired retreat guests.
My ego needs you to know a few factors that were not working in my favor:
I'm never dehydrated. If anything, I'm normally over-hydrated. But when in Europe, I sometimes dehydrate myself because there is truly a lack of public restrooms. Even though I've peed outside/in public countless times, it's not my favorite. I was very dehydrated before we even got to the trailhead.
I was also lacking in the nourishment department because there was a lack of food available in this remote area. We tried to find a breakfast place in the morning and failed, so we settled on gas station sandwiches and our snack bag.
We had started this day by hiking a 5 mile trail followed by a 1.5 mile trail, so my couch potato body was already suffering. All it wanted was a gallon of water, a shower and a couch.
I had a bloody nose. Seriously universe? In intense situations, I always do breathwork. It's part of my mind over matter practice. But damn when you exhale through your nose and blood spirts out, it makes it more of an issue than a survival technique.
I'm not 20 anymore. While I believe my body is capable of a lot and much more than I give it credit for on a daily basis, if I push it like this, I will pay for it for multiple days, not a few hours.
I did make it to the top.
I think I took 3 pictures and a 10 second video because all of my energy was going toward not dying. Never dramatic, I know ;)
On my descent, I experienced what I believe to be major leg cramps. Not positive because I've never had them before, but it felt like I had sprained my right knee. I didn't, but I really had no idea what was happening and what it was going to look like limping down this stupid, beautiful mountain.
I sat on the steps and tried to stretch my hips and legs to see if I could fix the issue and humbly told my buddy E that I was in rough shape. I told her not to wait for me, but if she was back at the car for more than an hour, then maybe she should consider calling for help.
In moments of discomfort, mental or physical, I try to stop my mind from doom spiraling and asked myself what the lesson was. I believe life is happening for me not to me, so I try to find the lesson and move on.
My main takeaways were:
I'm trying to get better at asking for help. Normally, I'll fake it til' I make it and sit in a constant state of stoicism so that I don't worry or burden anyone. I wasn't going to mention my knee issue, but I forced myself to be humble and human. The world didn't end either. Shocking, I know.
I normally over-research an area and over-plan a trip. I've been trying to be more flexible, but my threshold is being unprepared on a trail. Not having the right gear or enough water or food is stupid and can be dangerous when you're out in the middle of nowhere. I decided that I'm going to cut back on traveling a bit because currently I don't have enough time to research the amount of trips I'm taking. I am going to leave room in my itinerary for the unexpected and aimless exploring. I still think it has it's place and it challenges my desire to control everything, but I'll be going back to my old way of over-researching trails I plan to hike.
I'm more committed than ever to not take retreat guests on a trail that I've never personally experienced.
If I'm going to hike the Inca Trail for my 40th next year, I gotta get off the couch and I welcome the motivation.
I still believe I can talk and breathe my way through almost anything. On my descent, I counted my breaths and synced them with my steps and reminded myself to look up and enjoy the beauty once in awhile.
We will be hiking the Old Man of Storr on the Scotland Retreat, but that will be the only excursion for the day. We'll also make sure everyone has enough food and water per usual. And of course, we'll encourage guests to choose their own adventure and opt-in only if they want to.
If you want to see a landscape that will knock your socks off, (regardless if you hike the Old Man of Storr) join us in Scotland. There's only one spot left!
Images by Personal Branding Maven Elise Kutt at Mod Bettie Portraits
My name is Anna VanAgtmael, and I am retreat host, travel designer, and a certified yoga instructor with a passion for yoga, travel, and connecting with others.
I believe in trying everything once. My values lie in collecting memories over things.
My ambition is to inspire and encourage you to unmask your fears and jump into the unknown.
Anna VanAgtmael | Retreat Host | Travel Designer