This past weekend I drove two hours to the Delaware Water Gap to climb Mount Tammany on the Appellation Trail. I have started to hike daily in a quest to get back into shape. I wanted to challenge myself with something other than my flat old man morning walks of a few miles or so. I wanted to gauge my progress. I’m old and out of shape. I’ll be sixty-five in a month. It has been over five years since I had challenged myself physically by doing my first triathlon and a half marathon. This four-mile hike up then down a rocky mountainous terrain, was a challenge. I had to stop a few times to catch my breath, but I made it. My legs got a little fatigued, but I persevered and made it.
My motivation for this I wrote about in my blog on April 6th. A friend of mine had climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro a few months back for charity. Him and his group of 19 local climbers raised a half million dollars for Big Brother / Big Sisters. In my mind this was my start in my prep for my long-shot quest of another first – to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro next year (to raise $’s for charity). OMG. I am making this a written committed goal by posting this on my blog. I’m putting myself out there – for others. Many miles to hike and pounds to lose to get there. Can I do it? We’ll see.
Oh, and my hike up then down Mount Tammany provided me two additional firsts. First time I saw a black bear with cubs (4) and a rattlesnake in the wild. They came within a dozen or so feet of me. Very COOL! One never knows what you will find in pursuing a first?