Wow, so yesterday work buddies Mike, Velimir and I embarked on one of the most intense, challenging, and ultimately memorable trips I’ve ever been on.  “V” had scheduled a 20+ mile hike from Del Valle to Rose Peak and despite the 102 degree forecast I knew I wanted to do it.   By the end of the hike I had gained a whole new appreciation for the power (and limitations) of the human body and an individuals ability to push past the pain.  But I’m getting ahead of myself.  Let me start at the beginning.  =)

At 9:45 Mike, Velimir and I met “V” and the rest of the crew at the Lichen Park trailhead parking lot.  It was already warm so we knew proper hydration was going to be key.  I had 2 liters of water with ice, Mike had brought 6 liters (we ended up needing it all), and Velimir had 3 liters in a new Camelbak so we were set to go.  “V” started out the trip by outlining our path which goes something like this “a steep ascent followed by a steep descent followed by another steep ascent and descent then we ascend again to get to Rose Peak.”  Make no mistake, these ascents/descents were major and it’s not like once you get to Rose Peak you’re done.  You’ve got to turn back around and do it all over again to get back.  Onward and upward (and downward)! 

"V" outlines the path were were to take with his finger while the eager crew looks on. There were 12 of us in total.

The first part of the hike seemed like a lot of uphill but it wasn’t incredibly steep so we were able to “ease” into it.  Along the way Mike and Velimir pointed out several dead deer and of course I had to take pictures of them.  They’re kind of beautiful in a way.

What appears to be a juvenille deer that became a meal for other woodland predators/scavengers.

While hiking up a steeper portion of the trail I realized how much I disklike hiking in boots.  I tend to hike very fast and power up hills on my toes however that’s nearly impossible in boots.  I was unable to get the correct size of tennis shoes in time for this hike so I was stuck hiking in my super heavy waterproof (ie. super hot).  Oh well, it may have actually been a good thing that I was hiking slower since the heat was seriously zapping everyone’s strength and energy.

"V" and me. Yeah I know, I'm wearing a bandana. Yar, it drives me nuts (my pirate impression).

After hiking for what seemed like forever we reached the first crest and were treated to a nearly level section to stretch our legs.  Then it was on to the first descent which seriously tested our knees, quads, and footing as it was nearly impossible not to slide down sections of the trail.  Let’s do this!  =)

Mike and Velimir at the bottom of the first valley in our hike up to Rose Peak. Nice hat Velimir. =)

After reaching the base of that first valley we had to hike back up.  About halfway up that climb we encountered a group of equestrians who had camped the night before and said we were the only other hikers they had seen on the trail.  They said they were glad to see us because then they didn’t feel so crazy.  Wait, they’re on horses.  Maybe we are crazy.  Nah… 

The riders offered to take a picture for us which was really nice. This was supposed to be the "fun" photo and ended up being the only group photo we ended up with.

More hiking and about 3 miles from the summit Mike, Velimir and I decided to take a self-shot group photo at nearly the same location as a picture I was in from March.  Velimir is so funny.  He totally directed this shot which was awesome.  =)

Velimir had the great idea that we should all look off into the distance. He's a natural at looking casual. Mike and I look kind of silly. =)

We were pretty much all smiles although Mike’s crazy calves and quads were starting to cramp up on him.  No one realized how serious the problem was until we were about 20 minutes from the summit and both of Mike’s legs cramped up to the point where he couldn’t walk.  At that point we sat down, forced Mike (he was being obstinate) to eat turkey jerky and drink water.  “V” had said that a lack of salt would result in cramping so it was super important that Mike try and replenish his salt levels.  We sat there for at least 10 minutes and watched Mike’s tortured leg muscles dance in the heat.  Seriously it was insane.  =(

The next thing that happened seemed equally out of this world.  As we were sitting on the side of the trail waiting for Mike’s muscle spasms to subside two horses came running around the corner and approached us with interest.  Velimir and I shoed them off only to have a bull, calf and cow follow their lead and pass right by us.  The horses then turned back to stare down the cows who then charged the horses.  It was like a horse/cow game of tag.  Wow……

Crazy "thestril" horses that materialized out of nowhere. Kinda weird but super cool.

What? Now cows? What do they know that we don't? What monster lurks at Rose Peak?

Crazy animals. I've never seen cows and horses play tag before.

Because we weren’t sure what exactly was going on with Mike’s legs and how long it might take for them to recover Velimir went ahead and hiked to the peak.  At a certain point Mike said, “Let’s go,” and even though you’d think I would have realized his leg situation was pretty serious and say no, I figured if he was going to make it back the remaining 9 miles to the car he could probably make it to the peak.  Stupid logic and now I know better.  You don’t “F” with that kind of stuff.

Half way up the last section of the ascent and about 10 minutes from the peak Mike’s legs completely seized up.  This time I realized the severity of the situation and put down my pack, told Mike to stay down and I headed to the peak to see if anyone was up there.  Nope, they had already headed around the corner to get water from Maggie’s Half Acre.  I ran back to where Mike was and found him still seriously cramping up so I headed back to the last junction to try and find “V” or anyone else from the crew.  Magda, Craig and Rajesh were at the junction and Craig had half a banana so I took that back to Mike and asked Magda to send “V” up when he got back from Maggie’s.

“V” came up about 10 minutes later and saved the day by massaging Mike’s legs so they would finally relax.  At this point “V” realized it would take quite a while for us to make it back so he gave everyone else permission to head back down as long as I could give him and Magda a ride back to Stanford.  Done and done.  =)

While “V” continued to work on Mike’s legs I ran down to the junction with Rajesh to leave Marshall’s phone number so they could call and let him know what was going on when they got within cell phone range.  I was very happy to see that Velimir had joined the group at the junction by this time (apparently he had washed his feet, hands and relaxed at Maggie’s Half Acre so it took him a while to catch up with the rest of the group). so after making sure Rajesh had Marshall’s numberMagda, Velimir and I hiked back

The next 3 hours was spent slowly navigating the steep slopes and taking breaks regularly to let Mike’s cramping legs rest.  When we got the first flat spot we took the opportunity to get a few last pictures before the sun went down.  Still smiling..  =)

Mike, me, and Velimir. Hiking buddies 4 Life man.

Sunset and still about 6 miles to go.

At about 8:15 with the sun long gone I had an opportunity to call Marshall on Velimir’s iPhone (yes, the iPhone is a quite useful appliance) to let him know we were going to be later than I had originally thought.  Apparently he had not gotten the voice message from Rajesh explaining what had happened so he was a bit worried.  Sorry about that babe.  =)

The rest of the hike was pretty crazy.  Even though it was mostly downhill Mike’s leg cramped incessantly and it didn’t seem like we were getting much closer to our destination.  =(  Fortunately at about 9pm with 2 miles left to go we were relieved to hear the beautiful sound of a pickup truck rumbling up the trail.  Oh thank God, we’re saved!  I guess the other half of the group had let the rangers know that we had an injury in our group so an hour after the park closed they came looking for us.  We all hopped in the back of the truck and enjoyed the dusty and bumpy ride back.  Best hike ever!! 

After getting back to the parking lot we parted ways with Velimir and I drove Mike back to the lab and Magda and “V” to Stanford.  It was 11:35 by the time I got home.  A long day but everyone got back safely so all’s well that ends well.  Oh yeah and I got two massive blisters.  So painful. 

My injuries were minor yet still painful. This blister appeared to have blistered twice over the course of the hike. Ouch!

Thanks to “V” for being the most awesome hike leader and making sure that we all finished the hike in one piece.  You’re the best!  Looking forward to another great trip soon.  =)

For the rest of the pictures check out my Picasa album here.