The Friday after Thanksgiving found us up at 5:30 preparing for our trip to Grandfather Mountain. Saskia had been wanting to go for a while but we had been putting it off as it is about two and a half hours from where we live. But, we decided we were ready to make the trip. We were picking our friend Bryce at seven as he was going with us.

By 7:15 we were on the road headed east. The drive was uneventful and by 10:00 we were there. The area has hiking trails that are accessible to the public for no charge and a state park which charges per person for entry. We choose to go into the park since it was a bit more structured and had sights not accessible any other way.

The first attraction on the path is the Sphinx and Split Rocks. These are two huge and very old boulders. According to the information pamphlets they are thought to be over 650 million years old. We stopped here and Saskia and Bryce climbed to the top. We were then off the to top of Linville Peak via the mile-high swinging bridge.

At the end of the drive is a parking lot with, to no surprise, a gift shop. It is also the entrance to the swinging bridge and some hiking trails. The bridge is at the one mile above sea level elevation point and gives access to the Linville Peak. The bridge is the highest suspension footbridge in the country. The walk across it is easy and due to the renovation in 1999 it is very stable and safe. I did not notice any sway as we crossed. The view is beyond belief and the 360° view allows you to see for miles. Roads, buildings and lakes fill the landscape as tiny dots. The day was beautiful with clear blue sunny skies and a temperature good for outdoor activity. We stayed on Linville Peak for a while enjoying the view.

We then checked out the gift shop and it was as one would expect, we found all stuff related to Grandfather Mountain. It did however have public restrooms, and that is often a very good find. After the gift shop we headed to the parking lot to check out the sign about the trails. We were eager to continue our adventure.

We went to the information sign. It gave the distances of the different spots on the trail. The first peak, Macrae, was only .9 of a mile away. It also provided the following information.

“THIS TRAIL IS VERY DIFFICULT.. BE PREPARED FOR STEEP INCLINES WITH CABLES AND LADDERS SCALING CLIFFS. THIS TRAIL IS FOR EXPERIENCED HIKERS.”

Pretty simple it seemed. Not even a mile there and we were certainly experienced. I must have hiked at least two dozen trails some up to five miles in length. Piece of cake. So filled with enthusiasm, a little water, trail mix and camera the hike began. And, what a beginning it was.

The entrance to the trail should have been enough to make me rethink this hike. The incline was steep and there were no steps or laid out path to follow. It started with large rocks that had to be climbed. Some places I had difficulty scaling them and it turns out that this was one of the easier parts of the trail. The hike was slow for me. I have trouble breathing and anything on an incline is rough. At times I go ten to fifteen feet and have to stop to suck air. It’s hard on people hiking with me because they have to decide whether to either go on ahead or spend a lot of time waiting. I encourage them to go ahead but they usually don’t go that far. Most other hikers pass me. The young ones seem to skip along. There was an older couple and the man seemed to be having the same problem as me but a little worse. I felt for him.

A number of people would stop and ask me if I was ok. One group of people in their twenties seemed particularly concerned. I told them I was ok and they went ahead. A little distance down the trail I found them waiting. They said they wanted to make sure I was ok. I found this concern from total strangers touching and at the same time it made me wonder.

I wondered how I must look to elicit such concern from people? I wondered if I should throw in the towel and go back? I wondered why was I doing this to myself? I wondered if I would make it to Macrae Peak?

The trail continued and at places it was even more difficult. We reach a spot where the ladders and cables began for scaling the cliffs. The cables were to hold onto while you advanced a difficult incline. The ladders were very solid, home-made ones that were secured to the cliff. Some of them were almost vertical. There were places were one ladder would go to a small ledge and there would be another ladder. The worse was a cable incline followed by three ladders that ended on a narrow ledge of about twelve inches that had a cable to hold on to. The cable and ledge lead to another rock that had to be climbed to yet another ladder. When I reached the top of the third ladder and was on the ledge with the cable in hand I was totally out of breath. The kind of out-of-breath that had me gasping for air while feeling as if I was getting none. My attention shifted to really notice the ledge and how high I was and I started to feel fear. The sensation was so intense I started to feel panic. My mind started to be filled with bazaar thoughts and a type of vertigo set in.

I knew I would not be able to move from that spot. I knew that if I did not die the only way down would be if someone carried me off or if a helicopter came to get me. I didn’t think I need to worry about getting down because I was certain I was going to die. I could envision myself falling and bouncing off the side of the cliff over and over as the bones broke and the body bleed to death. I knew this would happen because I would never catch my breath which would make the vertigo more intense leading me to lose my grip and balance. I was a goner. And then I remember the words of the Buddha:

“There is nothing so disobedient as an undisciplined mind, and there is nothing so obedient as a disciplined mind.”

I realize that my mind was feeding the fear that I would not be able to catch my breath. That was like throwing wood on a raging fire which was really heating up the panic. I focused and started to concentrate on the breath. One breath in, one breath out, over and over and the panic subsided to fear and the fear to acceptance. I looked around and saw the view was beautiful. I could see for miles and the vertigo had gone. I noticed the ledge with the cable was doable. Placing one foot in front of the other I moved to the next level.

There were several more spots that were extremely difficult for me but I managed to make it through by taking my time and watching my breathing. The final ladder lead to a large boulder with a pretty good incline. This incline lead to the top of the peak. It was breathtaking. Another 360° view with no obstructions, not even a guardrail. It was large, at least fifty by fifty feet. I walked around and looked in all directions. I sat and contemplated how beautiful and magnificent it was. A dynamic creation, million of years in the making and I was a very small dot on the surface. This added to the realization that in spite of how far I could see, my view was a very small part of the bigger picture and I an even smaller part.

As I enjoyed the view I understood the answers to the questions I was asking myself earlier. I knew that people expressed concern because that was their nature. As people the ability to care for each others welfare is a demonstration of the evolved nature of humans. Seeing people with the desire to help their fellow man is a heart-warming sight in the mist of the turmoil in the world today. I reflected on the fact that I hoped I would know when it was time to throw in the towel, when it was in my best interest to stop and enjoy life at a slightly less rigorous pace. I understood that I do this to challenge myself, to live my life to the fullest. But most of all, I knew that the only way I would see the view from the top of the mountain would be to climb it.