Stay on Offense Climb Mountains

Attacking Adversity

Go Hiking And Be Aware

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How hard could it be to be aware when your hiking? You have to pay attention or you fall. Of course, Anthony De Mello is not talking about that kind of awareness. He says it is the kind where you don’t care whether you live or die. I reviewed his book and you can read more about it there.

So I will take a little license here to just discuss awareness when it comes to hiking.

Nature

When you are in nature you are going back to your roots as a human. It is, after all where we all lived our lives many moons ago. Now we are surrounded by concrete and skyscrapers. It is far from natural.

One could argue that cars and concrete require a lot of awareness. You have to avoid being hit by a car. But it is actually awareness filled with distractions. People looking at their phones. You are really not aware.

Cell Phones

These devices are not just in the city. People take them on hikes. That would be fine if they left them in their pocket for emergencies, but they don’t. I see people talking on their phone while hiking up a trail. Please don’t do that. It insults your surroundings!

How can you be aware of wild things or dangers if you are on your phone? It is a deadly habit in the woods. I remember an instance when I was running down a trail and came upon a young lady with earpieces in place. She couldn’t hear me coming. So I scared her and she screamed. Good thing I was not a bear.

I suppose it will be much better when instead of the cell phone we all have the chip in our head and will be scrolling Instagram in our mind. Just as dangerous I would presume, but what do I know about chips in our heads?

In the meantime, keep the phone in your pocket until you want to take a picture. Listen to the wind in the trees and the silence. Be aware of your surroundings.

Go Hiking And Don’t Step On A Rattler

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Another hike from the bottom of the Grand Canyon, on the Colorado River that I was a part of, was a hair-raiser. These hikes were typically a 5 to 10-mile round trip and this particular one was no exception. It was designed to enable us to get the view you see in the picture above.

Snake!

One of the guides would not allow me to use my trekking poles which I liked, because my knees were much worse in 1998 than they are now. As it turned out, it was probably a good idea.

The hike began as a medium grade climb. Everyone lined up behind the guide. Part of me does not even like the idea of a “guide,” but in the Grand Canyon, you need one. They know the trails and dangers. Soon we came to a flatter area with low, dry bushes. We were just enjoying the desert scenery when the guide yells, “snake to your left.” Then he says, “Move slow but keep moving.” Nothing connects to your primal sense of survival as hearing that word. I looked to my left and just in front of me was the biggest rattlesnake I had ever seen. It was curled up and in the striking position, but it was asleep! Whew! So we all moved right on by with no problems.

Scorpions

The snake is not the only danger you face in this area. We were told at the very beginning of the trip to be sure to keep your boots inside your tent overnight. Otherwise, you might get a real surprise when you put them on the next morning. There is a clear or pale scorpion called centruroides that crawls around looking for shoes I guess. They only bite when defending themselves, but I guess if you try to crush them in your boot they might take that as an attack.

These pale scorpions are deadly. Here is a quote for you, “The estimated annual number of scorpion stings is 1.2 million leading to 3250 deaths (0.27%). For every person killed by a venomous snake, 10 are killed by a venomous scorpion.” However, I also read that these deaths have declined over the years.

So if you are climbing in the desert you need to be cautious. Still, don’t let them stop you! Go hiking!