That Thursday morning started out pretty much the same as usual; getting the kids ready, cleaning up around the house...you get the idea. I had been feeling fairly discouraged about how slowly my body seemed to be recovering from Tushars. My run the day before was an easy 8 miles and I could barely slog through it. When I had gotten the message from MVH to run Lone Peak, I had mixed feelings. I had wanted to do Lone Peak all season but the prospect of that long of a climb gave me anxiety. I had done the west face of Grandeur several days earlier and was embarrassed at my inability to perform anywhere close to my normal pace. My pride and my ego were standing in my way.
Brent was going to be gone all evening with a church youth group and I knew there was no way I would be able to start 5:30. I had been planning on doing the unnamed peak next to the AF Twins the next morning but was struggling to find a sitter for the kids and the I couldn't contemplate the thought of the drive so early from Oakley to American Fork Canyon.
"Why not do the peak for tomorrow tonight?" This way I could take the girls to my parents and go after I put them in bed and I would be back before they woke up. Also, this would allow Jennilyn the time to take care of all of her responsibilities that evening. On top of it, we could watch the meteor shower on top of the world (or at least at 11,000ft)
I made the suggestion and let Jennilyn convince everyone else it was a good idea. I showed up at 9:00pm at the place for meeting and MVH, Jennilyn and I jumped into the back of Matt Williams car and took off.
By the time we got to Silver Lake it was already dark. Derrick, DJ, and Cait had already arrived and were getting all their gear ready. The jeep trail from there was about 3.5 miles before the trail started up towards the lonely third twin (aka the Bastard). Matt W. mentioned something about why we would be running the road when we could drive and so we decided, rather then run the road and hit only the one summit, we would drive to the trail head and hit all 3 peaks! I was all about more peak bagging and less running (Still super nervous about doing a ton of running....especially with other people).
The drive was exciting to say the least. All 7 of us crammed into Matt's car and he somehow managed to make is way up the "road" without any casualties...it may have been faster to run (at least for everyone else)!
It was a short climb to the first peak, less then two miles, and immediately I knew it wasn't going to be my night. My calves began to ache instantly and my heart was dying without a good warm up before the climb. I was regretting being there. I was sure that I was slowing everyone down and those who had never run with me before would surely never run with me again. Why hadn't I just done this on my own, when nobody else could see me struggle? I kept moving. Matt W. kept me company while the rest ran up ahead, joking and laughing. DJ, who had finished his 200 mile race only days earlier, was literally sprinting up the side of the mountain. My mind was BLOWN!!
luckily, nobody seemed to be frustrated with my pace (at least they didn't show it) and when we reached the top I felt instant satisfaction for coming despite my self doubt and my ego. There is a certain silence on the tops of mountains. You can hear a slight echo of the wind as it glides across the hilltop. We could see the lights from Wasatch, Summit, Salt Lake, and Utah Counties and the night sky lit up with stars.
We sat, shared a small bag of M&M's and a pro bar and took off to the next peak. Jennilyn had me take over as d.j. (not to be mistaken for DJ) and I felt some more life lift my feet. My confidence was beginning to return and I was finally feeling more like myself there, above the tree line. We spent very little to no time on the East Twin before taking off for the West Peak.
We arrived at the last peak and I think I literally began to sing. Jennilyn and I laid down close together to stay warm and Cait quickly joined. We were mesmerized with the sky, with the mountain and with our friends who all came out to enjoy the moment with us. There are so few perfect moments in life: The birth of my children, kneeling across from Brent in the Temple, sitting lakeside late at night on my first backpacking trip in the Wind Rivers, and this moment were among them.
I don't know how long we stayed there. It may have been 5 minutes, it may have been an hour. Not until we realized that both of the Matt's had taken off did we get up and start our way back to the car. We caught them on the south peak and when everyone caught up, we made our way down the mountain.
Finally I could run! I took off after Matt W. and Jennilyn and I could hear the speaker playing music from my phone not far behind me. Derrick, who was carrying the speaker my iphone was playing off of, joked that he had to catch me or he'd loose the music. The rocks and overgrown grassy trails seemed familiar to my feet, though I had never gone that direction before. As we dropped into the canyon the sky became even darker and the starts shone even brighter, blocked from the city lights.
When I thought the night couldn't be more perfect, the 4 of us who had reached the car sat down and watched more meteors shoot through the sky. Some streaks were bright, long, and slow, as though they knew they were center stage. Others were faint and sped through the air with purpose, easily missed and hard to catch. Each one was perfect.
Eventually we were all together again and we made our way back to the silver lake parking area. Most ran down the road. Matt, Matt, and I drove (I had no need for the extra miles and MVH had already done Mt. Olympus before joining us. Matt W. had no choice but to drive since it was his car). We arrived at our final destination and parted as quickly as we had come together. I refused to give up the front seat, much to Jennilyn's dismay ;) and it was able to see Jennilyn feel peace after a tough few weeks and write a beautiful poem on the spot, as the stars were dancing. I saw how much power DJ had so soon after he had accomplished such a feat only three days earlier. Matt W. and I had a chance to talk and laugh about how somedays, we can go faster then the fast ones, and MVH tried his darndest to jump out and scare us on the climb. Derrick was a welcome companion, living a dirt bag life, and capturing so much beauty through the lens of his camera. Cait was all smiles and filled with a radiant beauty. Kindred trail souls came together and experiencing that simple evening with friends enhanced the moment 100 fold.
