As I stepped out, I immediately knew that I would be enduring a long and treacherous journey. The wind whipped past my face, burning it with cold. Snow sailed through the air covering every surface it touched. I zipped my coat higher and began to trudge through the thick snow. The cold seeped into my body; my thick layers of clothing proved useless against the harsh cold surrounding me. It became harder and harder to see as the snow became heavier.
I looked behind myself to see my progress. I had hardly moved. The snow was so abundant that moving through it was almost impossible. My legs were heavy from the effort of taking slow steps. Despair filled me as I realized that the possibility of not reaching my destination was greater than ever. But I did not want to turn around. I was determined to go all the way; that was why I was here.
I had prepared for this journey for years. Ever since I was a small child, I had wanted to take this trip. Finally the day came when I actually began planning every detail of this adventure. I had saved up enough money and bought my plane tickets. I organized who would guide me to the summit. My excitement grew as the day approached for my leave.
When I started, I did not know what to expect. I had read so many blogs and articles about this climb. But nothing prepared me for the reality of it all. The conditions in which I lived were harsh. I was constantly exhausted from a full day of work. I had not realized how much body power was needed. After long days, I was completely drained. But getting sleep was another experience. Setting up my tent each night was hard. I was met with resistance from the snow and the wind. After a struggle, I lay in my tent, cold consuming my body. No matter what I did, nothing could warm me.
It had been so long that I had forgotten what day it was. I looked ahead and could see the peak, just a silhouette, in the distance. The storm was getting worse, the wind almost pushing me off my feet.
“It’s not going to happen today, Matt. It’s too dangerous to keep going. We have to turn back.”
I cringed as I heard those words. I was so close, yet so far. Reluctantly I tore my gaze away from the summit and began to slowly descend. My heart ached to turn around, to complete the final leg of my journey. But Mother Nature had other plans.
The weather for the next few days continued to thrash through the mountains. Unable to journey up, I had to return to base camp. What had taken a week to get up to only took a couple of days to come down from.
After a few days of rest in base camp, I was all packed up to go home. What I had accomplished was amazing. I was proud of myself. Although I was not able to reach the summit, I had gone further than I expected. As I got into a van, I looked longingly back at the distant peak of Mount Everest.