Celebrating Backing Down
Just short of a year ago, the plans started to form around the perfect hut trip taking place February 2017. We booked our dates last May and our group of 4 has been planning and dreaming of that hut for a long time now. That is until we cancelled it....Throw back to last Tuesday, as we sat around the table of the local brewery with maps, laptops and forecasts. The conditions weren't looking good. Not only for the weekend of in the area, but the terrain trap on the way to the hut is notorious especially during unstable conditions. As a wise guide said to me "There's no way to make a conservative decision while you're in there". There was no mistaking that feeling that hung over us while we saw more and more signs that this was a no go. And no amount of IPA would give us the courage to carry through with our plan...
It was a bummer.
It still is.
I'm writing this post when I could have been setting out on the skin track in one of the most sought after backcountry areas. But as hard as it was to let the trip go, I've learned that valuable lesson about trusting your gut and staying humble, before, during and after visiting the backcountry. I've ignored these feelings before both in life and the outdoors. So far there's never been a time that I was glad I ignored that feeling. Had we pushed on, sure there's a possibility that everything would have been perfect, but that feeling hangs on for a reason, and it would have added an extra weight on top of our sleeping bags and dehydrated food.
And so I've learned a valuable lesson on the art of letting go, and celebrating backing down. Perhaps a pint of IPA will be just the ticket for that celebration :)
