After our final preparations for our first foray up the hill, we will have an early lunch at Base Camp. We start along the easy trail and then gradually gain height along the ridge as we pass the old airfield at Mingbo. There are a couple of steeper sections that will get the lungs going, and then the angle eases off for the final 30 minutes to Advance Base Camp, which is sited on some flat platforms created at around 5,350m.
Did You Know?
Some of the major rivers in the world originate from the Himalayas including The Yangtze River, The Brahmaputra and The Ganges.
Find Your Fit Fact
If you don’t have many friends who walk, you might want to consider joining a walker’s club. This allows you to make new friends and surround yourself with people who might want to achieve some of the same things as you.
Find Your Fit Activity Suggestion: Yeti Tag
Materials Needed: Pinnies for taggers.
Activity Description: Starting with 2-5 people being “it” (depending on numbers); the taggers must walk around with their knees and elbows straight, walking like a Yeti. When a tagger tags someone, they become a yeti as well. The game keeps going until everyone is a yeti.
After the Base Camp Puja, which is conducted by a lama who visits from Pangboche, we will have time to start sorting the loads for our first carry.
Did You Know?
A popular fast food in Nepal are called Momo. These are dumplings made from flour dough filled with chicken, water buffalo, or vegetables.
Find Your Fit Fact
One tool that can really help you to gauge whether you are walking far enough or fast enough is a pedometer. Your phone, if it is an Android or iPhone, can actually double up as a pedometer. Ideally, you should be taking at least 10,000 steps every single day.
Find Your Fit Activity Suggestion: Crevasse Crumble (rolling rocks)
Objective: Have students learn the difference between stalagmites and stalactites while being active at the same time.
Materials Needed: 20 tennis balls, 20 marker cones (10 of each colour), 6 small soft balls or size 1 mini footballs.
Activity Description:
Set up 10 cones with a tennis ball on each at either end of the hall, with a centre line which players must not cross and divide the group into 2 equal teams.
– The objective of the game is to roll the soft balls to try and knock the tennis balls off the opposing teams cones. The game is continuous and is played until all balls are knocked off.
TA
Latitude:27.84933
Longitude:86.82664
GPS location Date/Time:11/17/2014 06:26:01 NST
Message:Ama Dablam Climb 2014: This is TA’s location on the Matterhorn of the Himalayas. Let’s cheer TA to the summit.
Click the link below to see where I am located.
http://fms.ws/KLKQd/27.84933N/86.82664E
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This is a rest and technical training day. We have a very thorough session on the use of jumars, belay devices, prussiks and appropriate techniques for dealing with fixed ropes. It is very good to put all this in to practise one last time before we start to use these skills for real. We also cover radio procedures, mountain skills and have a look at the comprehensive first aid kit.
Did You Know?
Namaste means I salute the God in you. The same greeting is also used in neighbouring India.
Find Your Fit Fact
Walking helps you live a longer life. A study on about 8000 people in Honolulu, Hawaii found that walking just three kilometers a day can help decrease the risk of death by about half. Other studies have yielded similar results.
Find Your Fit Activity Suggestion: Mountaineers Tail
Outcome: Students will have to find creative ways to communicate with their fellow classmates, work as a team, and raise their energy levels.
Materials: 3 Bandanas or scarves
Setup: N/A
Rules and procedures:
The activity will begin by defining the boundaries for the activity. Divide the group into at least 3 teams. Each team forms a train by holding on to each others’ shoulders. The person at the back of each line gets a “Mountaineers Tail” (bandana or scarf). The tail is tucked into their back pocket so it is sticking out. The object is for the head of the Mountaineer Train to grab the tail of another Mountaineer Train, while at the same time protecting its own tail.
TA
Latitude:27.84923
Longitude:86.82666
GPS location Date/Time:11/16/2014 07:01:33 NST
Message:Ama Dablam Climb 2014: This is TA’s location on the Matterhorn of the Himalayas. Let’s cheer TA to the summit.
Click the link below to see where I am located.
http://fms.ws/KKRTy/27.84923N/86.82666E
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TA
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After breakfast, we visit the monastery at ‘Upper Pangboche.’ This is a beautiful quiet village just 15 minutes easy walking above Pangboche. After our first ‘puja’ (blessing) of the trip, we drop back down to Sonam Lodge for an early lunch. We then cross the Dudh Kosi for the last time (this time on a fantastic cantilever bridge) and make our way up to our Base Camp (4,450m). We don’t stay at the regular Base Camp location, but prefer to use a small Yak Kharka (pasture) a couple of hundred metres away. This is a much better, quieter location and the water supply is much cleaner.
Did You Know?
People in Nepal do not always greet each other using a handshake but instead, they put their palms together and bow their forehead and say “Namaste.”
Find Your Fit Fact
Walking helps maintain and develop your brainpower. In a study, funded by the National Council on Aging, published in the July 29, 1999 issue of Nature, found that those who undertook a walking regime were mentally sharper.
Find Your Fit Activity Suggestion: Yeti Tag
Objective: To get the students active while learning to avoid obstacles.
Materials needed: None
Activity Description:
– Select a group of students (4-5) to start as “Yeti’s”, they have the power to “Yetify” the other players by tagging them.
– Yeti’s must move around the space by walking only
– The other students must run to avoid them
– When a player is tagged, that student is now a Yeti. The game ends when everyone has become a Yeti.
TA
Latitude:27.84930
Longitude:86.82661
GPS location Date/Time:11/15/2014 05:35:09 NST
Message:Ama Dablam Climb 2014: This is TA’s location on the Matterhorn of the Himalayas. Let’s cheer TA to the summit.
Click the link below to see where I am located.
http://fms.ws/KJJb9/27.84930N/86.82661E
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TA
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This is the view from Lama Geshe’s”s house. We walked up this morning to receive a blessing before heading to base camp.
Here I am receiving a kata blessing scarf and protection cord from Lama Geshe.
During ceremony, Lama Geshe throws rice he has blessed.
The walls are adorned with photos of climbers that have been blessed.
Now, let the climbing begin.
Today we drop all the way down to the Dudh Kosi to the village of Phunki Tenga, before making our way steadily back up to Tengboche where we stop for lunch. After visiting the monastery and looking around the visitor centre, we drop down through the beautiful Rhododendron Forest to Deboche. A little further on we cross the Dudh Kosi again and continue along to Pangboche. We stay at the Sonam Lodge Teahouse which is run by Germin Sherpa. Germin has summitted Everest a number of times as well as Cho Oyu and Ama Dablam. Another awesome family for us to stay with. It is the closest tea house to our mountain and Ama Dablam dominates the dining room window. In the evening, we’ll have a chat about Acute Mountain Sickness as well as other altitude related issues.
Did You Know? Everest in the Nepali language is Sagarmatha which means goddess of the sky and it stands at a staggering 8,848 metres (29,035 ft) above sea level.
Find Your Fit Fact Walking is good for your bones. Research shows that postmenopausal women who walk approximately one mile each day have higher whole-body bone density than women who walk shorter distances, and walking is also effective in slowing the rate of bone loss from the legs.
Find Your Fit Activity Suggestion: Sherpa Says
Objective: To get the students active and get students used to listening to commands.
Materials: None
Activity Description: On Mount Everest, Sherpas are critical to the success of most every expedition, therefore, listening to your Sherpa is very important. Students are to scatter around the general area but close enough that they can hear the directions from the “Sherpa.” When “Sherpa Says” a command the students must do the action. For example, “Sherpa Says: Run around the general space”. However, to test the attention of your students, you may frame a question without the “Sherpa Says” framing to see who does the action. The object of the game is only move when the Sherpa says the command.
Altitude can be a humbling affair and it can be a bit like a lottery. Today I hit the jackpot and had a very slow trip up the Tengboche hill. I felt OK just that it felt like the “arse fell out of me” for the hills. I took it slow and steady and just kept putting on foot in front of the other.
Once again, Ama Dablam dominated our minds and our views throughout the day.
It was lovely to be back in Tengboche after four years. It hadn’t changed much which was a bit of surprise given all the new tea houses that had been along the route.
When hill climbing is tough, I often turn to a mantra. Here’s a close-up of a mani stone with Om Mani Padme Om mantra carved in. It’s a mantra I often use.
A highlight of today was a stop at the Tengboche Bakery for a bit of Rum Cake. It made me remember how my friend, Leslie found manna at the same place on her EBC trek.
We’re in Pangboche tonight and we move to base camp tomorrow. I hope there is a little more juice in my legs and lungs for tomorrow’s climb. This is the last stop for wireless so I won’t be able to send any more photos off most likely. I’ll do myself to be descriptive in my audio updates.
TA
Latitude:27.85734
Longitude:86.79443
GPS location Date/Time:11/14/2014 06:01:35 NST
Message:Ama Dablam Climb 2014: This is TA’s location on the Matterhorn of the Himalayas. Let’s cheer TA to the summit.
Click the link below to see where I am located.
http://fms.ws/KHx4j/27.85734N/86.79443E
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TA
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Today we’ll get our first proper view of Ama Dablam. We’ll trek up to the Everest View Hotel, a fantastic colonial style building, where we have tea on the veranda. The amazing view includes Taweche, Nuptse, Everest, Lhotse, Thamesurku, Kang Tega and, of course, Ama Dablam. We then drop down to the villages of Khumjung and Khunde (actually the ‘capital’ of The Khumbu but far quieter than the busy Everest Base Camp trail) and have lunch before descending further to Kyanjuma (3,600m) where we stay at Tashi’s place — The Ama Dablam View Lodge. Tashi, and her husband Lakpa (2 times Everest Summiteer), along the trail. We visit Tashi’s prayer room.
Did You Know?
The snow capped mountains of Nepal were named Himalaya because the word translates as “the abode of snow”.
Happy Find Your Fit Friday! Find Your Fit! is a provincial physical activity promotions/communications campaign designed to get individuals motivated and moving towards healthy, active living. The Find Your Fit! website is an excellent resource for physical activity throughout the lifespan.
Happy Find Your Fit Friday to ALL! TA is the ambassador for Recreation Newfoundland and Labrador’s Find Your Fit Campaign. How are you finding your fit?
Find Your Fit Fact
Walking helps those people who have diabetes. Walking for about 30 minutes a day helps to prevent type 2 diabetes and also helps to balance out blood sugar levels for those with the disease.
Activity Suggestion: Everybody’s It Tag
Activity Description: Choose a wide open space with boundaries such as a gymnasium. Have everyone spread out around the gym. When the game starts, everyone has to try and attempt to tag each other, without being tagged themselves. If a person is tagged, they step outside the boundary, do 10 jumping jacks and then they can re-enter the game. The game should last long enough to get everyone warmed-up.
TA
Latitude:27.82304
Longitude:86.73116
GPS location Date/Time:11/13/2014 08:59:10 NST
Message:Ama Dablam Climb 2014: This is TA’s location on the Matterhorn of the Himalayas. Let’s cheer TA to the summit.
Click the link below to see where I am located.
http://fms.ws/KGa8c/27.82304N/86.73116E
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TA
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When you stay at the Ama Dablam View with Tashi and Lakpa, one thing is guaranteed…an awesome view of Ama Dablam. All day. From Everywhere.
We journeyed up towards the Everest View Hotel and stopped to take a few panoramas.
This one is from the hotel. It was the first time I was with a group that paid closer attention to Ama Dablam than Everest. There were some climbers summitting today. We were tracking them with many telephoto images zoomed in. We could just barely make out the dots but we were rapt with their progress.
An older map from the hotel with Ama Dablam front and center.
Tim taking advantage of a high definition photograph to show us the route we’d be climbing. I must admit it’s hard not to be overwhelmed by the view of the task ahead but we”ll take it one step at a time.
Wow. The view view of Ama Dablam has us all talking excitedly. Fortunately Tim warned us not to get overwhelmed by the view. Step by step. Day by day. I listened to a podcast last night when the altitude provided a bit of insomnia and the take home message was don’t ask “Can I?” Instead, ask “How can I?” Sage advice when looking at this view.
After breakfast, we start on the trail alongside the Dudh Kosi (Milk River) which originates from the Khumbu Glacier some 50 kilometres away. We cross the river four times on the route today on some quite exciting (but very well constructed) suspension bridges. We enter the Sagamartha National Park at Monjo and stop for lunch at Jorsale. After lunch, we may get our first views of Everest on the way up the switchbacks to Namche Bazaar (3,450m). In Namche Bazaar, we convene at the Everest Bakery for Coffee and Chocolate Doughnuts and then continue along the trail to stay with Tashi and Lakpa Sherpa in the village of Kyanjuma. Today we will walk about six hours to our destination.
Did You Know?
Nepal is the world’s 93rd largest country is the world by landmass.
Find Your Fit Fact
Walking gets children to spend some time outdoors. Children spend less and less time outdoors learning to play and having them walking to school and walking outside helps them enjoy the outdoors more.
Find Your Fit Activity Suggestion: Yaks and Yetis
Materials Needed: A large number of pylons
Activity Description: Have the pylons spread out around the gym, roughly half should be stood up and the other half toppled over on the ground. Split the class in half. One half will be yetis and the other half will be yaks. When the game starts, the yetis will go around making the pylons stand up, while the yaks will be going around pushing the pylons down. After a while have the class switch roles and repeat.
We’ve done it. Climbed the Namche Hill. Famous for ben
Being the first humbling hill. We came up in fine slow
Style. One foot in front of the other. My phone is
Acting out so this is a bit of a poem.
We have an early morning flight to Lukla (2,800m). After arrival in Lukla, breakfast, and sorting the gear into loads, we will start trekking towards Ama Dablam. We will
trek in and stay in a teahouse at Phak Ding (2,650m).
Did You Know?
Geologists have performed tests on the Himalayan mountain ranges and they have said that they are actually geologically active and are moving at a rate of about 20mm every single year.
Find Your Fit Fact
Some people find that walking for 30 minutes to an hour straight may be too much to fit into their day. If so, you may want to break up your walks into three to six 10 minute sessions–the benefits are the same.
Find Your Fit Activity Suggestion: Yeti, Gorak, Snow Leopard
Today we’re going to play a game that helps us get familiar with some Nepal critters that live at high elevations. These creatures have thrived in an environment that most animals would perish in. The first creature is going to be a Yeti, the second, a Gorak, and the third is a Snow Leopard. The Yeti eats the Gorak but gets chased by the Snow Leopard. The Gorak dive bombs the Snow Leopard but gets eaten by the Yeti. And finally, the Snow Leopard chases the Yeti, but gets dive bombed by the Gorak. Each group will be asked to act out their creature: the Yeti has arms spread and high up in “attack mode”, the Gorak has arms frantically moving, and a Snow Leopard is up in a cat stance with claws up.
Activity Description:
TA
Latitude:27.77151
Longitude:86.72320
GPS location Date/Time:11/11/2014 08:23:52 NST
Message:Ama Dablam Climb 2014: This is TA’s location on the Matterhorn of the Himalayas. Let’s cheer TA to the summit.
Click the link below to see where I am located.
http://fms.ws/KEMPe/27.77151N/86.72320E
If the above link does not work, try this link:
TA
You have received this message because TA has added you to their SPOT contact list.
Ready for Adventure
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This morning we’ll be sightseeing and taking in key attractions in and around Kathmandu. The Kathmandu Valley has an amazing range of fascinating highlights. We will visit Pashupatinath and Boudhanath (two favourite places of mine).
Did You Know?
Kathmandu has more World Heritage sites than any other city in the world.
Find Your Fit Fact
Walking helps with anxiety and stress. According to research, if you go for a walk you can decrease stress by about 33%. A walk can do wonders for both your mood and your stress levels.
Find Your Fit Activity Suggestion: Instant Cold!
Outcome: To educate students about the important role body movement plays in regulating your body temperature while walking across Nepal.
Materials: 30 tennis balls
Setup: Ensure all 30 balls are in adequate condition and can easily bounce.
Rules and procedures: Students can either work as an entire class or the educator may choose to divide the class in half depending on the number of students.
The teacher must select a designated playing area such as the basketball court or a volleyball court on a gymnasium floor. This will be referred to as “the windward side” of the mountain. Once the group gathers in “the windward side” of the mountain, the group scrambles to keep the tennis balls from coming to a complete stop. If the tennis ball is seen to stop moving, the teacher must yell, “Cold Hikers, Cold Hikers, 1,2,3,4,5” and if they are able to complete the entire phrase, the game stops. If the game stops, the teacher can restart the activity.
Throughout the activity the teacher will announce the weather conditions that are occurring on the windward side of the mountain. This will allow the learners to make connections to material they are currently studying in science and geography classes!
If you ask people what they remember most about Kathmandu, they will often remark on the free-ranging cows. It’s not uncommon to see cows sleeping in the middle of the road with cars veering around them.
Another memory is of the Tibetan chanting and singing bowls you hear played from various shops. Here, Matt is being introduced to Singing Bowl medicine with the shopkeeper giving him a vibration treatment. We said the singing bowl might make an fine climbing helmet.
When visiting Boudhanath Stupa, there are several thanka painting schools. We visited one this morning to see the artists at work. The woman below is painting a kalachankra mandala thanka. It will take nearly 30 days to complete.
Boudhnath Stupa is one of the oldest in Asia and it serves as the centre of the Tibetan Buddhist community here in Kathmandu. I always enjoy the energy that surrounds the stupa and I must have 100’s of pictures of it. This was a new view captured from a roof top restaurant with the foothills of Kathmandu behind.
Each piece of the stupa is symbolic. Under the umbrella top is a void representing emptiness. The 13 golden steps represent the 13 steps to enlightenment. If you look down on the stupa from above, you can see it is multi-level platforms form the shape of a lotus flower.
The prayer flags are hung in the four directions and are paid for by devotees. Today, Boudanath seemed quieter than usual because the tourist season is beginning to wind down while our adventure is just getting under way. We fly to Lukla first thing tomorrow morning to start the five day walk to Ama Dablam base camp. We’re all excited to get into the mountains and away from the polluted and dusty air of Kathmandu.
After 24 hours or so of travel, I was spilled out into the warm dusty sunshine of Kathmandu. Stops in London, Frankfurt, and Istanbul passed quickly and suddenly, after months of planning, I am here.
Kathmandu is always part chaos, part lively, part humanity in all its forms all wrapped up in a buzzing, teaming fashion. Today, on little sleep, all that commotion was a bit overwhelming so I hung out in Thamel just long enough to visit with Raj and having some lunch before heading back to the hotel for a mid afternoon nap.
Many favourite things welcome me back to Kathmandu. Prayer flags, prayer wheels, fresh Lemon soda, and enough horns to fill several orchestras.
The team met for dinner today. There are 9 climbers plus Tim Mosedale, our expedition leader. Most are from the UK, with one from Norway, Ireland, and me, from Canada. It’s the time for building connections and support within the team.
I can barely keep my eyes open, more tomorrow.
Today is arrival day in Kathmandu. It will be delightful to be back in this vibrant city, catch up with several friends, and start meeting my Ama Dablam teammates.
Did You Know?
The population of Nepal is approximately 27 million which makes it the 41st most populous country in the world.
Find Your Fit Fact
People who walk and exercise more have a lower chance of exhibiting symptoms associated with colds and flu. This is because walking mobilizes the immune system which makes you more resistant to the symptoms of flu and other such diseases. When active people do have a flu, their symptoms are less severe than sedentary people by about 41%.
Find Your Fit Activity Suggestion: Hiking Boot Tag
Outcome: To engage students in a fun game
Materials: N/A
Setup: N/A
Rules and procedures: Students will form groups of two. You will begin by telling the students that when trekking to a mountain in Nepal, they will need to wear proper hiking boots! Ask everyone to don an imaginary backpack and hiking boots. Students then stand back to back to their partners. On “Go”, both partners spin around 180 degree and face one another. At this time, they attempt to tag their partners “hiking boot” with their own “hiking boot”. Be sure to remind students that hiking boots are quite strong and that it is important not to stamp too hard on their partners feet. Students should play best 4 of 7 rounds or continue playing until the teacher acknowledges the conclusion of the activity.
TA
Latitude:27.71858
Longitude:85.31689
GPS location Date/Time:11/09/2014 02:28:42 NST
Message:Ama Dablam Climb 2014: This is TA’s location on the Matterhorn of the Himalayas. Let’s cheer TA to the summit.
Click the link below to see where I am located.
http://fms.ws/KCFqZ/27.71858N/85.31689E
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TA
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Ready for Adventure
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“You’re off to Great Places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, So… get on your way!” ― Dr. Seuss
Did You Know? Electric power load-shedding is a way of life in Nepal and power outages can last for up to 16 hours a day. People usually have schedules of when the power is going to go off so they can plan around it.
Find Your Fit Fact Physical activity nourishes brain tissue and stimulates its production of neurons, synapses, and blood vessels. Some studies have found that walking can counter memory loss in people over age 50.
Find Your Fit Activity Suggestion: Follow the Leader It is important to be listening and following what your head expedition leader is saying to insure the safety of the entire team. This warm up will get students aware of their surroundings and listening to their group members. Have a student volunteer to be the expedition leader. This student will be the leader and the rest of the class will follow them. The leader can do any kind of movement that they wish, some movements including running, hopping, crawling, rolling, etc., and the entire class must follow. Switch up the expedition leader after every couple minutes.
― Henry David Thoreau
I first saw Ama Dablam in 2002 and several times since then culminating this past spring, when I saw the peak from many new angles as I completed my Great Big Walk. It was then, that I knew that I truly wanted to climb Ama Dablam, also know as the “Matterhorn of the Himalayas.” Ama Dablam is 6856 metres and is located in the Khumbu Valley in Nepal.
My reasons are many…a huge challenge, a technical peak, a shakedown expedition, a chance to face many of my inner mountains…and much more I suspect. My mantra line for this climb is “We’ve all got a mountain.” It’s both metaphoric, figurative, and literal. No matter what our path is life is, no matter what our goals are…there are mountains to climb, rivers to cross, hurdles to surmount, beautiful vistas to see.
I will post three updates per day to my blog. The first will be a general post with the planned itinerary for the day, a Nepal “Did you Know?” and a Find Your Fit Activity suggestion. The second post will be a SPOT update with my geographic position marked on a map. Finally, each evening (Nepal time), I will call off an audio post about the day’s highlights and activities. You can see all of the updates below (or by clicking here).
You can post comments or questions on any post and TA’s communications team will try to forward them to her on the mountain (no guarantees unless the tech gods co-operate). You can see what the weather forecast is for Ama Dablam by clicking here. The leader of TA’s expedition will also be blogging from the mountain, you can access his blog here. For those in the Twitter-verse, TA’s Twitter handle is @taloeffler and Tim’s is @timmosedale.
I’m hoping for your support me as I climb this next outer mountain and all the inner mountains in between. It’s is intensely beautiful and just a tad bit intimidating. To the summit (or however high I climb) and safe return!
A bend in the road is not the end of the road…Unless you fail to make the turn.
― Helen Keller
Tragic events in Nepal over the past six months have showed us over and over again the many ways in which high mountains can kill and injure. Falling ice, rock, and snow, storms, landslides, falls, altitude illness, and more take lives in a heartbeat. These hazards give me pause, make me question if the benefits of climbing outweigh the potential consequences, and fuel my respect for the mountains. When I learned yesterday that one Sherpa was killed and three climbers injured on Ama Dablam, a peak I was about to climb, that pause was deeper and longer. My heart filled with sadness and grief for the family and friends who in a heart beat were left to grieve and pick up the pieces. I sent prayers and intentions to those folks as well as the injured climbers-wishing them a speedy and complete recovery. And then I began to seek information…
I wanted to understand what factors lead to the accident. Was is a situation of being in the wrong place at the wrong time? Could the accident have been foreseen and therefore, prevented? What weather, route choices, timing led the climbers to be there at that moment? And many more…I reached out to trusted climbers friends and to the leader of my own expedition to understand what happened.
I asked myself if I still wanted to go.
My goals for this climb are to learn and polish my climbing skills. The climb is a check-in/shakedown with myself. I’m using it to take the pulse of my high altitude climbing career. My goals can be met without going near the summit. I will make active decisions each step of the way to manage and choose the risks I am willing to face/be present in/under/around. I am a skilled risk manager-I do it each time I teach outdoors.
I’m level headed and don’t tend to be at risk of summit fever. I know why I am there and what I have/want to return to…that doesn’t mean that accidents don’t/won’t/can’t happen in the mountains but I couple that will all the risks I face in daily life: driving a car, driving a motorcycle, being a pedestrian, paddling, eating vanilla dip donuts…we all have our own level of risk tolerance and fears to walk through. Managing exposure to risk is a skill just like ascending a fixed line and lighting a stove and I know skills need to be practiced…and that’s what I intend to do on Ama Dablam…practice, reflect, be smart, evaluate risks, learn, enjoy the hardships, revel in the views, be mindful, pay attention, listen to my gut, heart, and mind, practice, reflect, be smart, evaluate risks, learn, enjoy the hardships, revel in the views, be mindful, pay attention, listen to my gut, heart, and mind, practice, reflect, be smart, evaluate risks, learn, enjoy the hardships, revel in the views, be mindful, pay attention, listen to my gut, heart, and mind.
Two sleeps until departure…
R.I.P. Dendi Sherpa
There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.
― Maya Angelou
Before the fruits of prosperity can come, the storms of life need to first bring the required rains of testing, which mixes with the seeds of wisdom to produce a mature harvest.
― Lincoln Patz
TA Loeffler's Adventures that Move 