The ‘Whew’ Factor

One of the people with whom I correspond regularly mentioned that, in a recent blog entry of mine, “once again there was a ‘Whew’," meaning that I take chances, some risks when I adventure - it’s true. She said, as far as she was (and most rational people are) concerned, “It's better for me to experience the whews vicariously. The 'Wow' factor, rather than the 'whew' factor is more me. Thanks for giving [me] both." ‘Wows’, not ‘whews’ for her.

It's definitely 'whews' for me, which often lead to the 'wows'. After spending years of my life not feeling fulfilled and nagged by thoughts that there is something specific I am here on earth to share, I believe I have found it – my appreciation of the profound beauty of our natural world and love for adventure. My friends and family know that, should I die doing this, at least I have died doing what I love – and I sincerely mean that.

When I ‘adventure’, I am not foolish. I take calculated risks, meaning I assess situations based on experience and confidence in my physical abilities. For example, most times I hike alone, sometimes far away from the possibly of rescue. I do not take a cell phone or emergency beacon with me; those modern conveniences would ruin the sense of adventure for me. I know that many cannot understand this - when I tell people I refuse to carry such equipment when I hike alone, they invariably look at me as if I have a screw loose. “What if you get injured?” they say. Honestly, I never even consider that, I keep myself in the best shape possible and have the confidence borne of 35 years of experience.

People who have read the story about the guy who, while canyoneering alone in Utah, got trapped by a boulder and had to cut his own arm off to escape, say “That could have been you!” and it’s true - to some extent. I am not apt to perform seriously risky maneuvers with thirty pounds of camera equipment on my back. I usually keep it reasonable. I am skilled at finding alternative routes or other ways to get to places I really want to be. Or, occasionally, I have to admit defeat when I know something’s beyond my technical abilities, I tell myself “It wasn’t meant to be.”

All the same, when I am hopping from slimy boulder to slimy boulder amidst a rushing stream, creeping to the edge of a precipice for a better shot (that's me in the red in the picture above - Photo: Mike Reade), hiking in the dark with just a headlamp to be somewhere at sunrise or snowshoeing through frigid fields of ice in the dead of winter, there is a chance I could suffer a debilitating injury. Nevertheless, it’s a chance I need to take - that blood pumping adrenaline rush that comes with a little danger is part of my muse, that which inspires me and makes me feel alive. And, there is the fact that I am still here to talk about it.

That said, there was this one day in Utah…

Coming soon – The Day I Almost Died, Twice.