Failure to success

Mt. Washington, NH

  

Not the average work day!

It all started in August of 2009. My older brother, Geoff, called me up from Rhode Island and asked if I wanted to take a trip with him and his good friend Sam.  I never go away without my family, but I thought some male bonding would be great at this time in my life.  "Where are we going?" I asked.  He exclaimed, "Mt. Washington, we want to summit the mountain.  The trip will be in February".  February, I thought, nice brisk weather, no running, just walking, "no biggie".  I own my veterinary practice.  I didn't have to ask anyone but my wife if I could take a few days off away from the family.  Being a cool guy from south Florida and having an ego bigger than the mountain itself, I said "of course I will join you, what the hell?" 
What the hell was right! What the hell was I thinking? What the hell is ANYTHING doing on the side of that mountain in the middle of winter? More importantly, What the hell is a man from Florida doing on that mountain in the middle of winter? What the hell was my brother thinking, other than trying to kill me? 
Not knowing better at the time, I chose to do it.  So, training began. Training consisted of high intensity cardio work out and walking with a 40lb backpack on flat Florida trails.  I have taken myself from a chubby 41 year old to a not very chubby 41 year old.  I have not been in such good shape since I was 18, so I thought. My brother and his friend, living in RI, had a bit of a different training. 

On our way up!

They were not too far from the mountains, so they would take trips and do training on the snowy mountains up in Massachusettes and New Hampshire.  I figured at the time that I was in good enough shape and  the only thing that they have me beat at is getting used to the cold temperatures.  I personally think that a jacket is quite reasonable in the low 70's. 
February came around pretty quick. I met my brother and his friend in RI and we drove off to Mount Washington. We stayed the night in the city of North Conway, where we met up with the 2 guides that were taking us up the following day.  The guides did a gear check with us and told us where to meet them the next morning. We woke the next morning at 4 a.m. It was pretty cold in that city, but that was nothing compared to what I was in for. We drove an hour to the base of the mountain. 
When we arrived at the base, the temperature had fallen to about 10F. Everything was white from snow. It was no more than 5 minutes after getting out of the car that I realized that I forgot something at home. It was not my boots or my jacket. Not my smart wool socks either. It was my courage! I think I left it at the Palm Beach Airport. Wherever it was, I couldn't find it. Here I was at the base of the mountain with quite a bit of fear. Not fear about dying, but fear that the desire to climb into my warm bed at home would overcome my desire to climb the mountain. After $2000 in equipment, airline ticket and hotel room, I was going to climb, no matter what.  

All ready? Not!!

So we started up. A breath of fresh air came over me. I felt excited and strong. I had a feeling that I was unstoppable.  I guessed my courage had returned.  I guessed at that point we were going to summit Mt. Washington. Well, within 10 minutes, all those feelings vanished. My head was no longer in the game.  It was down hill from there. 3 hours into the climb, my legs felt like they were wet sleeping bags. My eyes were going in and out of focus. Every step was getting more impossible. But people were counting on me and I had to go on. As time went on, I was stumbling.  The wind was picking up and the temperature was falling, and so was I. I was falling. And the guide did not like that. Truth be told, the guide said "It's time to send you down the mountain". I quickly said to save face "I'm fine", then I vomited. Despite what I said, he sent me down with the other guide. As I said my farewells to the group,which pushed on, I had a sense of relief. (My brother and his friend made it another 6 hours, then had to turn back due to exhaustion and freezing their asses off). 
I safely got down the mountain with my pride hurt. But I was safe. I also had the opportunity to have a few beers and a pizza. That was the best meal I ever had. Upon returning to Florida, I fudged the story to my friends.  But to you, this is the true failure story.

Contemplation.

Now, my success story.  My wife and I took a trip up to the White Mountains that following summer. I asked her if she would like to try to climb Mount Washington. With a bit of convincing, she said she would try. Being on a trip alone without the kids, we slept in and started the hike at 11 a.m. I do not recommend that to anyone, especially in that area. Nonetheless, we started. We went up Mount Washington in 3 1/2 hours.(Down took us 4 1/2 hours). It was spectacular. The views were amazing, and most importantly, my pride is back and better than ever. My ego is still a bit humbled. And yes I know, it is a lot easier to do the climb during the summer. I don't care!!!!
 
My wife and I have many little stories like this one locked up in our head. We enjoy reliving these memories by writing and talking about them.  The story of the hike up Mt. Washington will be told in another blog written by my wife.  Hope you enjoyed the story and had a bit of a laugh at my expense.

Success feels good.

Getting to Know Cool Florida Hikers

Amazing scenic photo I took in Yellowstone National Park

To begin this journey I think you should know a little bit about us.  My name is Eric and I am in my early 40's. I was born in New York but moved to Florida at the age of 3.  My father is a surgeon that studied in Bologna, Italy.  While there, he met and married my mom.  The combination between a New Yorker and an Italian provided my sister, two brothers and I with an interesting and adventurous childhood.  My father, being a young surgeon, worked night and day so my mom stayed home and raised us.  Things at home got a little overwhelming at times but it was a great childhood.

Eric

One of the amazing things my father did for us was to share his love of the outdoors. He made sure to fit in vacations that always had to do with history and outdoor activities.  That's where I got the bug for wildlife and the outdoors.

As a child in Florida my wilderness was the everglades.  At that time the river of grass was vast and pristine.  Its beauty and wildlife came right into my backyard (an alligator even ended up in our swimming pool). I spent my days exploring the local wildlife including alligators (which I love) and bass fishing.  We also took many trips to Italy to visit my family and travel through the neighboring European countries. My favorite parts of these trips, besides the food, were the trips to the Alps. This ignited my desire for travel and exploration. Other places we traveled to were, North Carolina, Canada, and Colorado.  Many of these vacations were ski trips. I have recently discovered that even though I love skiing, it was the surrounding wilderness that was more important to me.  It gave me the sense of freedom and peace.  I need this freedom in my life.  As we got older, my dad took us rock climbing, backpacking, and camping.  These were the best.  I always enjoyed testing my abilities and learning outdoor skills.

Marisa 

When I turned 15, I met a girl of Italian descent.  Her name is Marisa.  Our backgrounds had two things in common, we were both from Italian families and we both had restaurants in our families.  That's where our common ground ended.  None the less her physical beauty and more importantly her interior were so incredible that we developed an unbreakable friendship.  A never ending love consumed us.  We could not be apart.  My parents (thank God) also developed an unyielding love for her.  She became a part of our family.  So much so, that when my parents planned a trip, they purchased a trip for her as well.  She went from taking 1-2 family vacations in her life to traveling pretty frequently.  These vacations developed her passion and need to travel.  Soon college came into the picture (we went our separate ways for a year or so). At this time, playing the drums in a rock and roll band with my brother and friends was my main entertainment.  My brother and I stilled continued the act of outdoor exploration by going on backpacking trips in the surrounding areas such as New Hampshire and Massachusettes.  It was finally time to mature. I graduated school as a veterinarian and Marisa became a teacher. We always kept in touch during this time. The love we shared never died.  So, I did what felt great.  Right after graduation (1996) we got married and settled in Florida.  Two years later we started a family and have a beautiful boy and girl.

our children

Our lifestyle continues to include many vacations and a lot of outdoor activities. The experiences that we have had through the years with our family and friends and the ones we expect to make in the future are ones that we want to share.  Short stories are our chosen path to bring them to you. From deciding where to go next, to fulling the adventure.  These stories are full of excitement and humor, as well as fear, and hunger pains.  But most of all, a sense of pride, of completion, and a heart filled sense of fulfillment.  For people like myself, hearing and reading about these adventures gets me excited about the next trip and puts me at ease during the day to day grind of work.  It also teaches me outdoor skills that I may lack.  Marisa and I thought it would be fun to take our fellow bloggers on this journey from the past to future adventures from beginning to end.  We hope this blog will inspire more people to step into the wilderness with us.

A Florida Hiker?

Bison in Yellowstone National Park

Eric and daughter hand feeding tarpon in the Florida Keys

Florida is not the state most people associate with hiking.  But we (Eric and Marisa) have lived here most of our lives and have somehow acquired the desire to hike.  This connection we feel with the outdoors is deeply rooted in both of us and we just can't get enough.  Although the everglades is pristine and the ocean is beautiful, we crave the mountains, meadows, and forests.  

Our most recent and most challenging hike (Mt.Washington) set us in motion to do something about our great need to be in the outdoors.  We are on the verge of "big change," we don't yet know how or what but something is definitely brewing.  We hope blogging and tweeting will allow us some companionship on this journey as well as provide an outlet for reflection. Hopefully, linking us to people and families who enjoy the same types of adventures.  So here we are, married for 14 years, but together for 25, living in Florida and continuously planning our next  out of state, outdoor adventure.  Our ultimate goal is to hike the Appalachian Trail and Continental Divide Trail.  Even our children are gearing up in their minds to join us.  They have the bug too, yet, they are tied to the same concrete jungle that Eric and I are. We are hoping this blog will provide an outlet and feedback for our grandest adventures and  the big life changes that lie ahead in our near future.