Mount Sagamook - got the best of me!

We got an invite from Jacques niece to go hiking with their family at Mount Carleton Provincial Park yesterday. At first, we didn't think we would have time (considering we wanted to begin to get everything in order for our trip). When we woke up Sunday morning - we changed our minds. We thought it would be great fun to spend a few hours with their family (especially for Noah to spend time with his cousin Daniel).


As we drove to a part of New Brunswick that I had never been before I was 'awed' by the sights of this beautiful province. While driving, Noah played his DS while Jacques & I had fantastic conversation. The start of a PERFECT day, right!

Once we arrived & met with Michelle, Jon & the kids - Michelle & Jacques went into speak to the 'registration woman'. Considering there are several trails, they got some advise & determined that the trail to Mount Sagamook was the best suited for our afternoon hike (according to the registration lady) - it was relatively short (considering we were only starting mid-day - around 12:30pm) and good for the kids. HA!
For the first hour of the hike, it was harder than I had expected but the challenge was fun. Into the second hour of our hike, though the view was breath-taking, the terrain began to get even rougher, very uphill and I was struggling - wondering how much harder was it going to get. It starting to make us think we should turn around and head back down. At one point, Noah said "this trail belongs to the devil"!!! (This was following a conversation we had this week about Satan - how he is bad, etc. I guess maybe I didn't explain this one very well!). His complaining continued to get worse, all rightfully so - this trek was HARD. His complaining was getting on my nerves. It was treacherous terrain, especially for complete amateur hikers or a 7 year old. It was quite obvious that our family was not as experienced or in shape as their family was - so they kept moving while Jacques, Noah & I went at our own pace!

Noah complaining!

View from 1/2 way up.

Noah & I struggled terribly.... I just kept telling him to pray to God for his help to get us through this. Noah made so many funny remarks about God not helping him. He would say, "Mom, I'm talking to God and he's not helping", then he would say, "God where are you?" All the while, I prayed in my heart like I had never prayed before. THIS hike was probably one of the MOST physically difficult things I have EVER done. Being over weight and out of shape, it's nothing short of a miracle that I made it through.

At one point, Jacques who was not struggling very much (I'm sure feeling terribly sorry for Noah & I) announced 'We're turning around, this is crazy. We're going to turn around and go back down'. Being stubborn and welcoming the opportunity to teach Noah a valuable life lesson (about never giving up and the power of prayer), I said 'No way, we are not turning back. We will NOT quit.' All the while in my heart, I questioned whether we should actually turn back!

At one point, Jacques & Noah got a little ways ahead of me. At one point as I was climbing through & over boulders I completely broke down. I felt so defeated and I broke into an ugly cry.

"THE" boulders, where I broke down.

I was so scared. Scared of falling. Scared we would not make it off that trail before sunset. Scared that one of us would brake a bone or twist an ankle. At this point, I got really angry.... Angry that we hadn't done our homework before choosing a trail. Angry that we hadn't turned around an hour before. Angry that I hadn't come more prepared. I got mad and shouted: "I can't do this. Why are you making me do this? What are you trying to tell me? What message are you trying to give me? Why have you put me in this place? WHY?"



So I made it to the top! This is me standing on the summit. Standing on the top of this little 777 meter (or 2550 feet) mountain made me feel so proud - although I don't really care to do this trail again any time soon!!!!

This is the view from the top of the mountain looking down at Noah.

It was a journey to the top and I don't just mean physical. The farther up we got, the less Noah complained, accepted our hike and believed that God was on our side. On the way down, we HAD to push it for time knowing there was a good possibility that if we didn't, we may not make it to the van before sunset. We were scared knowing this possibility, but we just kept going. For 3.7 km (2.3 miles) we stopped only once for about 4-5 minutes. The ascent was more difficult spiritually and the descent was definitely more difficult physically. The temperature was dropping and the frost began to cover many of the wet leaves, rocks and tree roots...making it very slippery. We kept moving....and falling (only Noah & I)....at a fairly quick speed. At one point, Noah actually made a game out of who ever fell the most times - LOST!!! I didn't like that - but it passed the time. We sang some songs and tried to remain positive - which was challenging but easier than on the way up. We actually had some fun family moments. In the end, I twisted my left ankle 3 times and fell about 8 times (one of which I fell on a rock with a point) and Noah fell about 20 times (but we lost count).

AND Noah confessed his gratefulness to God for helping us get through the hike and the situation we had been given. He said, "it gave us some fun family time, we get to be outside, spend some time with Daniel (his cousin) and we got to be together"

AMEN!

The physical & spiritual journey to get through this has been nothing short of amazing. Today, I am stiff, my back is sore, I have a bump/bruises on my buttocks from falling on a rock, the tips of my toes are even bruised from the deep descent (having my feet pushed to the front of my shoes - pushing my toes into the end) and it's hard to move but I'm glad we got through it - TOGETHER. There were many lesson's learned during our hike and I'm sure many more lessons will follow because of what we learned.

NOW today, when I finished telling our story to my Christian friend, explaining the reason we weren't in church last night, she asked me if "I saw the significance in all of this?'. I said, "No, what are you talking about?" So here are parts of the story that all 'fit' together....that led to this sign!

• Jacques & my 'great' conversation on the drive to Mount Carleton was about the possible parallels in the TV series LOST to the Bible? Specifically about this passage in Exodus 33:11 "The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend." Remember the 'spirit' in the hut that if they 'looked' at him they would die, or something (we couldn't remember)....anyways. Then we got chatting about Moses' story....
• Jacques niece's dog name is Moses, that joined us on our hike with Mimi (our dog)
  
• We were climbing a mountain and I just learned (sorry about my ignorance that most people probably know but I didn't until today) that Moses climbed a mountain and when he reached the top, this is where he wrote the 10 Commandments (which I also don't know what these are ;o( like I said, I am learning - I have so much to get caught up on)!!!

WOOOOOOOOAAAAAAH - have I ever been given a sign! Once she told me, I broke down into an ugly cry with an incredible overwhelming feeling.... Now I know for sure I am going crazy!!!


Here is some information about Mount Sagamook (that we should have learned BEFORE we hit this trail):

• The trail is 7 km long and rated hard.

• Some exerts from a review by Matthew Hogg on this trail:

"Mount Sagamook looms directly above us, a wall of trees so close I have to crane my neck just to see the top. The hike is described as the most challenging of the park, and it's becoming obvious why. The trail ascends 777 meters (2550 feet) to the summit in just 1 kilometer (2.3 miles) - so you do the math. The trail starts to wonder over tumbled boulders, marked with spray paint to show the way. Definitely a hazard for the ankles. We climb boulder by boulder, until the view behind us opens up completely. Soon after, the trail levels off and the trees close in again. The setting becomes surreal. A mound of rock rises above the trees, comprising the grand summit of Mount Sagamook."

Click to read his full review - it's quite interesting.



The terrain of the trail...
So in the end it took us between 5.5 and 6 hours to finish this hike. Starting with negative & heavy hearts and finishing proud and light.

And the moral of the story: before you go hiking, be sure you are prepared - both physically & mentally because you never know what God is going to teach you!

Oh, and when Jon tells you it's only a little bit longer - DON'T BELIEVE HIM!!!