Sunday, August 14, I said goodbye to TOTT and Philmont for 2011. I didn't want to leave. The staff didn't want me to leave either.
Under the instruction of Andrew Ivey, the whole morning shift cornered me and picked me up.
They paraded me around the store with shouts of "Aaron!", "Aaron!"
I was in such disbelief that this was happening, and apparently the customers were too. Ascended above them, all I could do was look down upon their confused faces and laugh.
As the morning shift mob exited the front of the store, they dumped me on the lawn.
Again, I was group-hugged. I said my final goodbyes.
But I couldn't leave. Cameron, a six-year-old, clung to my left leg as Andrew, a 19-year-old, latched on to my right leg.
I can't thank the staff enough for that goodbye. It was an epic farewell that I will never forget. I loved working at TOTT this summer. I hope those I worked with enjoyed the snack bar as much as I did.
My friend Casey and I went out photographing a couple of nights. The first night, there was a thunderstorm in the distance. I caught a bolt of lightning on the photo above.
This photo was taken in the middle of Highway 64. We were supposed to watch the meteor shower, but the full moon and the cloudy sky made that nearly impossible. I took a moon photo anyway.
This was my last trip to Denny's. We had a final farewell for Madelyn, who left the next day.
Of course, it was past midnight while we were there, so most of our party was a little tired and loopy.
Last year, there was a guy who worked in the dining hall. His name was Adam, but everyone called him "Cheeks", because of his amazing cheek maneuverability.
This is Thomas, Cheeks' roommate from last year. Though he isn't as good at it as Cheeks, Thomas still puts on a good show.
There was a surplus of Peace Tea in the warehouse. I decided to market the product again on a second Beatles Night. This time, we had John Lennon glasses. It was a great last theme night.
Last time, we sold 32 teas. This night we sold 59.
I had a very cool Scout give me $10 credit at the Art Gallery in Cimarron. I didn't do much, but he really like talking to me and he was actually the one who patched me up on the trail during Super Black Death. He is considering staff next year.
The Art Gallery is home to Cimarron's only old-fashioned ice cream bar. I took Holly, Kevin, and Casey to get a milkshake/malt/banana split. They were excellent.
These are a few of my favorite distributors from the year:
There's Paul from Frito-Lay. He brought me all the chips, pretzels, nuts, and cookies for the snack bar.
And Pat from Admiral Beverage. He delivered my Australian Root Beer, Arizona teas, and Stewart's old fashioned soda.
Last is Kevin from Pepsi. He made my job easy with his laid-back attitude and helpfulness. No doubt, Pepsi is better than Coke (at least in Northern New Mexico).
My last day off. Melman, Dave, Andrew, and Jeremy all went to Raton with me. We got a room at the Holiday Inn Express to enjoy the pool, air conditioning, high-speed internet, a television, and a complementary breakfast in the morning.
Lunch was at the Oasis Restaurant in Raton-- an excellent, home-cooking eatery with delicious meals at amazing prices.
Andrew really liked the cherry pie.
We found a caboose and took a picture. Melman didn't jump, in case you were wondering.
And then we said goodbye to Brian, the seminarian from Minnesota. He was the first of our staff to leave Philmont, so we met him at the train station. It was the beginning of the end of the summer.
This is Mt. Raton. It's actually called Goat Hill, but I think Mt. Raton sounds better. And that's what the sign says anyway. We climbed this hill/mountain later that night.
And that's the way it was. We are the best 5 friends that anyone could ever have.
Cathedral Rock and the Cimarroncito Reservoir are located adjacent to each other. The views are spectacular, and Jason wanted to hike the short distance to get some photos.
So after cleaning up back at base, we headed out again.
I got a cool photo of my shadow climbing a rock.
The clouds were amazing and crisp on the bright blue sky background.
And Cathedral Rock towers over the water of Cito Reservoir. Glad we went.
Jason and I hiked to Lover's Leap turnaround in the morning-- easy; all downhill. As we waited for the bus, I sat under this tree, had some tuna for breakfast, and stretched out on my Thermarest pad.
The Tooth of Time was in the distance. It was some quality quite time-- something that I will not have much of when I get back to reality back home.
A passing car offered us a ride back to base before the bus came. We took the offer.
After Trail Peak, we descended to the depths of Crater Lake. It was a long day and we arrived at camp just as they were finishing supper. The staff made steaks, sauteed peppers and onions, and rice. They had leftovers. It was awesome.
The view from the campfire area was magnificent. As the sun went down, the Crater boys put on an entertaining show.
Jason and I ended up staying the night there instead of heading back to base. It was well worth the extended visit.
Continuing our last hike, Jason and I needed water. Along the route we stopped at Beaubien, one of the largest staffed camps on the ranch.
I ran into a crew from Erie (actually Fairview). We discussed the importance of getting wings at the Avonia Tavern I saw some of them before they left, but I didn't think I'd see them again before I left. I was wrong.
It was pretty cool to catch them on the trail. I talked to some of them before I left when I presented a Philmont equipment clinic last fall. In the end, everyone made it back. No doubt, it was a journey of a lifetime.
Trail Peak was next on the list-- the only peak on the itinerary. What's the significance of this 10,242-foot peak? In 1942, a B-24 Liberator (WWII bomber) crashed into the peak on a training mission. On the return trip from Albuquerque to Kansas City, the plane hit inclement weather. The crew perished.
As we approached the summit, my hiking partner, Jason, and I noticed shiny pieces of metal in the distance. Upon further investigation, it was aircraft aluminum. And the pieces got bigger and bigger as we ascended the peak.
Finally, we reached the largest remnant of the plane-- one of its wings. In the distance I saw a plaque commemorating the crew and the peak crested. What a beautiful view on each side. It wasn't the summit, but it looked amazing anyway.
The first stop on my last 2011 hike: Fish Camp. It was Waite Phillips' fishing cabin in the 1920s-- and what a camp it was. A clear, trickling stream meanders in front of the main cabin. The valley is a magnificent sight.
We didn't get in until 11 p.m., but when I woke up and actually saw the camp for the first time, this is what I saw.
The front porch is filled with rustic wooden rocking chairs. Campers and staff play card games in the evening after a long day of fishing.
A beautiful, rustic atmosphere seeps throughout the cabin. At the same time, the cabin has a homey, warm feeling to it.
So Jeremy decided to fill up a 5-gallon bucket with water to facilitate cleaning the ice cream machine. He neglected to take into account the water pressure of the sink.
Last week I decided my hair was too long. I found out that my friend Dave had scissors. Holly volunteered to try to cut my hair-- she had never cut hair before, but I figured I could always get the buzz if it didn't work out.
And things turned out alright. In fact, she did an excellent job and I kept it.
Yesterday, I decided to do something insane. It's called Super Black Death. Although I didn't die, it was the most challenging thing I've ever done.
Here's the challenge: You have to summit seven specific peaks and hike back into base camp within 24 hours-- all with a pack on your back. That's 27 total miles of trail-- including the very long and windy Tooth Ridge Trail-- from the last peak to base.
Peak #1 Comanche Peak
11, 303 ft.
Peak #2 Mt. Phillips
11,736 ft.
Peak #3 Big Red
11,020 ft.
The first few peaks were fine. We woke up at 3 a.m.on the porch at Cypher's Mine (the nearest camp to our first peak) and left at 3:45 a.m. The crew included me and some fellow trading post employees, Dave, Madelyn, and Evan. I packed light-- only my sleeping bag, rain gear, food, and six liters of water.
Sunrise from Mt. Phillips at about 5:20 a.m.
Summit of Mt. Phillips in the early morning.
Dave (left) and Evan (right) consult the map on the top of Big Red.
Peak #4 Bear Mountain
10,662 ft.
Peak #5 Black Mountain
10,889 ft.
Peak #6 Shaefers Peak
9,413 ft.
On the way to Bear Mountain we lost the trail. We were never "lost", but in the time between Big Red and Bear Mountain we consulted the map a lot. Luckily we stayed on track, even though we bushwhacked the distance. When we finally found the trail, we had to bushwhack up Bear because it has no trail to the summit. As we were about to descend and head towards Black Mountain, we ran into a ranger who was hiking alone. Our crew total increased to five.
View from the summit of Black Mountain, Baldy Mountain in the far distance.
Five feet on the Black Mountain geographical marker.
Descending Black Mountain, Tooth of Time in the distance.
Dave and Madelyn on the summit of Shaefers Peak. Almost to the Tooth.
Ascending Black Mountain was steep, but doable. Everyone says Black is the toughest peak on the trek, and on the way down I found out why. The steep and seemingly never-ending descent was tough enough. But there were two more peaks before heading back to base. And the hike to Shaefers was a long and trying one. Then came the Tooth of Time.
I'd hiked the Tooth five times prior to Super Black Death-- twice this summer. It's not too difficult of a hike. The shortest and most familiar of the seven peaks, the Tooth seemed like an easy walk to wrap up the trek. Wrong. It seemed as though God wanted to make the last peak as difficult as possible.
Peak #7 Tooth of Time
9,003 ft.
First, it began to rain. Thunder and distant lightning soon followed. As I got my rain gear on, I thought to myself, do I climb this final peak and finish Super Black Death, or get struck by lightning in the process? All my safety training thrown aside, I continued rock by rock. Giant boulders separated me from the top and as I was half way up, it started to hail.
The thunder sounded like it was right next to me. I jumped. And as I approached the apex, I saw a rainbow in the distance. The sun peered through the clouds and the hail almost stopped. I soaked up the moment (as my socks soaked up the rain) and with another clap of thunder, I quickly descended down the ridge.
Around 9 p.m. I snapped this photo. The entrance to base camp.
The rain eventually stopped. I was wet. So was my pack. But it was only three miles till the end. And I don't know how I did it. It was either the adrenaline from my Tooth experience, or the thought of the day being over.
But we all made it-- and with seven hours to spare. Yes, we beat Super Black Death in 17 hours. And no, I don't plan on doing it again. This was the most physically and mentally challenging task I've ever accomplished. I don't regret it-- it was quite amazing and rewarding. I thought I knew about perseverance before Super Black Death. Now I actually do.
