A Hike to Remember

Sometimes I feel as though I should be writing guests posts for my virtual friend at Confessions of a Fraidy Cat. Because I almost chickened out this morning.

Due to some miscommunication regarding the date the Tweedles’ dad wanted them for Christmas vacation, I had an unexpected Thursday all to myself. What to do? Cleaning should probably have been a consideration. Or writing. Or half a dozen other responsible, grown-up things. But I had a hankering to play.

Since last Spring, I’ve been stalking a few groups on MeetUp.com. If you’re not familiar with MeetUp, it’s a social network that allows people of similar interests to create activities that other people (generally strangers) RSVP to attend and then– attend. I’m a member of a handful of MeetUp groups, but have never actually participated in a MeetUp. That may not be entirely true. I did RSVP to two different MeetUps. Both were 5K runs. One I ended up taking the tweedles with me, and really wasn’t sure who I was looking for anyway. While I did see a couple of ladies whom I thought might be a part of the women’s running group, I never actually went up and introduced myself. For the other one, I did find the ladies. But they all seemed buddy-buddy, paling around and giggling and laughing. It seemed like they were a bunch of long-time BFFs, and I didn’t want to intrude. So, I ran into my friends, +Brian Lube and +Christy Lube and warmed up for the race with them.

I’m NOT what you might call a “social butterfly.” It’s not that I have some fear of social situations, I just don’t enjoy them. Especially large groups of people. I feel like I can’t get in a word edgewise. This is exactly why I chose to homeschool in high school– I’m just more comfortable doing things on my own. Not that I prefer to do things alone– I would much rather do things with someone. I just have to really work at it. So, when I realized I might be able to attend this hiking group’s regular Thursday hike, I RSVPed and went to get myself some hiking shoes and rain gear, since rain was a possibility. Wednesday night I packed my day pack, mixed up some trail mix, and got my clothes ready.

With the sound of the alarm clock at 6:00 am, the fear started in on me. “What if they’re all friends and I have no one to talk to?” “I’ll be the only Newbie.” “They’re all gonna be young and fast, not slow and unfit like me.” “These are ‘real’ hikers, and they’ll know that I’m just a wannabe.” I started talking myself out of it. It was cold. It might rain. Lots of great excuses… er… reasons… to stay in bed and skip the hike. But at some point I decided that even if all my fears became reality, I would still have fun, and enjoy the experience.

So, I got up, got dressed, laced up my cute new Merrell hiking shoes, made a last-second grab of my cute, purple scarf (for which I would be very grateful later), and headed out the meeting spot– a local WalMart parking lot. A total of 11 hikers arrived, of all shapes and ages. The youngest was about 15, the oldest were in retirement. Guys. Gals. Singles. Divorcees. Marrieds. Some decked out in ‘real’ hiking gear. Others wearing jeans. And all folks who enjoy hiking and backpacking. All of whom had to introduce themselves to each other. There were no buddies, no cliques. Just a group of strangers who wanted to hike, and didn’t want to do it alone. This group of folks would probably never wind up together in a WalMart parking lot, preparing to embark on an hours-long hike, were it not for MeetUp.

The end of our hike– despite the cold, wet conditions, everyone is smiling and enjoying the satisfaction of a hike well-done. (That’s me, 3rd from the left)

We piled into two different rigs (also, out of my comfort zone. Usually I’ll drive myself rather than ride with a group of strangers for an hour– but this was about trying new things and making new friends.) The rain drops started hitting the windshield shortly before we arrived at the trail head. I had bought a rain cover for my backpack and a waterproof case for my cell phone, but budgets being tight, I didn’t think I’d really need the recommended rain coat and rain pants. My Boy Scout Den Leader pants and maybe-it’s-waterproof running jacket would just have to do.

It rained. It wasn’t so bad for the first 3/4 of the hike, but it started coming down pretty good by the last two miles. I was able to actually wring out my running gloves when we got to the end! It was a little miserable. But it was mostly memorable– because I met a very sweet, fellow single-mom who also has 3 boys and used to live in Oregon; a lovely Irish native/former school teacher who used to breed Siamese cats; a former Marine half-way through his first year of college; a fellow Californian who’s son was born in the same hospital in which I was born, and who laughed graciously at my corny jokes; and another single mom with 2 teenage sons who reassured me that my boys will survive the divorce. And a handful of other kind, friendly, generous people. I didn’t realize that I needed to bring some cash to pay the folks who drove for gas, and one of the hikers graciously covered my portion for me.

Complete strangers to be feared at 6 in the morning. An eclectic collection of soggy friends by the end of a hike at 2 in the afternoon.