When You Don’t Make The Summit
As every tramper or climber has likely experienced, not every adventure goes to plan. When you start the day too late, navigation proves a challenge, or the weather doesn't play ball, there comes a moment when you have to turn around, even if the summit is right in sight. These moments often feel awful, and it can be really hard not to fall into the trap of giving up on the day and writing it off as a failure.
My latest summit attempt was a solo adventure up Homestead peak in the Rob Roy valley (aspiring national park). Unfortunately I had managed to bang my head the day prior, slept through all my alarms, and woke up 4 hours later than intended not feeling too flash. But the sun was shining and I couldn't resist the call of the mountains so I decided to hop in the car anyway and at least head up the Rob Roy valley track. Due to the late start and my brain being a little foggy from the previous days knock, I made some navigational errors and I was still 500m below the summit at my self imposed turn around time. Although the temptation to just push on was high, I decided to err on the side of caution and turn around. Feeling defeated I half jogged half slid down a few hundred metres of snow grass, growing increasingly frustrated and annoyed at myself. Just as my bad mood was starting to set in for good, a family of five goats ran out across the slope below me. It was just the moment I needed to pause, take a breath, and reset my mindset for the day. The sun was still shining, the mountains around me were still beautiful, and I had still managed 1800m of vert despite feeling sick and starting late! I snapped a few shots of the beautiful alpine flowers around me before heading down to the river for a drink bottle refill and a quick swim before rejoining the rob roy track. It wasn't quite the day I had planned, but it was still another day in the mountains filled with beautiful scenery and learning experiences.
Whenever we find ourselves on a different path than planned, it can be all too easy to fall into the trap of viewing our attempt as 'unsuccessful' and focusing on what we did wrong. All it takes is one moment to stop, step back, and instead focus on what the new path provides to realise that it isn't always about reaching the summit. Be gentle with yourself and flexible in your goals, focus on the intention behind them rather than the end product - what did you achieve instead? Maybe you're too tired to climb a mountain today, but that doesn't mean you can't still move your body more gently or sit outside and enjoy the sunshine ☀
Taking a moment to appreciate the beautiful Rob Roy glacier whilst the cloud clings stubbornly to the peak.