Take a hike!

About a month ago, my coworker suggested I join the 2-day trip up Yushan (Mount Jade). Yushan is the highest peak in NE Asia (nearly 4km in altitude), and in recent years has become a popular mountain for hikers. I figured the group trip would be a good opportunity to meet people in my company's Hiking Club and to see some of Taiwan. I wouldn't have to pack my own sleeping bag even.

The last time I hiked Stawamus Chief back home was probably close to 2 years ago. So in terms of hiking, I was a little rusty. And thus without too much resistance, I let my coworker talk me into another 2-day hike in Guguan at the end of March. The first day was an easy hike, and the second day would be a tougher one.

That "easy" hike is the most gruelling thing I've ever done! Sure beats out my first day playing ultimate frisbee. Our group of 19 ended up as a leading group and a "lagging" group. And while I was in the lead group, I was in the latter half (back!) of the group and still needed 4 hours to reach the top. My brain literally shut down as I shuffled my lead feet inches at a time - any progress just as long as I didn't stop.

I barely ate lunch at the top. Even though fog had covered the distant mountain peaks, leaving us with not much scenary to photograph, I still felt a sense of accomplishment. (And fatigue, of course.)

As I'd anticipated, my knees were my downfall. While taking only half the time, coming down the mountain was twice as painful as going up. That's when I graciously accepted a hiking stick from my fellow hiker. Hopping into the bus afterward was one of most rewarding things ever!

Day 2, of course, was not going to go away. Being that the entire reason for joining this trip was to prepare myself for Yushan, I decided that I would go hiking the next day, too, despite being in serious pain. A fellow hiker lent me a knee sleeve, which helped immensely, and I was able to borrow a hiking stick from someone who turned back early. The scenary was much nicer and the hike more leisurely (we all decided to hike at our own pace since we didn't have enough time to reach the peak, and to just meet back at the bus at a rendez-vous time). The knees still gave me trouble, but now I had the option of slowing down or stopping as I needed, and so I also took more photographs.

Overall, I had a lot of fun and got to know some coworkers better, including some from other departments whom I would not meet otherwise. The exercise felt great, that rewarding soreness in the days after. And I have something exciting - a shared experience - for my Taiwan scrapbook. (Just as soon as I make one.)

Now I just need to figure out where to post pictures. :)