Lessons from our Hike!

The boys and I will probably always remember our recent hiking trip to Stehekin. Not super epic, but steep hills and a couple cut fingers reminded me of some metaphors.

by Chad Steiner

We did it. We hiked 17-19 miles (depending on whose GPS you looked at) from Prince Creek to Stehekin. The boys did amazing. 12 miles the first day and 2,500’ of elevation gain. 7 miles the final day and 1,000’ of elevation gain. My pack was 60 lbs, the boys 13-18. The entire group was a lot of fun. We really enjoyed the time outdoors – the wildflowers so perfectly in bloom it was magical. Indian Paint Brush, Lupin, Balsam Root and more. The 5 cinnamon rolls at the Stehekin Pastry Company (The Bakery) motivated us to hike the last 7 miles without stopping. We camped at Moore Point for 2 nights. What a spot. Community bear boxes, pit toilet, a tent spot on the water, a sandy beach to swim into the lake (~48F) – real first class living. There were a few snakes but no rattlers – a bull snake and a rubber boa. I’m going to include a few pic’s here, but I’m going to take a couple paragraphs to go a different direction with this blog. Getting my pack on and pushing through a couple tough climbs really reminded me of some lessons or “metaphors”. It feels like metaphors from really physical activities so nicely apply to life.

When it’s hard – keep going. The group nick named me “sherpa” since my pack was so big (sherpa is a reference to the wonderful folks who live in Nepal at high elevation and help climbers up Everest, they can carry heavy stuff). I chose to carry a lot of the boys stuff – I mean, this was their biggest backpacking trip yet. Goal #1 was have fun. Periodically carrying Owen’s pack and mine had me over 75 lbs. Jeana and I have done so much climbing and backpacking over the years – when the hike hit a steep elevation that seemed endless, it was crazy how my mind was trained to just “keep going”. And… create something else to focus on. What I mean is – like singing a song. The one we created years ago converts Johnny Cash’s “One Piece at a Time” into “One Step at a Time”. Stopping frequently on these trips can be dreadful. “Slow and steady gains the summit”! In other words, keep going. Feet hurting, pack weight intense, quads burning, out of breath – keep going. Life sometimes doesn’t unfold how we expect. We set a goal, see a path toward it in a straight line, and it’s never straight, just keep going. Whether its business, relationships, finances, sometimes – we just need to keep going. And, like creating a song, remember what we focus on really affects how we feel. I needed this hike as a reminder. Especially during one of our most intense times of year. Shoot thinning, planting dahlias, grafting, planting trees, promoting the business, opening more hours, kids sports… we’re all busy. Keep going, tomorrow might be the crest of your next hill and a chance to catch your breath.

Cutting your finger! Have you ever cut your finger with a knife? Do you remember the first time? Maybe there’s a scar as a reminder. I’ve got to say my experience as a parent is often filled with self-doubt. Being a dad is an amazing gift. But I had no idea how much opportunity for growth as a human it would give me. Yes, I’m sometimes impatient and get angry or am totally not present. This backpacking trip removed technology from the picture and being outdoors in the Cascades is calming on its own. But how does this relate to “cutting your finger”? Well, while carving fun items from wood in camp, two of the boys cut their fingers. Was this irresponsible on my part… !?? I don’t want to see any of our boys hurt. One of the boys cuts was much smaller than the other. Both were totally cleaned up and taken care of thanks to a good first aid kit. And, it seems they both really learned more respect for the sharp blade – while learning how to carve better. We came home with a couple cool wooden forks. However, the lesson I learned was when one of the boys walked off to get a tissue on their own after the cut. It hit me like a ton of bricks. My mind said “Oh my gosh, have I been so impatient, they didn’t feel safe saying something to me when they felt like they messed up, aka a cut”. I didn’t share this lesson with the boys, but I took it home this week. I hope it sticks with me as a metaphor. Ultimately, how can we support one another and make each other feel safe? There are amazing organizations out there helping our youth – Only7Seconds is one we’re a big fan of.

Lots of lessons came out of this hike. I think the cause for being nostalgic about it is a real indicator of how I’ve not been taking enough time to get into the mountains. One of the big reasons we moved to the Lake Chelan Valley is how close it is to the Cascade Mountains. Heck, an 8 ish mile drive to the Lady of the Lake from home, 2 hours later being dropped into the middle of the wilderness for a trip our whole group will remember forever. There’s also less extreme options – 4^th of July Mountain is a great hike 15 mins from Manson. Getting outside and connecting to nature, doing hard stuff in my free time – it is a great feeling. I hope you’ve enjoyed the route I took this week’s blog. Thank you for following along, we’re so thankful for your support. We love having all of you as part of our community. See you on The Farm!