Sister Madness
I feel the pain of yesterdays climb seeping into my mind. The fatigue is coming back.
I drank to many beers last night.
Just a few more miles I think to myself. The weather though, I don’t know if we will make the summit. We? What the hell is your name dude? Oh shit I already for got again. Sorry man.
The sun was shining as we set out down Forest Service road 370 in the Deschutes National Forest. We had left Sparks Lake campground around 7am. Not really sure what we were getting ourselves into; neither of us had driven this road, had a map or been up this mountain. We were heading into a fun little day of figuring things out. We got lost a few times, had to make 303,854,032 point turns to get his full size pick-up turned around on those dirt roads. Avoiding washouts, ruts, down trees, wildlife and boulders. This shall be a fun morning!
Heading down trail I blaze the path and set pace, we shall make good time. Homie doesn’t hike much, hailing from southern California he’s set out on the road after getting himself in some troubles. Even more trouble actually in his travels then he’s running from back home. We get a long well.
“Here’s to a long life and merry one,
A quick death and an easy one,
A pretty girl and a honest one,
A cold pint and another one!” – Irish Proverb.
I am feeling the pains from yesterdays insane run. I decided to run, yep literally run up Oregon’s third tallest mountain.
I don’t fucking ever run.
I hate running.
It hurts to fucking much, I’m getting lazy.
Beer me
So we struggle upwards on the wrong path. What were on the wrong trail! Oh what the fuck man this is stupid. First we got lost on the damn road, now were on the wrong trail!
Ok, ok lets turn around. Back to the trail junction. We argue the whole time about witch way is the right path. What path are we on? Are we making the right life choices? What! Shut the hell up this isn’t the story; were climbing a freakin mountain mannn.
I have given up I am now hiking using Google maps, what the hell has happened to me! Has this become the man I am! Using freaking Google to go hiking!
Dear God, I would like to apologize for the boozing, fucking, drugging and lies I have ever told. I would also like to apologize for shit head standing next to me. I’m not sure what he’s done but he likes me, so he’s has to have fucked something up. We apologize; accept us into heaven please. Were going to die today.
Google maps is a blessing I have found the right trial! We were on it! Let’s turn around again please, I apologize. He laughs. Neither of us knows what we are doing today. But there is this mountain a head of us. Cleverly named Broken Top. It’s a volcano that erupted years back and the mountain exploded. But there is a predominate peak on the western slope and I have read a little about it. A week or two ago.
It looked like an easy scramble from the top of South Sister yesterday
Can’t be to hard?
Turns out it is more like a class 4 scramble to the summit but hey we made it! In the freakin fog! I was a bit sketched out the whole time. We chose to take the path of least resistance, so we thought. We found the ridgeline as we hiked the switchbacks up the backside of the mountain. Yesterdays fatigue is getting to me. I’m hung over, a little scared and completely lost. I know the trail is off somewhere behind me. We left it opting to take the fun route.
I made it, he made it then we both made it back to the truck. Fog rolled in as quickly as we could climb. Nothing we could do about it. We had our jackets and new it wasn’t a long haul back to the truck, no way we would be out here past sunset. Did you bring a headlamp? I forgot mine.








