A Sublime Experience

At the beginning of the hike - me and anu

I am writing after a blissful nap and a soak in the hot tub. This was just what I needed after an unbelievable climb up the Teton summit, nearly 10,350 ft above sea level.

Since the day was free and being a Sunday, we all decided to go to the Teton Village near to Jackson city – a half hour ride. When we got to the Visitor Centre at Teton village, we were told that tram rides to the top of the summit would be 24$ while open car lifts would be 10$. That was not the issue for some of us. There was no challenge in going up in a covered tram. 

Marmoot

We decided to take the car lift which took us up to a certain height - where we began the 7.2 mile hike to the summit. It was exactly 11.15 am when we got out of the car lift. It was just me, Annu and Rustam. We were told that once we reach the summit, the tram ride would be free. The last tram we were told left at 5 pm from the summit. Having never gone up, we did not know how many hours it would take for us to climb up to the top, but the operator of the car lift indicated that we would definitely make it. That was a positive indication for us.

Ground squirrel

Rustam leading

As we began the climb, Annu lead, though shortly I began to lead and soon Rustam took over. About an hour or so later, we were only one-fourth through our hike as the map indicated. We stopped for a bit and had some food and water. Luckily, the three of us had packed sandwiches in the morning from the nearby Bagel shop at Jackson Hole. We were following the route no. 10 which was the express route to the summit. 

On our way, we saw the Marmoot and the ground squirrel - small wild animals. As we moved up for another hour, the weather began to become colder. 

We saw snow in the distance and cold winds swept our warm faces. On the one hand, we were sweating, while on the other, our hands were getting numb with the cold. At certain paces, the climb was steep and I could hear my breath heavy and my legs found it difficult to even move an inch, but I went on knowing that stopping would be no better.

Empty car lifts were a sign of life!

There came a point when Rustam was way in the front and Annu way behind. It began to grow colder. Below us, we could see the valley and people disappeared. Even houses were appearing as toys. Above us was the endless snow. The small telephone cabins we saw on the way were a welcome relief. And of course, the empty car-lifts moving we felt were a sign of life! 

At a certain point, we all collected again and decided to take the second break. This time, I ate the second half of my bagel sandwich, but the cold was too unbearable. I could not get it down my throat and drank lots of water.

Three siblings of Red Fox

As we continued, suddenly, at one point, Annu indicated to Rustam to see from his binoculars, and he saw an animal. It must have been either a Koyote or a fox. It soon crossed our path and disappeared into the rocks and snow. Then, we saw magic. Three pups of Red fox playing among themselves right in front of us. I took great pictures with my zoom camera, and these are trophy pictures for me! As we approached, the pups approached us too but soon continued their play. I was afraid that the mother and father also appear and begin to threaten us! But that did not happen. We took some great pictures and proceeded. 

Red Fox

Rustam kept warning us that the clouds are approaching the mountain and we must, therefore, keep moving fast as the rains would make it impossible for us to hike up. But we could only maintain a certain speed. Soon, the first sign of human life appeared in the form of a two men climbing down. We soon found that very few people climbed up the mountain. Most took the tram to the top and scaled down the summit – a far easier task. It also put us in doubt if it was at all possible to reach the top.

Surrounded by sheets of snow

The valley below

As we moved up, we began to lose each other – Rustam way ahead, me in the middle and Annu trailing behind. Now, I began to stop at regular intervals to take breaks of about 10 seconds as I climbed because I realized that the indications on the map were in reality longer than they appeared. At certain parts I was alone and it began to look scary. The mountain above was just made of sheets of ice with water spurting out from here and there and it was overwhelming. Thoughts came to my mind. I thought of mountain sickness when a person can go dizzy with lack of oxygen at higher altitudes. I remembered the Read for Pleasure textbook of standard ninth which had a chapter on ‘Eight days under an Aavalanche’. I thought what if there is an avalanche and I am buried alive. I am too tired to resist or come out like the protagonist of the chapter. Then, I thought of my dear Abraham and my friends. 

Meanwhile, it had begun to snow – rain in the form of small pellets – what is technically called hail. It was getting difficult. I met up with Rustam at one point and began to discuss the route. He was quite sure of the route and I was beginning to think we had taken a wrong one – the longer one, ie route no. 11 which was at least a mile longer. At this point, Rustam began to climb faster in order to ascertain the route and I followed him blindly. I did not know whether it was my body or my mind that was taking me up. At times, I felt my back and my legs were two separate items moving by themselves, at other times, I could hear my heart in my head and feel the heat of its effort.

Trees on snow

View from the top

All this time, the mountain, the sky and the trees along my path were my companions, and I began to feel the largesse of nature – the magic and marvel of its presence was inimitable – something that made me humble and small. The streams appearing from nowhere, the shades of green even within the snow covered mountain and the small animals and birds on our path, were for me, beyond explanation. 

As I continued ahead with no one in sight, I suddenly saw Rustam waving up to me. And lo and behold, I saw lots of other people. We had made it!!! It was 3.15 pm – just 4 hours from our start. We had made it in good time, much before the last tram! The people I saw at the summit were the ones who had taken the tram up from the bottom. 

The Americans were complaining that it was too cold!! What could it be for us Indians!! The tip of my nose was a piece of stone. But, the delight of reaching the top cannot be expressed in words. The snow covered peaks were glorious and the world below my feet was a challenge I had surpassed. The view was breathtaking.

We made it - me, Anu and Rustam

My fingers by now had no life. I was constantly moving them to feel them. We found that the tram car was leaving in five minutes. We did not wait at the top much longer but took the tram car down. 

The first thing we did was to drink a mug of hot coffee, and how we devoured the large American mug which we had hitherto made fun of. Things are so relative.

We soon took the bus to take back to Jackson Hole. Our friends who had taken the tram up were waiting for us after doing their window shopping. They joined us on our way back to the Jackson city.

Roshni Udyavar Yehuda

International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) on Environmental Protection

Jackson Hole, Wyoming, US 

21 June 2009