THE GREAT OPTIMIST
10 Jan
We weren’t a fast group. Let’s just get that out of the way. We’d made it our mission to capture our experience on the trail, and that required a substantial amount of time and energy out of each day. On top of that, we’d all arranged to be gone for 25 days and there was very little need to shorten that by even an hour.
Yet, each morning we’d assess the day ahead, set a goal and try to gauge the challenges awaiting us. There is always one in every group. The person who’s estimations are (how should I put this?): Ambitious? Optimistic? Clearly shy of reality?
For us, this was Jason.
• Add 2 to his mileage calculation.
• Add 1000 feet to his guess at the day’s climbs.
• Add some extra discomfort to his “today shouldn’t be that bad.”
This is not to say he couldn’t read topographical maps. That wasn’t the case at all. And his ambitious estimations never put us at risk, but they provided some light humor to our day.
However, it was Jason’s optimism that led us on this great hike. It’s one thing to long for an extended adventure like hiking the John Muir Trail. It’s another to arrange all the logistics (ie, loss of income, paying bills, home sitting, children, etc.). It would be very easy to just say it’s not possible. But every winter for the past five years, Jason has reminded us, “We should really try and do Muir this year.”
Well, in 2011, the opportunity finally presented itself.
The morning of our monstrous climb up the Golden Staircase, we played a game to see who could guess, with closest accuracy, our group’s arrival time to the top: Palisade Lake. Knowing our track record for late arrivals, the majority of us guessed between 6:30pm – 7:30pm, but Jason inspired a roar of laughter when he proposed a 5:30pm arrival.
He was the closest by far, his guess only minutes off. When we arrived at Palisade Lake, he jokingly cheered, “The undisputed champion of time guessing, the pride of Davis, California. Jason, the Irish American Hurricane Fitzpatrick. Thank you, very much!”
(the crowd went wild)
Was it an exception to the rule that Jason’s optimism contributed heavily to his victory? Probably. But then again, it was this very same optimism that led us here in the first place. And for this, I’m eternally grateful.
