Today was the big day! My final peak! We managed to get the last one in before the hurricane.
I hiked Moosilauke ( 4,802 ft) as the last peak #48 with my dear friends Richard and Ed who have been there supporting me throughout this journey. Richard has hiked 21 of the 48 peaks with me and Ed has done 12 of them, so it was very fitting that they were with me today. I must say this was the easiest of all the 48 for me and it only took us 4 1/2 hours to complete the 8 mile loop. We had Rylee with us again today and she kept us at a good pace. We had beautiful sunny weather right up until 100 ft from the summit..then the clouds rolled in and the winds picked up making it hard to stand up by the sign at the top. I will now always have the utmost respect for mother nature. Even if it looks like it's going to be a beautiful day...things can change in an instant. We did a celebratory champagne toast at the summit and I took some time to reflect on how this all started and appreciate the journey to get to this point today.
This all started with an idea that I got when I was taking care of a friend after his surgery and picked a book off his shelf to help me pass the time. He encouraged me to do this and helped me get started. There are certain moments in our lives that I believe are turning points. Opportunities often come our way and we may not always take them. I am so glad I took this one! It did indeed change my life for the better. It seems as though somehow I was meant to do this. It was alot of hard work but I had so much help along the way. It allowed me to get involved in something much bigger than myself, to help the patients and their families who are stuggling every day . They were a huge inspiration for me every step of the way. It allowed me to get closer to my friends and family in what became a common goal. They helped raise donations, helped with my hiking plan ( as I am not really a planner and didn't have one), travelled many miles to hike with me, called with support and encouragement and kept me laughing along the way. I started hiking in the snow and ice and had the same conditions towards the end. I hiked with 29 different wonderful friends, over 272 miles and 48 magnificent mountains! There were a few moments when I wondered if I would finish...but I had many guardian angles looking out for me along the way. We raised over $10,000 for Compassionate Care ALS and I know the money will be put to good use. Thank you to everyone! I am truly very blessed to have such amazing people in my life. This final peak I would like to dedicate to my Grandfather, Michael Okronglis who was diagnosed with ALS in the 1950's and died before I was born. There's a part of him in me somewhere. He was a hard working man who put in long days working in a coal mine to provide for his family in a time where there we no organizations like CCALS available to help those in need. I'm very glad things are different today. Farewell for now. 