I woke up at 4:30 am all pumped and ready to conquer another Scottish mountain, thinking it would be easy peasy since hiking wasn’t new to me… if only I knew what I had signed up for!
I arrived at the rendezvous point, met the best crew @blackscottishadventurers, and took a few, actually loads of pictures! The hike was supposed to be 11.82km long with an elevation of about 915m (whatever that means)! They were just numbers at first and didn’t mean much to me until I was told that the distance was equivalent to running a marathon!! That’s when fear set in, and I began to wonder if I’d made the right decision to embark on this adventure on a windy Saturday morning instead of laying in bed, snuggling with my favourite pillows and Netflixing!
I maintained my cool and said, “I’ve got this”! We began walking, stopped to capture beautiful moments, danced and took a few wee breaks. I’ve been told that my poker face game is terrible, and of course, it showed off in no time! I was beginning to look like a shadow of myself, with my left knee hurting; I couldn’t hide the pain and exhaustion anymore! It felt like I was going to pass out!!
As a foodie, I kept munching on snacks and the energy drink (which was a life safer) I had with me! Still didn’t give me enough energy to push through. But guess what? I kept psyching myself, saying I can do this! And I will finish what I’ve already started! I was struggling but kept moving, all this while others were cheering me on and making me feel like a real champ! If only they knew what was going on in my head!
Somehow I found myself at the top of the foggy and windy Ben Vane!! Oh goodness, I did it!!! This was the most challenging hike ever for me, but somehow I managed to get to the top and came down on my own feet!! This is an experience I will forever cherish. I saw another level of strength I never knew existed, and it made me reflect and realize that there is power in the mind and the company we surround ourselves with! I could do this by speaking to myself, and the cheers from my buddies kept me going, which translated to physical energy!
Guys!! I bagged my first Munro; call me Maryamu Munro!
