Michael: Alternate Routes

Today is quiet
And light; a weak breeze carries
A few drops of  rain.



Saturday, May 16, 2015

The Western Trail to the peak of Volcan, Baru is stunning, difficult and almost deserted and we love it.  Fortunately the trailhead is very close to where we live in Volcan, Panama. We liked it so much we are planning on doing it again this week, but this time we’ll just do an out and back, to the peak and then head back.  On Tuesday we went up the Western Trail and descended from the peak on the jeep trail into Boquete.  By doing an out and back hike we’ll save time by eliminating the hassle of a long bus ride back to Volcan from Boquete which is on the other side of the volcano. We’ll also get to experience what the descent is like on the Western Trail.   

Some people may feel that going out and back is a bore, but for me, going in the opposite direction of the same trail often feels like I’m experiencing a completely different trail. Hell, for me, doing the same trail again in the same direction I’ve done previously often feels like I’m on a whole new trail. 

And there are other permutations beside a one way hike, or out and back hike, I‘m considering. I’d like to do a grand out and back; take the Western Trail to the peak then head into Boquete on the jeep trail like we did on Tuesday, then turn back around and go up the jeep trail and down the Western Trail back home. That would be a brutal marathon of a day involving 12,000 ft. of elevation gain at altitudes ranging from 4,000 to 11,000 ft.

Why? Why do people like the opera? Because it hurts in some bizarre satisfying way, and they can afford to do it. The opera hurts me as well. Just plain hurts, and I can’t afford it anyway. But I can hike and run all day. And though it can be a struggle, I find it very satisfying.

Let me try to explain it another way. When I was a kid, sometimes a kid would grab another kid’s arm and twist their skin to inflict pain. This procedure was called giving someone an “Indian burn.” Surprisingly, this was usually done between friends. Heck, often you wouldn’t even wait for someone to try. You’d be sitting next to friend and just hold out your arm and asked to be burned. That’s what people are like; like Indian burns, they’re twisted. But now as an adult, sometimes our friends are busy or we’ve discovered that twisting our own skin is kind of interesting. I’m sure there’s more to it than that, but I don’t want to recline on the couch and go through all that. That’s also probably a bit painful. But not in a way that interests me.  I’d rather get outside and twist my skin a little running and hiking.

There are also other trips that could incorporate the Western Trail as either the starting or ending path of a long loop hike. One would involve the Quetzal Trail, but that would involve either a lot of road running or a bus/taxi shuttle to the different trail heads involved. I’ll work that out later. Right now I’m really looking forward to hiking to the peak again with Kimme and discovering what the descent of the Western Trail is like.