These words and expressions are very common in a Bros Life. Most people might relate these terms in a negative way. Well, they have it wrong. Throughout our Brohood we have lived by "just winging it." This is because...well we aren't the best of planners, and planning is too...well...planned. Sometimes there is more thrill in just seeing where the day, or night, takes you. This is exactly what the five of us did on February 17th.
John: "Hey dude, were hiking Verstovia tonight and boarding down. Possibly see the Northern Lights. You coming?
Me: "Uhhh, how are you going to see?"
John: "Full moon, and headlamps"
Me: "Have you done this before?"
John: "Nope"
We had all done this hike several times before, but never at night. You always hear stories of people getting in over their heads out here in Alaska, and let me tell you it never ends well. Frostbite, amputation, lost for days, bears, wind, rain, snow, falling off cliffs, losing the trail. Endless possibilities.
So let me say the risk was high. Snowboarding untouched powder, seeing an aurora, and hiking with your buddies. The reward was greater.
John, Dan, Craig, Chris, and myself started our hike around 7:00 PM. We all had a fairly good load on our back. Extra clothes, survival equipment, snowboards, extra boots, food, water, tents, ice pics, snow shoes, headlamps, fire starters, camera, someone even brought a Jet Boil. The first 1/4 mile is nice and easy and were all amped, sticking together. Then the switch backs. Nobody likes switch backs. Especially when the trail is narrow and your board is banging into the trees. We all slowly start to pull away form each other. The older guys fall back a little. I was right in the middle, I knew we had to take it easy to conserve some energy. After about an hour and a half most of us were hiking alone. I heard one of the guys yell "turn off your head lamps!" Is this guy nuts? How are we going to see the trail? I turned my light off anyways. The full moon was so bright it illuminated the trail. Even through all the tree's and brush. It was absolutely amazing.
Almost three hours later we near the summit of "Picnic Rock," The last 200 yards or so, the snow was so deep each step was exhausting. Nothing was going to slow us down now. We all finally summit. Now were on top of a mountain, looking down at the lights from town, and the vastness of the wilderness surrounding it. We all soak in the moment. Then take a group photo.
Not Featured: The Bros
From here most of us seperated. John and I came up here to snowboard, not just enjoy the view. The rest of the guys stayed back and warmed up their insides (alcohol may have been involved). I'm not going to lie, seeing how far away Mt. Verstovia was made me not want to hike anymore. But, I had to snowboard down that mountain. John and I trucked through the snow for the next hour deciding which lines to take, what hazards to look out for. We really had to plan what we were going to do in order to be somewhat safe.
We finally make it to our destination. Sit down, and strap in. The mountain was at a pretty steep slope, so just sitting down on the mountain wasn't easy. I accidentally started to slide down. That was not a good feeling. Luckily John had an ice pick and threw it to me so I could stop myself. I grabbed it, and dug it hard into the snow. Phew, close call. Alright, its time to do what we came here for. John dropped in, me following right behind.
Untouched power. It felt like riding on a cloud. I wish I could explain to you what it really felt like, but I can't. Every turn felt like butter. Each line was my own. I had all the room in the world! The last bit I just crouched low, caught some speed, and felt the snow underneath me. Amazing. Non stop screaming, and WAHOOOO'S from both of us. We heard the rest of the guys screaming back to us from the other mountain. Happiness.
The rest of the hike back we were grinning from ear to ear. We didn't have to say anything to each other, but I knew exactly what he was feeling. Euphoria. When we hiked back to Picnic Rock, the rest of the guys were gone. As we take our last glance at the view of the mountains before we head back, I see it for the first time. The Norther Lights. Green waves dancing on the horizon. Truly breath taking. Could this night get any better?
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