Don't fall for false summits

In the Marines, I had the opportunity to train extensively at the Mountain Warfare Training Center in Bridgeport, California.

When mountaineering, one of the pitfalls to be mindful of is falling for a false summit.

When you are climbing, you can often only see the next peak, but experienced mountaineers understand that usually, that peak hides a higher one and that one hides an even higher one.

The inexperienced climber often begins to race for the summit, excited to be done with the climb and ready to bag it and head back down or make camp for the night.

Realizing that they still have a long way to go and a lot of hard climbing ahead can be demoralizing. They may give up and decide to settle for the peak they are on, or at least sit down to feel sorry for themselves.

The experienced climber understands that reaching a peak will only reveal another.

But they also know that the work required to reach each peak prepares them for the next and that the destination is not the journey.

And, as Robert Pirsig of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance said,

“The only Zen you find on the tops of mountains is the Zen you bring up there.”

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Thanks for reading. Until next week, Keep Walking Point.