Glacier Peak: A Short Story

We all have a passion for someone, something or an activity. I know one of Bob’s many passions was giving. Many years ago, Bob must have been taking a stroll through his special warehouse and apparently had me and one of my passions in mind when he came across a set of hiking poles. Soon after, I received a set of metallic green, Black Diamond poles with the adjustable thumb clamps for various lengths. Not the kind you have to twist and pull for the right length. These also had threaded points to accommodate interchangeable snow baskets of various sizes and wide sturdy wrist straps attached to molded gripped handles that fit perfectly to the inside of your fist on the front side and conveniently fit the grove of your thumb on the backside. I only mention these fine details because we all know Bob never obtained anything that wasn’t top of the line or had all the bells and whistles. Heck, I learned the other day his truck is not only equipped with heated seats, but it has cooling seats as well. It just dawned on me that it’s a wonder these poles don’t have heated handles. …show more content…
Recently, my buddy Tim and I had set aside four days of vacation time for a trek to Glacier Peak. The journey was to begin two days after learning of Bob’s admittance to the Evergreen facility in Kirkland. I shared the scenario with Tim and struggled with the decision of going. I chose to go. The Mountain is located in the Glacier Peak Wilderness in east Snohomish County near the Chelan County line out past Monte Cristo and Barlow Pass. These poles assisted me over rugged terrain of rock moraines, dusty high ridges, a crevassed glacier and finally a steep push in soft snow to the