Here I am, stretched out on bed, trying to rest my sore muscles, bones and joints after the most extreme physical effort I've ever endured; climbing to the top of Mount Fuji. I say "climbing" because it really was way more like climbing than hiking. Huge boulders blocked our way most of the time, the path was very steep and full of rocks, and the fact that we made our way to the summit at night in heavy rain didn't exactly make things easier.

At one point the situation looked particularly dire. We had reached the last cabin (there are five along the way) before the top and still had four hours to kill before the sun would rise. The temperature was around 0 degrees celsius, we were soaking wet from the rain despite wearing raincoats, and the cabin was fully booked and locked. In addition to that, I was suffering from altitude sickness and was feeling naseous, had a headache and couldn't stop shaking.

I don't know about you guys, but in a situation like that, four hours being unprotected outdoors doesn't sound like the loveliest of prospects so I used the last battery power for my flashlight to try to find shelter somewhere. But although there were plenty of big rocks it was hard to find something that would completely block the wind and the rain. Eventually I started examining the exterior of the cabin and found an unlocked door leading to a tiny boiler room. We snuck in there, took off as many wet clothes as we could without freezing to death (it was still cold in there) and then stayed until one hour before dawn.

I then took some painkillers and geared up for the last few hundred metres up to the top. We got there, but boy was I feeling sick! We basically just snapped a few pictures (none of which are good enough to post) and then made our way down. The descent took around eight hours in blazing sun, and I thought I was going to faint several times. I don't wish this adventure undone, but if anyone suggests I do it again, I'll smack them right on the head!

What is the most extreme physical effort you've ever made?

Wow! My most strenous effort can't be compared to that, but here it is:

When my daughter was about 9 years old we went to a Rainbow National gathering in the mountains of Taos, NM. After an extremely long drive from Missouri to New Mexico we made our way up into the mountains-still by car. My daughter started getting a combination of car/altitude sickness. After getting all of our camping gear packed onto our backs we headed off on what we thought was a two mile hike to the campground. Every ten minutes or so we came across fellow campers who assured us that the site was "just around the corner."

It quickly became apparent that our two mile hike was turning into a 6+ mile hell-hike. Since my daughter was feeling like crap and hence was totally useless, I ended up carrying her on my back while dragging our gear in a jerry-rigged sled type thing that was tied to my waist. In the middle of all of this it started to rain! I hiked about 4 miles of hilly mountain terrain like this. To make it even worse, the woman that was travelling with us decided to have some sort of nervous breakdown! She started crying and screaming, "I can't do this! I can't do this!" Mind you she was only carrying herself (her husband was hauling her gear and his) and I was struggling with my daughter on my back, her gear and mine dragging along behind me. I finally had to sceam at her to just, "Shut the fuck up and walk!"

We finally made it to the campground and my knee (which had been previously injured) swelled to the size of a nice sized orange. I spent the entire "vacation" in one area of the campground. Needless to say, I nevr travelled with that couple again!
[Edited 8/21/06 22:45pm]

not exactly the experience you expected!
so glad you are back and i want to see the pictures you took despite your crytical eye!




i can't say i have experienced anything even remotely like that.
perhaps the time i swam out and had to fight a slight current to get back - shore never looked so good.


p.s. i bought some elderberry syrup tonight...

when I was in labour for 27 hours

I wouldn't wish that one anyone

and retina and well done for doing it

wow retina amazing & awesome



Labor and delivery of 1st son ... unmedicated

32+ hours

also in my teens we did marathon walking 22 miles in one day was the longest

passing a kidney stone can be pretty taxing

hmmm and when i had my tubes cut tied and cauterized ...






spelling sux
[Edited 8/22/06 5:21am]

Terilicious said:

Oh no! The camping trip from hell!

Seriously, that all sounds awful. As if it wasn't enough to deal with the challenge of a six mile hike alone, you had to have whining eating away on your nerves until you were ready to explode. I wouldn't have blamed you if you'd dumped all your gear on your friend and yelled "see if this makes it better!".

.

That was an awesome story.

Glad to see you're o.k.

I don't understand. A full and locked cabin? People were in it?
They wouldn't let you come in, especially in your condition?

emm said:

I've been too tired to even go through them properly, but I'll check again if any are okay. We're just talking ten pictures or so. That was all I managed to take.




That's scary! Drowning is probably one of the worst ways to go, and just the possibility of that happening could make anyone panic.



Cool! Let me know what you think.

ZombieKitten said:

Okay, I admit I'd rather climb Fuji twice than be in labour.

...but if we're talking three times I'm not so sure anymore.



Thanks! There was this guy up on the summit that burned the "summit mark" into your walking stick for a reasonable price. I was so proud when I got that.

Mach said:

Thank you. I'm just happy I survived.



Whoa, is this turning into a competition who's been through the most horrific labour?



That is one of my big fears! I've heard so many scary stories...



Really? They don't give you proper anasthetics?

retina said:

I bet it feels good to be able so say you've done it though

Imago said:

Thank you. I did feel like we were in genuine danger for a little while, but then when I stopped to think rationally I realized that there were a number of ways out of our situation if worse came to worst.



Exactly. The cabin was packed with people who had pre-booked. Each person only got one tatami mat to sleep on (which is tiny) and the goons who ran the place just ignored anyone who knocked on the door. I saw them send away a crying girl who was trying to force herself in just to warm up a bit.

ZombieKitten said:

Yep. I'm going to use that walking stick to whack my grandkids on the head when they complain about having to clean their rooms. "Uuuuhhhh let me tell you what grandpa had to go through when he was young, you wimpy youngsters!"

retina said:

Jesus.

People could die out there.

Imago said:

Exactly. That's what made it scary.

retina said:

i would rater rebirth my 1st son again then pass another kidney stone i (also flatlined 3 times after having him ..loosing so much blood ... was a bit scary ...i dont wanna redo that part !! near death experiences are WEIRD !! )

and it was the pain after the surgery of having my tubes tied

My labors were both really easy.
It was afterwards that sucked for me.

I don't know I've ever given 'extreme physical efforts'. I don't like to. lol.
Moderate, sure. Maybe even more than usual once in a while. But not extreme.

When I was in Basic Training for the Air Force, I didn't masturbate for a bout 4 weeks.


It was rough.

retina said:

I think I would rather have another labour than climb that bloody mountain, you know.

Ehm.... Back when I had my first place on my own, I moved by myself. That doesn't count, does it? Anyway, I ended up a big entertainment center piece over and pinning myself under it.

If giving birth really that bad...almost a nightmare????