Life in Motion: New Hike, conquering a fear

I love hiking. I love going new places, getting away from roads and seeing the world from places I got to on my own. California has a LOT of hiking opportunities, many just a short drive away.

Today, my sister who is in town visiting, and I headed up Highway 1 with the goal of a hike I did last year in the Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park...but due to me not remembering how far up said park was, and a lot of road construction on the highway...we didn't make it that far.

We did make it to just north of Gorda, and hiked there. Wasn't a long hike, only about 1.5 miles round trip, but there was a pretty significant elevation gain...and mostly traversing up switchbacks.

I hate traversing.

Not in a 'oh, this is tiring' way, but in a 'inner child is SHRIEKING about falling backwards and sideways' kind of way. I have to pause after each turn, and balance myself so I don't feel like I'm going to fall. If it's bare rock on both sides, my heart pounds and I don't always make it through.

Stupid. I have no problems with heights, I can cross plank bridges over streams with no problems. But going up a hill at a slant makes me fight the panic.

I won the fight today. There weren't any truly bad places, a few with little vegetation on the sides, but enough that my heart raced...and I pushed through.

So, yay, me!

And some pics!