The Climb
Virginia Outdoor Writing Contest Submission
Word Count: 978
Biography
My name is Max Liebl, I am a native of Long Grove, IL and currently a freshman at the Virginia Military Institute. I am a contracted Army ROTC Cadet and plan to commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army upon graduating from VMI and serve an Army Aviator. In high school, I was active in the Boy Scouts and Civil Air Patrol and found a passion for nature and a love for the outdoors as a member of both programs. I enjoy going on long distance runs and hikes as well as swimming, and I am also an avid skier. Coming from a Chicago suburb, I found a deep respect for nature and its wonders, but never fully understood the true beauty behind it. Now living in rural Virginia, I’ve come to have an even deeper respect for the beauty of nature and wake up every morning in awe as I witness its true beauty.
That morning came in dark and cool, a beautiful summer morning in Virginia. Only the shouts of VMI’s Cadre ordering the newly minted Rats to move faster broke my focus on nature. As I dashed through Barracks trying to catch up my Brother Rat in front of me, I could only think of how the quick view I had of House Mountain from my room put me in awe, but in just a few hours I’d be standing atop the mountain looking back in even more amazement. As we marched down to the Mess Hall for breakfast, the Sun was beginning to peep over the mountains in the distance and break through the thick purple fog that had engulfed the Shenandoah Valley overnight, another beautiful sight I’d have to get used to seeing every day. When I first arrived at VMI, I knew the journey was going to be long and arduous, but what made just a bit more bearable was the fact that the school was tucked back in one the most beautiful corners of rural America.
As the day rolled on, my thoughts were constantly on House Mountain. It had been such a looming figure all week. It constantly stood watching over the Institute as a single entity. The mountain stood all by its lonesome with no other hills surrounding it and no other mountain to match it. The ground seemed to have just lifted itself up in that particular area and House Mountain was born. As the afternoon drew near, we began to line up on the parade field to board the buses that would take us to its base. It was the first time I had left Post since reporting to VMI almost a week ago and it was the first time I really began to notice my surroundings. Throughout the bus ride, I did my best to make as many quick glances from my Rat Bible to look out the window and take in the view. Coming from suburban Chicago, I had never seen such beautiful rolling hills so pristine it seemed as though only the hands of God have touched it. I was in awe at the sheer beauty of this place. The bus made a sharp veer off to the left onto a dirt road and we were immediately engulfed in a hazy green forest. Sunlight was shining through the treetops, burning off what remained of the morning haze. The bus rolled to a halt and we began to disembark. This one of the moments I had been waiting for all week.
As I stepped off the bus, a blast of hot air caught me off guard and I remembered just how hot and humid it can be in Virginia in the summertime. It was as if I had stepped into a boiling pot of water. Our company’s cadre lined us up at the trailhead and split us into lines of two, creating an aisle for traffic to move between us as we marched up the trail. As I looked up the trail at the sea of camouflage, I began to feel the sweat seeping through my blouse and soaking through my socks. Even in tennis shoes and without anything on my back except my Camelback, I still felt 100 pounds heavier. It wasn’t long before we began to move and I began to take in the full of effect of Virginia’s nature. The first mile of the three mile trek was on a paved road, lined by the occasional log cabin and rolling fields of tall, thin grass. In the distance the dark green mountains loomed creating a serene backdrop the already gorgeous setting. After the first mile the trail narrowed and grew steeper and the relative ease of pavement was replaced by the rocky unevenness of crushed gravel. The pain in my already aching legs worsened as the incline refused to level, and I was in sheer awe at our cadre running up and down the line wearing 40-50 pound rucksacks. I couldn’t imagine how they were still able to keep up the pace seemingly without getting winded. My mind turned quickly back to the trail and the forest around me. The higher we climbed, the better the view became and the rolling hills that lined the trail turned into steep, rocky drop-offs and even taller mountains stood in the distance. As we approached the final 50 feet of the trail to the top, one of my Brother Rats began to feel the effects of the past week and the strain of hiking uphill for 3 miles was starting to take its toll. The only thing we could do was give words of encouragement and urge her to keep moving forward. In that moment, I could feel what she was going through, the feeling that one gets when you’re so physically exhausted that each step is more painful than the next. In the end, she pushed through, and we reached the summit of House Mountain together.
It felt as if the world was at my fingertips. As I took in the breathtaking view of distant mountains and green pastures, I began to understand the hike up House Mountain stood for much more than a culminating Cadre Week event. It was the moment the gates opened allowing me to step onto the path to my future. As our Company Commander explained, the rolling mountains represented the ups and downs that everyone has throughout their lives. And with hills as far as the eye could see, it proved that the trials and tribulations of life will never end. Every day is a challenge and summiting one mountain in life is by no means the end. There’s always going to be another mountain to climb and another valley to descend into, but one thing is for sure, the journey will be scenic.