I’m happy when I’m hiking…
It started so many years ago in Yosemite. My brother Bill, his wife Diane, two of their friends, and I were going on a day hike from the Yosemite Valley floor up to the top of Half Dome and back down again (approx. 14-16 miles round trip). For those of you that are familiar with Yosemite that is one crazy feat! Not for the faint hearted or those that are less than in great shape. I think I fell into the latter category.
It was a glorious, early morning in late May. We stayed the night in a small motel outside of Yosemite, then after coffee (mega coffee in those days!) and a little breakfast, we drove the 45 minutes to the parking lot inside Yosemite Park. We met one of the friends, Jim, who was going to take the hike with us. Up the first mile we go, happy, light-footed, and energized! All along I’m singing, “I’m happy when I’m hiking, pack upon my back…”
Mile 2 — still going up. The singing is not so vigorous, but still happy. We continue on and already I’m slowing down. Are we ever going to get to the flat part?” I ask. Ha! What do you think, Willow? We’re going “up” to the top of the mountain, and unless there’s a helicopter nearby to take you there, it’s not going to be a “flat” walk. HMMMM… Maybe I didn’t think this one through. (If you’ve ever watched the movie, “Same Time, Next Year”, that is something that Alan Alda’s character, George, says with regularity). Perhaps I should have stayed home and watched the movie again!
Mile 3 – 4, etc, etc. At this point, who’s counting? The lyrics have now changed. I’m no longer happy when I’m hiking. In fact it sounded more like, “I hate it when I’m hiking, pack upon my back. I hate it when I’m hiking, up and up this path…” You get the idea.
It was a glorious day, the waterfalls were breathtaking, and so was the altitude. I loved being there, I loved the mountains, the trees, everything… except the hiking! LOL! About 5 miles up we reached Little Yosemite Valley. The Merced River runs through it before making it’s way over the edge and becoming one of the waterfalls. There, after lunch, we all agreed that I would turn around and go back down the trail while they would continue to the top. It was a unanimous decision… if they went at my pace we wouldn’t even reach the top by nightfall! I turned around, eased my way back down the trail, to the car and while they went the rest of the way up and down, I took a nap!
From then on, every time we’re together for a walk or hike, I’ll always sing at least one chorus of, “I’m Happy When I’m Hiking!’ And you can be sure I’ll be singing it everyday on the Camino!
Buen Camino, Willow
Lyrics to the song as I remember and sing them:
Tramp, tramp, tramp, tramp, tramp, tramp, tramp, tramp.
I’m happy when I’m hiking, pack upon my back.
I’m happy when I’m hiking, off the beaten track.
Out in the open country, that’s the place for me
With a right good friend to the journeys end,
Ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty miles a day.
Tramp, tramp, tramp …
How did the decision to walk the Camino come about for me? It started more than 15 years ago when I bought Shirley MacLaine’s book, “The Camino.” I’ve always been a fan of Shirley MacLaine, both in her movies and her books. This was her latest book at the time and so I thought I’d give it a read. I’d never heard of the Camino, but was fascinated by the idea of a spiritual journey in another country. Even though I’ve done camping and backpacking when I was younger, the thought of walking every day and sleeping out in fields or being chased by wild animals wasn’t something I was interested in doing… not at 50 years old! So I put the book back on the shelf and let the idea pass… Until 10-12 years ago (maybe a little longer) I told my friend Kate Armstrong about the book and the Camino and told her I thought she should do it. A year later she did! Kate walked the entire 500+ miles and she was 60+!
A month later, they called and said they watched the movie, 