It’s the climb

“It might as well have been yesterday,” said Rick Bevard, the feeling so fresh of notching another fourteener mountaintop in his belt last month.

Bevard’s conquest was Mount Whitney, the highest in the contiguous lower 48 states, at an elevation of 14,505 feet.

Joshua Stiffler, a 1998 Iola High School classmate of Bevard’s, and John Erbert, IHS Class of 2000, accompanied Bevard on the climb.

For Erbert and Bevard, it was their third 14er to summit together. For Stiffler, it was his first experience hiking at a high altitude. 

“Josh went with the goal of pushing himself, not necessarily of reaching the top,” Bevard said of his good friend. “We hiked together the entire way until he’d reached his limit. That was a highly ambitious first attempt, especially with less than 24 hours to acclimate.”

The trio hit the trail at 2:30 a.m. June 21 and returned 22 hours later. Beginning elevation, 8,360 feet. Net gain, over 6,100 feet. Distance, 22 miles.

Bevard described the trail as crooked, winding, and spectacular.

In the early morning hours, “there was complete calm in the air and a lovely big, clear sky. We hiked in the most pristine wilderness that remains on the planet.”

Hikers refer to sunrise as the alpenglow, as the mountains’ dark granite walls turn a warm and rosy hue.

“Sunrise was a wondrous sight,” Bevard said.

The weather was picture-perfect, without a cloud in the sky all day and the temperatures in the mid-50s.

“We lucked out,” Bevard said. “Several days later the mountain was covered in several inches of snow.”

Before their excursion, the trio frequently communicated from their respective locations. Bevard lives in Kansas City, Stiffler in Humboldt and Erbert is primarily located in Missouri working construction.

“We’d had a few months to prepare and knew some of what lay ahead from forum discussions, pictures, and maps,” Bevard said. But once on the trail, the distances seemed less certain, particularly in the dark, he said.

“We tried to chart and put what we learned into practice but there were things we didn’t expect,” he said, including the “99 switchbacks from hell.”

“The switchbacks tested our patience,” Bevard admitted. “I lost count of them at least three times.”

The trick was to stay “focused on 10 feet at a time in order to keep the immediate goal at hand,” he said. “This is when a strong mental attitude helps. Staying optimistic and finding strength within is key.” 

The air is thin. The trail steep. The going slow. 

Besides the challenges of exercising at a higher altitude, the trail required focus.

“There were some narrow bridges with straight vertical drops on both sides. Josh referred to these as ‘sketchy.’ But he faced them head on. 

“It requires leaning in and locking eyes on what’s ahead; proper placement of your feet to avoid missteps and maintaining your balance,” he said.

The rewards of reaching higher elevations were gratifying.

Bevard recalled the massive “Whitney Windows,” a dramatic ridge with awe-inspiring views.

“It was here that Josh decided he’d found his extreme limit at 13,700 feet,” Bevard said. With the party split up and time running short, Bevard said “each step felt heavier, but yet needed to be quicker.”

“Though only 800 feet of elevation remained, I knew this last 1.9 miles required a focused determination,” he said.

Erbert had pushed on ahead to summit and returned to do it again with Bevard, reaching the top at 4 p.m. 

“We captured a few photos, looked into the Whitney Hut, a Mount Whitney icon, signed the register, and started down to hook up with Josh.”

Once connected with Stiffler, they found two solo hikers had joined up with him. The fivesome then descended the mountain.

“We saw the sunset and the moon and stars again, just like when we started 20 hours earlier,” 

“We ended as we began, walking with our headlamps on.”

Though the last stretch seemed interminable, Bevard said, there was also the satisfaction of achievement that provided them a “second and third wind,” to get them down.

But it was more than the hike, he said.

“Here we were, three friends from our hometown of Iola who decided 20-some years later to do something like this.”

Bevard likened the close-knit community of hikers to his friendship with Erbert and Stiffler.

“There’s no getting in or out of there without other people,” he said of the endeavor. “They want everyone to win, and this encouragement along the way is a contributing factor,” to success.

“This was one of the hardest, most physical and mentally draining challenge I have ever experienced. We were tired after the hike but will never tire of the beautiful things we got to see. It was awe-inspiring and truly an experience that will stay with us. 

“If you want to change, you’re probably going to have to experience some pain,” Bevard suggested. “Anxiety or less control is something we’d prefer to avoid. It’s never too late to find or rediscover wonder and blow your hair back. 

“John calls these ‘Type 2 adventures.’ You feel epic about two days after you stop hurting! I couldn’t be prouder of Josh and John who teamed up with me and crushed their goals!”