Journalism
Introduction
It is not every day of your life that you have an adventure. Adventures are supposed to be hair-raising and goose bumping, and are supposed to occur once in maybe twenty years. When I had a series of heart-stopping adventures on a short trip to Colorado, I realized that there are exceptions to the rule. As a person, I grew up more rapidly in my trip to Colorado than I have grown at any point in my life.
Thesis
Through my experiences in my Colorado trip, I have come to realize that you cannot keep a good man down. Strength of character finally shows through.
My Colorado Trip
I, along with six of my friends, decided to take a trip outside the state during the break between summer and autumn terms. We had made trips together before; however, our earlier trips were closer to home. This time, we wanted to go further afield. We made fervent preparations for our trip. We had scoured tourist guides and the Internet for suitable destinations. We wanted an offbeat holiday - no malls, no Internet and no technology. We wanted to explore nature. So we settled on an outdoor trip to Colorado, where we would get the opportunity to do some white water rafting and hiking in the mountains. We decided to fly from JFK to Denver, and then travel by road to Moab for a four-day white water rafting trip down Colorado River. We added a hiking trip through Maroon Bells to round off our break.
Flight reservations were made two months in advance to earn the early-bird discounts. We were excited about the event. To me, going away far from home with friends on a plane for the first time was like a rite of passage; an indication that slowly, but surely, I was growing up and moving away from the security and comfort of home.
On the big day of the start of our trip, our parents drove us to the airport. We said our goodbyes, and there we were together: Judd, Alice, Kevin, Lydia, Arthur, Erica and me. Judd was a year ahead in college than the rest of us, and had been on a trip to Europe earlier with his friends. Because of his experience, we voted him our team leader.
We checked in excitedly. We were flying with American Airlines. Our flight was from JFK. It was to be a four-hour hop to Denver. After we went through security check, we sat in the security hold area - four on one side, three on the other. I realized that I was the odd on out in this trip; the others were pairs – every guy had his girlfriend along for the trip! However, that also made me the bridge between all of my friends, as all of them could open up freely with me.
We boarded the aircraft and took our respective seats. Coach class is crowded. My knees dug uncomfortably into the seat ahead and I tried to stay ramrod straight to lessen the claustrophobia. Mentally, I began counting off the minutes; it was, after all, going to be only four hours.
Before long, we landed at Denver. But then I saw the plane veering away from the terminal! A general hubbub arose amongst the passengers as we saw the terminal getting further away from us. We asked the airhostesses as to what was happening, but they gave us nothing more than a cheery grin, telling us to stay in our seats.
The plane reached a deserted area in the airport, and then the pilot’s voice came in over the intercom, “Ladies and gentlemen! Kindly stay calm and remain seated. We will go through a security check of the aircraft.”
With mounting alarm, we wondered the reason for the unscheduled security check. Was there a bomb on board? Was there a terrorist amongst us? I looked around, and panic rose a few notches when I found a couple of dark-skinned men seated behind me. All sorts of apocalyptic thoughts rushed through my brain. The girls began weeping and we tried to maintain an outer calm.
Before long, a convoy of vehicles came across the tarmac and approached the aircraft. People emerged from the vehicles, wearing white hoods and visors and carrying what looked like bulky briefcases. It was a bomb alert! Someone had called the airport and declared that a bomb was there on the aircraft. Seeing the bomb squad, a few women began wailing. Some men began praying. The hostesses remained busy, trying to calm down the passengers. By now, the air-conditioning was faltering. We remained in a haze of sweat and mounting terror.
The bomb squad went about its task. Overhead lockers were checked. The luggage hold was inspected. Then we were told to alight from the plane one by one. We were frisked with great precision. The whole exercise lasted four hours. At the end of the exercise, we were told that it had been a hoax!
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as were piled onto buses and we made our way to the terminal. What a way to begin our trip! Our van was waiting for us at the airport to take us to Moab. We piled in with relief and slept the rest of the way to the Grand Canyon.
We spent the first day at Moab learning to get the hang of rafting. Rafting is a thrilling experience so long as it is done with care and caution. We were going to encounter a couple of Grade 3 rapids during our journey, and so we had to remain alert and skillful. We began our trip on the third day. Everything was calm and serene as we floated down the river. As the sun came up, however, temperatures soared, both outside and amongst us.
Judd kept up a monologue about us needing to row together, lest we fall. He was especially critical of me. I took it in good stride, but Judd kept needling me. He commented that I had not worked with my hands throughout my life and had led an easy suburban life in New York. My cheeks grew redder as I tried to maintain my calm. The girls stole glances at me sympathetically. As the sun beat down upon us, it became extremely hot in the canyon.
Soon, we were approaching the rapids. I could sense a tension in the air. Judd’s voice rose a notch. I knew he was getting closer to panic. He maintained a steady rhythm of instructions as we negotiated the first rapid. We made it through without incident. Judd, exhilarated with us having made it, turned his attention to me. He began saying that we had made it despite my poor rowing. Before long, we came up to the second rapid. Judd returned to panic mode, and this time he kept haranguing me as we approached the rapid. I tried to remain calm, but the pressure of the situation got to me. As the raft crested the rapid, I remember easing off on the rowing. The raft went askew, and before we knew it, we had turned turtle.
Falling from the raft amidst a Grade 3 rapid is a harrowing experience. There were screams from the girls. We got swept along the river. My arms were giving way as I tried to flail against the water. Thankfully, we reached a bend in the river and were able to scramble over to the riverbank.
Judd said that we had fallen because of my fault. He blamed my city breeding to my lack of strength. He declared that it had been a mistake to take me along on an outdoor trip. I kept quiet, steeling myself from returning his insults.
The rest of the rafting trip went off without incident. Soon, we were back in a jeep, heading to Maroon Bells. We reached Maroon Bells and camped over the night. The next day, we began a five-day trek through the mountains. The area was famous for bears, and we kept close to one another as we made our way.
On the third day up into the mountains, a bear blocked our path as we came around a bend in the trail. We were taken by surprise. We stopped in our tracks. Judd had had a couple of beers that day, and I suppose he was a little out of his senses. He mocked us for the panic and told us that the best way to confront a bear was to show aggression.
Judd began shouting at the bear and making threatening gestures. I could see the bear getting agitated. Judd bent down to gather a stone to hurl at the bear.
I knew at that instant that this was a critical moment. If the bear felt threatened, it might attack us. I approached Judd and held his hand, preventing him from picking up the stone. Judd looked at me, surprised. I remained firm, and motioned him to calm down. Across the bend, I had seen a cub. The bear was acting in a threatening manner because it was trying to protect its cub. I called out in a soothing manner to the bear. The bear calmed down. I motioned to our group to retrace our steps. Slowly, we backed off the path. After a minute, when we peered across the bend, we found that the bear had gone.
That incident brought about a sea change in the manner the group, and especially Judd, regarded me. I had shown calm courage in the face of grave danger. While I might not have displayed physical strength in the river, I had saved them all with my calmness and presence of mind.
I enjoyed the rest of the trip. My friendship with each member of the group deepened as a result of the events of the trip.
Conclusion
Trips in the wild are excellent opportunities to know the self and to build character. I was happy to discover the calmness and steel within myself. It was a discovery that was to give me confidence and win me friends throughout the rest of my life.
