Preface

Looking at the giant K2 poster hanging on the wall in my office, I still can’t believe that I am back from the mixture of rocks, ice and snow to this pan demoniac civilization. I can’t deny that during the 28 field days, several times the thought “I want to go home” crossed my mind; however, in spite of unpleasant conditions we have encountered, living in the wilderness is easier – it is simple and it is intuitive. Now, I want to go back.

Old friends and family members are shocked that I have become an outdooraholic. Before I came to the States, I had never backpacked, neither had I exercised regularly. I didn’t do any sports, and I couldn’t run 3 miles. But I have always admired mountains, I touch and talk to flowers, and I love adventures.

I moved to the States for graduate study at age 23 in 1998, but not until 5 years later did I do my first backpacking trip, and it was miserable. In the same year, I also discovered a shocking truth that my little fantasy of being satisfied not dreaming about climbing the highest peak but the second highest peak is so naïve. K2 is way more unreachable than Everest, but at least – I thought – I could work on getting closer, and K2 is a more cadent slogan to encourage myself to carry on when I feel out-of-breath during an endurance workout.

I thought that was my main reason to climb, but after this trip, I realized that the reason to climb is in fact more simple. This course is the longest length I’ve been living in the wilderness so that I had abundant field days to collect and concrete the wonders floating in my mind. Why am I here? What did I get myself into? Where will I be? I’ll be among mountains and wild things because that makes me feel good, oh, I should have said “that makes me feel REALLY good.”

Living in the wilderness and climbing mountains requires physical strength and mental training and that is why I took this course. I still have much to learn but this course certainly opened up the window for me. I hope people find my experience interesting and if you want to climb, don’t just think about it.

Acknowledgement

Without the support from Jeremy, my husband, I would never imagine that one day I could set my foot on any peak in Alaska. His impregnable belief in me makes me believe in myself and gives me indispensable strengths for wilderness living.