Climbing Mt. Whitney a Mission to Be Savored
While I admire Kim Pflieger’s dedication to exercise and to do her best (How I Did It, Aug. 30 and Sept. 6) in training for and climbing Mt. Whitney, I have to say to Kim and all the others in her group to take time and smell the roses.
Mt. Whitney is not to be thought of in terms of “let’s see who can reach the top first.†Mt. Whitney is an accomplishment of hiking 14,497 feet--of taking time to breathe and delight in the beauty of a magnificent experience.
I hiked Mt. Whitney in my 50s. I saw older people, some hiking with canes, taking time to appreciate the wonder around them. And I saw young people racing to the top, some whose only thought was, “How long will it take?â€
Who is the winner here?
--BETTY FINEMAN
Las Flores
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