25 miles. Eight summits. 10,000 feet of elevation gain. 16 hours of hiking. Three hours of sleep. As I survey my map and realize that I still have one summit and 10 miles to go, with less than three hours of daylight left, I concede that this day is rapidly turning in to an arithmetic problem from hell. My six companions have already resumed the merciless up and downs of the trail, racing the sun for our elusive eighth and final summit.

As I watch Julia’s ponytail bob into the distance, I wonder aloud if the person who said that you have to crawl before you begin to walk ever imagined the reverse happening to some one. Groaning, I leave my comfy perch on a boulder and resume my trudging, promising myself that I won’t start crawling just yet.