The first time I went up to Angels Landing in Zion National Park was in 2007 as part of a school trip. There was some snow, and some ice, it was dark–I had never done anything remotely like this. The whole time I remember feeling, “Am I going to die?” I gripped the chains and eventually made my way to the top. It was a life-changing experience being on top of the world. And it shaped me who I am today.
16 years later, I went back up taking my sister and this time it was just a walk in the park. There were no chains, no snow or ice, (and because we didn’t have a permit) we did it in the dark avoiding the heat and traffic.
The experience I have gathered climbing mountains made this much easier. That much is certain. But also, it is worth pointing out that humans distort memories. We remember the feeling of fear and over time it cements itself to being worst than it actually is. This applies to watching a movie as a kid to watching it now.
Time exaggerates while experience grounds us.
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