On A Night Like This

Chapter Two

-Jayce-

The next day, he got up to the pass. It was almost four miles up, which wasn't far for the average hiker, but it took him half the day. This part of the trail had a lot more elevation gain than the section from the trailhead to the lake. With the extra weight he was carrying, he had to stop often and take breaks. He saw a handful of other hikers on the trail, all of whom passed him.

The scenery was incredible and unlike anything he'd ever seen before. Closer to the top, the trail wound through yellow larch trees and around bushes whose leaves were turning red and purple. His cell phone was almost out of battery, but he took a few pictures of the autumn colors and the mountain peaks surrounding him.

His thighs and calves were burning from the effort by the time he reached the pass. He took off his pack and sat on a rock to admire the view and eat a snack. He could see the lake far below him, and he felt proud knowing he had come all the way up from there. At least this was something he could do, even if nothing else was going right in his life.

When he put his pack back on, his muscles protested. He decided that he wouldn't go too much further today. He'd focus on finding a good campsite instead. He continued on the trail, which stayed up on the ridge and wound its way around the rocky landscape. The trail was narrow in some places, with a long drop off to the side. He tried not to look at how far down it went, and he felt better when the trail eventually began descending toward the trees again. 

At a wide, flat area, he came upon a few spots near the trail that looked like they had been used for camping. They were good spots, but they were in view of the trail. He didn't want to hear people walking by his campsite all night. It wouldn't hurt to go a little further into the trees to see if he could find a more secluded spot. He stepped off the trail and began making his way through the trees.

-

He slept longer than he intended to. When he woke up and stretched, every muscle in his body felt stiff and sore. He ate two Clif bars for breakfast before getting up and slowly packing up his tent. As he shouldered his pack, he looked around to see which way he'd come. He studied the trees and rocky ground carefully, but it all looked the same. Panic began to grip him as he realized he didn't know the way back to the trail.

He should have thought to mark the way, or he should have brought something to keep his cell phone charged so he could look at a map. He closed his eyes and tried to think. Maybe he should start walking in one direction, and if he didn't find the trail in a few minutes, he'd turn around, come back to this spot, and try again.

He walked through the trees, trying to steady his breathing. The last thing he wanted was to get lost out here, but his heart began to thump in his chest as the minutes passed. He still hadn't found the trail. He fought the urge to start running and wondered if this was the point when he should turn around and make his way back to his campsite.

Just when he was about to give up and go back, he spotted something a few feet ahead of him. It was a worn spot on the ground - the trail! He hurried over and began to follow it, thankful he had found it. He decided right then that he was going to stick to the trail going forward, even if it meant camping next to it. He smiled as he walked, already feeling better as he admired the deep gold needles of the larch trees. Fall was about to give way to winter, and he was glad he'd still been able to see some color in the forest.

But after about a half hour of walking, he began to get a strange feeling. He was having to go down some steep granite sections, and the trail seemed like it was getting more faint in places. He didn't remember the trail being like this. Except for the rocky sections on the ridge, the rest of the trail had been wide, with the path worn into the dirt, and there was no mistaking it was the trail. With a sinking feeling, he noted that this trail looked barely used. Was there more than one trail? Was he on the wrong one?