The Pursuit of Being Deb: Road Trip: Day 5

Starting: Livingston, MT
Ending: Coeur d’Alene, ID
Distance Traveled: 391 miles

Day 5 Goal: Rocky Mountains

Gift Cards Used: American Express (lunch, gas)

About Today:
A flatlander by nature, the drive through the mountains was what worried me the most about this entire trip. I’d driven through much of Colorado, including the ‘Top of the Rockies’ highway, which I found absolutely terrifying. The fear of doing that again had hovered in the back of my mind ever since I decided to embark on this adventure. When we drove to Mt. Rushmore earlier this week, the Black Hills were challenging to say the least. So many ups and downs, and twists and turns! My car struggled up those hills, so how in the world could we make it through the Rockies?! Should I ship my suitcases to lighten the load? What if the engine quits with a truck barreling down upon us? I didn't sleep at all last night and neither did my friend. So awake and worried, we left Montana early with the mindset of pushing through the 6 hr drive. We wanted it over with as soon as possible.

Since our struggle in the Black Hills, we had been using every turn, hill, and bend in the road as practice for this day. And during that process we learned that it wasn’t so much the car that was struggling with the terrain – it was us. We had to remind ourselves to be more aggressive in our acceleration. Don’t break too much on the turns, as scary as it may be, because it will help the car accelerate on the other side. And contrary to most flatlander’s beliefs, going 75 mph over hills and around turns will not cause your vehicle to launch into the air like the General Lee.

This wasn't us!

In the end, we encountered only about an hour’s worth of white-knuckled driving on the steeper, tighter sections of the road. The remainder of the day’s driving was, in all honesty, breathtaking. Each turn awarded us a new view of hills covered in a blanket of pine trees, as the road followed the river through the mountains. We stopped at a Rest Area to stretch and found ourselves engulfed in the scent of fresh pine. It was, ironically, my favorite day of driving this entire trip.

That’s how it works though, isn’t it? The thing we’re most afraid of is often what brings us the most enjoyment. Today was a reminder that the monster in our head doesn’t grow large on his own – he’s large because we feed him. I had fed my fear so much that somehow it grew larger than the mountains themselves.

So tonight I go to bed excited about something that terrified me the night before… it’s been a full 24 hours.

Fun Notes from Today:

Sound the trumpets! Emilie hit 150,000 miles!