Solo at the Summit

Zakopane - Poland

Zakopane, Poland is named as the “Winter Capital of Poland”, known for its distinctive wooden huts, hand crafted leather clothing, and dim, fire-lit pubs. But I didn’t come all this way for cozy evenings and comforting homemade meals. I came for the summit.

I am a young woman travelling solo in a new country. Everything screams excitement to me - different smells, diverse foods, unfamiliar languages and navigating foreign bus timetables, to name a few new experiences! Although learning as I go is my style, I can’t ignore the knowledge there is something bigger out there for me. Something above the tree lines. Something beyond the climb. The Tatra mountain range calls for me, and today is the day I begin my hike. Despite my ambitious goals based on little knowledge of marked trails, I feel wealthy in the only currency that matters in this region - motivation.

As I stand at the bottom of what feels like impossible, I can only encourage myself with the reminder I have been training all year for this moment. I grit my teeth, smile through anticipation and take the first small step - as the late Queen Elizabeth II quoted ‘It is often the small steps, not the giant leaps, that bring about the most lasting change’. The weather is pleasant, the birds are soaring and crisp leaves crunch beneath my boots. The earthy scent from damp, exposed roots rises in the air and I feel gravity pulling me down with every ascending stride I accomplish. The trail becomes slightly more vertical, soft soiled ground becomes rock and trees start to thin out, almost making way for me. My presence feels seen, I am alone but I’m not alone. I feel as though I have become Mother Nature’s sole focus, each movement is deliberate and She knows where I am heading.

I keep trekking, however I feel my determination fading, hesitation sets in and fear is slowly creeping up on me. I have no one to rely on but myself. I could safely return to Zakopane, but I won’t. I am in my moment and I will conquer any doubt I set in myself.

I am more than halfway there and the steepness continues. The views are immense which gives me a heavy reminder the Tatra Mountains are not to be taken lightly - dramatic edges with sudden drops, loose rocks giving way without warning, blistering winds deafening both eardrums, the screams of Golden Eagles (primary eagle species in the Tatra region) echo from one mountainside to another, snow sets densely which once was a trickle of water at the introductory stage of the trail.

I reach the bulk of the snow, almost a foot deep for the best of 100 metres up. My legs are aching, the pace has slowed down considerably, the heat extracting from my body almost freezes as soon as the steam escapes my top layer due to the cold climate. The wind is constantly howling in my ears, which are red raw like my fingers and nose. I can’t feel my cheeks - as a matter of fact, I can’t remember the last time I felt my face!

I feel nothing short of exposed during my final ascent. I feel proud of myself for having gotten this far, yet still not satisfied because I just know deep down I can and I will get to the top. It is now or never. My breathing has spiraled completely out of control, my heartbeat could be mistaken for a boombox and blood is rushing faster than ever to every part of my overworked body.

Finally, after some 5 hours of hard graft, I make out the white and red colours which I can only hope are the border posts in the distance. I still have a way to go, but I am close at the same time. I scramble, I let out a slight cheer but not to celebrate too soon. With every tightening of my chest, I feel the adrenaline spike again for the countless time.

I edge even closer, this time I calculate I only have 50 metres to go. 50 metres. That is all. I tell myself I can do this, and it almost comes as an annoyance because those are the only words I have been drilling into my mind for the whole duration. At last, I reach the border posts and allow myself the well deserved praise after having achieved reaching the Polish-Sloakian border despite all of the hardships I was faced with.

I take a minute to indulge in this moment, composing myself and obeying my body’s order to finally take a break. There is nobody around, no one at all. Just one girl, one peak, and two countries. I stand here at the top of Kasprowy Wierch at some 1,985 meter elevation gain and take it all in. It is in this one singular instance, I instill faith back into the fact I can really achieve anything I put my mind to. I realise I haven’t just crossed a border today - I have crossed a limit. A limit that, only yesterday, I believed was too high for me.

Upon descent, all I remind myself of is the fact anything can happen at any given time out here. It is raw, it is unfiltered, it is life. This is the true meaning of living beyond expectations. I arrived in Poland with the hopes of reaching the border to Slovakia in the Tatra mountains. Now, I soon arrive back to the town having experienced doing it all on my own.