To read “Beyond the Summit Part 1 by Ana, click here.

A few months later, I went to Morocco with my friends to hike the High Atlas Mountains, and I had an incredible experience in the waterfalls and learning more about nomads. I stayed in a guest house with a wonderful family who hosted me and taught me Arabic while I was there. It was an amazing woman called Aysha who cooked every day for us, and a baby who was there playing with us. Our guide took us on a five-hour hike through the mountains, and he was telling us about how there were semi-nomads and barbarians living there. It was a moment in which not only was my mind receiving a lot of information at the same time, but I was at peace. Hiking with my friends, we had the chance to talk a lot about our lives, goals, and expectations. Normally, people will tell you that intellectual conversations come from big rooms, libraries, or classes, but for me, it comes from hikes. Moments like that one were when I could bond with my friends and understand more about their perspectives and lives. When we reached the top, we saw the waterfalls and enjoyed the moment. That hike taught me how much I could learn from talking to people. 

My fourth hike was in Nepal, a famous hiking destination, and it was a turning point in my life. Hiking with sixteen friends, we did an easy track through the Australian camp, which is in front of Annapurna. It was two hours of hiking up to the camp, and even though the track was easy and without technical challenges, the stairs were never-ending, and my friends and I were facing some issues with our heavy backpacks. However, it was worth each second because the view of Annapurna was magical. I saw the mountains covered with snow, and I noticed for the first time why people love hiking: it is not about “winning” that mountain but about an inexplicable feeling of peace and gratitude for connecting ourselves with nature, communities, and life among the mountains. 

When I woke up and saw the sunrise behind the Annapurna mountains, I realized I wanted to keep hiking throughout my life, watching the sunset, and reconnecting with our Earth every time. Hiking opens minds, and mine was opened to see how beautiful the world is, and we have to protect it; protect the environment, the people, the tradition, and protect love. From hiking with my friends to hiking with strangers in Nepal, I noticed the world tries to convince us that we have to hate each other, but hiking, I noticed that love and collaboration are the secrets to the world. The friends and moments I had in Nepal will be forever in my heart!

A week after Nepal, I flew to China and had the privilege to hike the Great Wall. I woke up at 5am and started to drive from Beijing to the Great Wall. I was with three other friends, and at 7am we were there hiking in one of the seven wonders of the world. Honestly, from all of the hikes, it was the easiest one; however, every time I stopped to observe the landscape, I was astonished by how beautiful that place was, and how my mind was at peace walking through the stones and reflecting on my life. I remember sitting and observing the mountains, thinking how hiking was making me not only physically stronger but also proving to me that I can constantly push my limits. 

 Three weeks later, I was flying to South Korea to hike the tallest mountain there, called Hallasan, 1940 meters in elevation, and about eight hours hiking. When I started the hike with my friend, I was so excited to finally hike again. However, I was not expecting to push all my limits on that hike. Our guide was super fast, and my friend and I were trying to follow his path, walking as fast as we could. While I was hiking the first hour, my mind was clear, and I was thinking of nothing for the first time. Normally, I overthink about a thousand things when I am not listening to music or talking to someone, but at that moment, I was just concentrated on the sounds of the birds, leaves, and water surrounding me. 

The first stop was supposed to be reached in three hours, but we did it in 1 and a half, which showed me how I could push my limits beyond what I thought. I have been doing kung fu since I was a child, and doing physical exercises was always the worst because my mind always told me it was too hard for me. However, that day I hiked a lot super fast, and I was completely okay, proving I can do hard things. The second path to the summit was harder because it was an hour hiking up with a thousand stairs, which made the way more complicated. However, at that moment, I had my friends encouraging me and helping me to follow, highlighting how important it is to have friends who help me to keep my goals even when I am tired. When I reached the summit and ate my lunch, there was a feeling of “Yes! I got it!” and appreciating the view just showed me again how beautiful the world is and how important it is to protect it.
My final stop was in Hong Kong, where I did my last hike. My friends and I were hiking up to the Pyramid Hill for about four hours. We were graduating in our gap year program, so it was a cute goodbye. I was ahead with a friend, and we were talking while observing the view. The fresh air was entering my body and heart, and I was having the feeling of energizing my mind and thoughts as always. With my friend, we were so excited for hiking that we overshot the point to Pyramid Hill, and we kept hiking for the longest time. This wrong trail would be eight hours hiking instead of four, but we were so happy to be there that we barely noticed. Without data, our other friends could not call us, which made everything so much more exciting! Obviously, not because we were getting lost, but because we were super happy that we did not notice our phones were without internet. I barely touched my electronic advice, and this is something I love about hiking: I disconnect myself from everything but myself. After about an hour, we noticed we were lost because we were between two paths to follow, one going to MacLehose Trail Section (5.7km) and Shek Lung Tsai Rock Cluster (300m). I sent a message to my instructor, and he told me we were far from Pyramid Hill. Then, we laughed and came back.

After reaching the real summit, I observed the mountains for five minutes before having to come back because of the sunset, but there, I knew I was happier than ever before, and nothing could be more important to me than the feeling of being free. Free from electronic advice, hard thoughts, overthinking, pressure, anything. There, I was free, and that was the only thing that mattered. 

After all, hiking for me is freedom. Movement is freedom, not only physically, but also mentally. It is about self-improvement, courage, reflection, and, most importantly, peace.