Todays Hike on tiger MT June 4th 2011

Left to right, Beck, Aileen, Angela, Christie, Debbie, Kelli, Me

ME!

Sam and I !

Sam, Me, Brett and Jake.

It started out as an amazing , beautiful, day in the PNW. Seriously, the first that we have had since last summer. It has been a pretty ugly winter, spring, around these parts. Cold. rain. and lack of sun.

We had planned this hike for a while, and Sam and I were going to hike up the mountain with my gym rat friends. Brett and Jake went up ahead cause they wanted to go up and down faster than an 8 year old.

Brett and Jake went on up, and Sam and I were in the back with Becky, enjoying the nice weather, and Sam's company. We ran into Brett when we were close to the top. And he was alone, he said he wanted to run down, and Jake didnt. I didnt think anything of it, and he , and we, went on our way.

We never did run into Jake, and in fact, ran into Angela's husband, who also said he didnt see my boys, and again I didnt think too much of it ( there are different trails you can take to the top, so I just figured we missed one another ). we got to the top, took some pics, and headed back down, This time, it was me, Sam, and Debbie. We were going pretty slow, Sam, and my IT BAND issues were holding us back. All of a sudden, we ran into Brett, who was coming back UP the Mountain. ( we were a little more than half way down at this point). Brett said Jake wasnt at the bottom, and he had left his cell phone in his car. Brett was going back up the MT looking for Jake. I freaked out, on the inside. On the outside, I told Debbie I had to go back up with Brett, and she said she would take Sam to the bottom, Where everyone was already. So Brett and I went back up, and we were pretty quiet. I didnt say much, there were a few phone calls back down to Debbie and Angela, just to relay the messages that Brett had to say ( like where he and Jake split up) giving Angela and her husband, Jeremy, clues as to where to look for Jake. I asked some of the hikers if they saw Jake, and started giving out my phone number to them. Brett and I got to where he had left JAke and we walked and walked. I even called 911 who then transfer ed me to a non urgent line and after 5 minutes of being on hold, I hung up, cause they were sucking up my battery. Brett made a comment like " he watches survivor man all the time, he knows what to do " and that made me smile for a minute. But seriously, I was freaking out, and thinking all sorts of bad things, and most of all thinking that just around any corner , he would be there, walking towards us, smiling when he sees us.

Brett and I talked to a couple of hikers who had been on the road for about 2 miles and didnt see anyone, so at that point Brett and I couldnt figure out what to do. At this point , it had been 2.5 hours since Brett had last seen Jake. We were talking, and then my phone rang, it was Debbie, I said " hello" and she said " we found him" the greatest 3 words a mom could hear, followed by " Jeremy has him , he is fine" She said Jeremy found him by hwy 18 walking in the right direction. He had to have gone about 6 or 7 miles before Jeremy found him. I thanked Debbie, and just sobbed. and sobbed. I couldnt even say goodbye, just " thank you" hung up with Debbie, and just hugged Brett, and sobbed. it was such a relief, This overwhelming, heart wrenching relief. Brett and I headed back UP the MT, to get back DOWN the Mt, our little hike turned into a 4 hour hike. Jake soon called me, and he told me what happened. I talked with Angela and she was ok with leaving Sam with Jake while they waited for us in the parking lot . Brett and I talked going back down the MT, unlike our way up. it was 1 PM when we got to the bottom, and Sam and Jake were sitting his Jake's car waiting for us ( Sam greeted us with a hearty wave). I got to the car and didnt say too much. I know Jake felt bad, and I wasnt going to make it worse, ( my gym rats all told him he was going to get yelled at , lol) .

It was such a horrible feeling. Not knowing where your son was on a Mountain. knowing he is a 'man' and knows how to figure out where he is, but OMG still. HEART WRENCHING Mommy times. I would never wish that feeling on anyone, and I am so happy he is safe and sound.

I love you Jake, Big Time love you......