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In the past the only time I would ever think of nature as beautiful was when I was under the influence of drugs. However, now that I am in a rehab facility that has a strong emphasis on outdoor activities like camping, my viewpoints have really changed.
This week we went to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon which a lot of people do not get to see. Back 2 Basics is an Addiction Rehab Young adults that has shown me parts of the Grand Canyon that I have never The hikes in the canyon were hard, but the views and destination made all the effort worth it. The first night all the residents and I hung out by the camp fire, relaxing. When we woke up there was snow everywhere. This would have angered me if I had still been using drugs, but instead it more of a serenity feeling looking at how everything around us was covered by snow.
The main hike during our trip was to Roaring Springs on the North Kaibab trail. It was brutal. The hike was about five miles down and five miles up. I’ve been to the canyon a few times now and every time I still can’t believe how massive it is. At the bottom of the trial there are about four waterfalls out of the rock face, and are really big. Once we reached the bottom, we all sat down in the shade with our feet in the cool water. It was really relaxing. We ended up running into some kids who were from the East coast and where I use to go to college. Life is such a small world.
The way back up was especially hard and it doesn’t help that I am a smoker! My lungs felt like they were about to burst. One of the other residents and I stayed together the whole way up motivating and pushing each other to keep going. It’s a good feeling having someone be there for you to keep motivating you. We did a lot better than we thought we would because of it. Finally after we reached the top we did what most people probably wouldn’t do after a ten mile hike. It felt good looking down into the canyon and realizing that I just hiked that thing.
The rest of the day was spent lying down at the campsite because we were all exhausted to do anything. We just hung out by the camp fire and enjoyed each other’s company. Later that night we heard a story about a death in the Grand Canyon. It was interesting to learn about and we also learned ways to prevent serious injury and death in the canyon.
Overall the trip was fun, hard, but rewarding all in the same. Each time we experience a trip like this with Back 2 Basics Soberliving, I begin to appreciate the outdoors and nature more and more. I never thought that these experiences could amaze me every time; I didn’t even think it was possible, but it did.