We, at 73 and 76, are ordinary examples. We have been physically fit and blessed with good health and joints, but have kept up exercising even when ill or injured, just pressing on through it. Sure, it may hurt, but if it isn’t physically damaging our bodies, we proceed. Most of you do that too.
So we have discarded the ‘7s’ and are looking forward to ignoring the ‘8s’.
However, beyond age, we are afflicted with a problem. Climbers have an insatiable need to stand on top of whatever challenges we see. If unclimbed, it is filed away on our bucket list. On a Caribbean cruise in the 1980s, we stopped on beautiful little St. Lucia in the Eastern Caribbean with its pleasant port of call at Castries on the northern part of the island. We didn’t do much except poke around with our little boys. But staring back at us were the near-twins Gros Piton and Petit Piton, gigantic tooth shaped volcanic spires. (Spires are solidified lava that forms inside volcanoes and are all that is left when the volcano erodes.) The Pitons are located on the southern part of St Lucia and they have taunted us for decades. Are we now too old for this?
With the exception of two popular super luxury hideaway resorts of Ladera and Sugar Beach, the accommodations are more local. We stayed at the Downtown Hotel in Soufriere, a little very old port in the shadow of Petit Piton. An immersive experience. Constant chatter of Creole accented English on the streets. The Piton Peak Café is close by and the small Still House resort (best lunch buffet) is only a 10-minute walk. The monthly Friday night Jump Up in the town square went on until 2am. Fun and loud.
We reached the top of Gros Piton in the average two hours, much to Martin’s satisfaction. There are two tops – government guides go to the more frequented south top with a view south, but Treasure Tours guides can also go to the north top with its breath-taking view of the Petit Piton 3 miles away and Soufriere Bay. Martinique was in the haze 40 miles away (or a 90-minute fast ferry ride from Castries)
After pictures, snacks, water and rejuvenation – and a chance to feed the abundant mosquitoes – we headed down. The descent is as perilous as the ascent.
We reached Piton Village and stopped for, what else, an ice cold Piton Beer. Another peak conquered, another item off the bucket list. Was it ‘appropriate’ for folks of our age to test our limits? Yes. It was there, we climbed it, end of story. We seem to be drawn by volcanoes – last May we climbed El Teide Volcano on the Canary Island of Tenerife, a tough one, and climbed Mauna Loa in Hawaii in November. Outdoor adventures are in our blood, so we’ll undoubtedly seek out a few more volcanos to add to our bucket list.
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I love your adventures! My husband and I do a lot of traveling g but we’re not mountain climbers. I’m 73 and love to walk, swim and bike ride. You are an inspiration to all us REDs* I wish you oceans of days of mountain climbing! * RED: Retired-Extremely-Daring