The Older Sister / Conquering Challenges | The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans LLC

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I felt like a kid. I felt like a hero. I felt healthy. I felt strong. I felt unstoppable. I felt proud.

Yesterday, I tackled one of the hardest things I have ever done. I went with one of my best friends since middle school and we attempted the 3 Dune Challenge at the Indiana Dunes State Park. What is the 3 Dune Challenge you ask. Here is how the website explains it…..”The 3 Dune Challenge is an adventurous 1.5-mile trail at Indiana Dunes State Park. Starting at trail 8 at the Nature Center, the winding path will take you through breathtaking views and exhausting inclines. At times you’ll be above the forest canopy and able to see for miles”. 552 vertical feet is what the back of my sweatshirt says.
Here’s the view from the top of the first dune, Mount Jackson. We knew early on that this wasn’t going to be a cakewalk. It got really steep, really fast, but we kept plugging along. It was worth it when we saw this view.

This is the view from the top of Mount Holden. We were still doing almost vertical climbs up sand dunes. At times it felt like two steps forward and one step back, but we kept on hiking.

We were actually kind of excited when we saw these 117 steps that led to the final point in the challenge, Mount Tom. They were slippery with sand, steep and narrow, but that somehow seemed better than the sand dune itself.

We got to the top and we saw this! We had made it. Two ladies who are both pushing 60 conquered the 3 Dune Challenge and lived to tell about it. I find this just a little bit amazing.