OMG! HE'S STILL AT IT BIG TIME!

22. The Man Beneath the Bush

On the nineteenth of October of 2012, I found one Jim Greentree who was lying beneath a bush in the desert of the Superstition Mountains of Arizona. He was eighty-one years old. He was a Canadian from British Columbia and never had hiked in the desert.

It was hot. He had gone to the bottom of the canyon and had come back up the steep trail only to walk in circles for hours hopelessly lost. He had brought only a half liter of water which he had drunk hours before.

He told us that he couldn’t swallow the raisins that he had brought because his throat was so dry. He was quite dehydrated and had seen no one all day. (In fact, no one but us was going to walk on that trail the rest of the day.)

We gave him ice water and candy. He vomited it all up, but drank and ate once again.

Two of my companions, one of them a doctor, decided to accompany him to the parking area. It would be a two-hour walk. They told the Canadian that he was going to set the pace, and he agreed. They began to walk and in a little while the old guy rallied and began to walk so fast that the others couldn’t keep up with him.

Meanwhile my brother and sister and I waited. I took of my backpack and put it against a small cliff. A little later, I needed something from the pack and returned to find that I had put the pack next to a black-tailed rattlesnake. I easily could have stepped on him. It was a scare for me.

When our friends returned, they told us that Mr. Greentree got a little choked up saying that his wife had just died.

That night I dreamed that a rattlesnake was coming at me and when I woke up I thought that I could see him. I woke up all of the others when I began to scream, “A rattlesnake! A rattlesnake!”

Black-tailed Rattlesnake.jpg

THE SPANISH VERSION HAS NICE PICTURES!

22. El hombre debajo del arbusto

El 19 de octubre de 2012, me encontré con Jim Greentree, que estaba acostado debajo de un arbusto en el desierto de las montañas Supersticiones de Arizona. Tenía ochenta y un años. Era canadiense de Columbia Británica y nunca había hecho caminatas en el desierto.
Hacía calor. Él había bajado al fondo del cañón y había regresado subiendo la empinada senda solamente para andar en círculos durante horas perdido sin esperanza. Él había traído solamente medio litro de agua, el cual ya se había tomado hace horas.
Nos dijo que no podía tragar las pasas que había llevado porque su garganta estaba reseca. Estaba muy deshidratado. No había visto a nadie en todo el día. (De hecho nadie más que nosotros iba a caminar por esta senda el resto del día). Le dimos agua helada y caramelos. Lo vomitó todo, pero volvió a beber y comer más.

Dos de mis compañeros, uno de ellos un médico, decidieron acompañarle al área de estacionamiento, un paseo de dos horas. Le avisaron al canadiense de que él iba a marcar el ritmo, y él estuvo de acuerdo. Empezaron a caminar y al poco tiempo el anciano se recuperó y empezó a caminar tan rápidamente que los otros no pudieron seguirle el ritmo.

Mis compañeros de caminata de izquierda a derecha: el médico, mi hermano gemelo, mi amigo, mi hermana

Mientras tanto mi hermanos y yo esperábamos. Me quité la mochila y la apoyé contra un pequeño acantilado. Un poquito después necesitaba algo de la mochila y regresé para descubrir que había puesto la mochila al lado de una serpiente cascabel de cola negra. Muy fácilmente la podría haber pisado. Fue un gran susto para mí.
Cuando nuestros compañeros regresaron, nos dijeron que el Sr. Greentree había llorado un poquito diciendo que su esposa se le acababa de morir.


Esa noche soñé que una serpiente cascabel iba a por mí y al despertar creía que podía verla. Desperté a todos los demás cuando empecé a gritar, “¡Una serpiente cascabel! ¡Una serpiente cascabel!”

8,664 views Premiered Mar 20, 2021

Jim Greentree has been a winter visitor to Apache Junction, Arizona for over a decade. During that time he has made over 300 successful climbs to the Flatiron summit in the Superstition Wilderness. Jim was born in 1931 and is currently 89 years of age. He turns 90 in June of 2021. Jim hails from British Columbia, Canada. He grew up on a farm and will tell you that the Canadian Armed Forces were his saving grace, as it afforded him the opportunity to broaden his horizons and escape farm life. He joined the military as a young man, serving as a combat engineer and paratrooper. He is a proud father of 4 children. Jim lost his beloved wife to cancer in 2011 and rather than give up on life, he instead chose to embrace it. In 2016, at the age of 85, Jim completed a tandem skydive. He says that standing in that door and taking that leap of faith is one of the most unnatural things to do, but it's all about trust and mindset. Jim is a perfect example of a person choosing to live life to its fullest, on his own terms, not allowing his age to become an obstacle or limitation. Age, according to Jim is little more than a number. He firmly believes in the power of a positive mindset being the greatest determining factor as it relates to our quality of life. Jim embodies these principles completely as evidenced by the way he conducts himself. He has an enthusiastic hello, a huge smile, and a positive word for everyone he encounters along the trail. During this 2020/2021 hiking season alone, Jim has climbed to Flatiron over 40 times. Although he will be heading back to his native Canada at the end of March, he is very much looking forward to returning at the end of 2021 to continue climbing at the ripe young age of 90. Jim, you're a true inspiration to all who have met you and heard your story.