Evaristo Salas Jr.

So these crews use bladder bags full of water.

I ran out of water, and I was thinking, well, this tree's still going up, so I figured I'd have to race down to this creek.

I ran down the ridge and into this creek, which is pretty far away from the main route.

This creek, it was beautiful.

It was clear.

It was fresh.

It was cold.

I couldn't take as much time as I wanted to, but I didn't need to because those moments felt like, you know, it was eternity.

And I kind of took it all in, kind of dipped my hands into it, splashed it on my face.

And I sat there and I just kind of enjoyed the moment and soldiered in.

And I remember thinking at that moment, like, you know, all these years I spent looking up here.

And so when I went down and experienced that, you know, I kind of just listened to it.

And it makes you not only lose track of time, but almost forget all the past suffering and struggles that you've been through.

And I took it all in and I enjoyed it.

And I made sure to remind myself, you know, what it felt like to kind of experience both sides of that.

The other side, from inside a prison, looking up at that mountain and hoping that, you know, or wondering what it would be like to be amongst the trails and the forest of that area and that actually be there.

It was a beautiful feeling that came over me.

It was a feeling of excitement.

And just to be able to enjoy that by myself.

I'm so used to being surrounded by things I can't do and being able to see the things I can't do.