Marilyn Koolstra

So we were very conscious that we had to monitor our bodies and act accordingly.

So we were very conscious that we had to monitor our bodies and act accordingly.

Eric and Marilyn flew to Kathmandu that September, then took a long bus ride to the start of the track. It was hot to start, and as we got higher, it got cooler. They ascended into evergreen forest, gaining jaw-dropping views of the Annapurna Massif, its high summits brilliant white with year-round snow. They came to the village of Manang, where they paused for a day to let their bodies acclimate.

Eric and Marilyn flew to Kathmandu that September, then took a long bus ride to the start of the track. It was hot to start, and as we got higher, it got cooler. They ascended into evergreen forest, gaining jaw-dropping views of the Annapurna Massif, its high summits brilliant white with year-round snow. They came to the village of Manang, where they paused for a day to let their bodies acclimate.

One way to stave off altitude sickness is to hike to a high point during the day, then retreat down to sleep at a lower elevation. So on their rest day in Menang, Eric and Marilyn walked up a steep hill to Prakengumpa, a tiny Buddhist monastery chiseled into the side of a cliff.

One way to stave off altitude sickness is to hike to a high point during the day, then retreat down to sleep at a lower elevation. So on their rest day in Menang, Eric and Marilyn walked up a steep hill to Prakengumpa, a tiny Buddhist monastery chiseled into the side of a cliff.

It was folklore that you went up there and got a blessing for safe passage. So we made that trek to get to the holy man.

It was folklore that you went up there and got a blessing for safe passage. So we made that trek to get to the holy man.

They each bought a good luck charm from the monk. A necklace made from a hand-plated string looped through an old coin with a hole in the middle. From Menang, they trekked west and north, climbing constantly.

They each bought a good luck charm from the monk. A necklace made from a hand-plated string looped through an old coin with a hole in the middle. From Menang, they trekked west and north, climbing constantly.

So it was steep, it was rocky, it was imposing. And then the night before we did the pass, it snowed. So everything was silent and it was a beautiful postcard picture of

So it was steep, it was rocky, it was imposing. And then the night before we did the pass, it snowed. So everything was silent and it was a beautiful postcard picture of

They started for the pass in the dim blue light of pre-dawn. Within a few hours, they reached the last outpost of civilization, a small stone hut where a Nepali man served hot tea.

They started for the pass in the dim blue light of pre-dawn. Within a few hours, they reached the last outpost of civilization, a small stone hut where a Nepali man served hot tea.

And the overpowering smell of kerosene, if I close my eyes, I can still smell that.

And the overpowering smell of kerosene, if I close my eyes, I can still smell that.

Then they stepped back out and made the final push to the pass. At last, they reached the top. Strings of tattered Tibetan prayer flags came together at a large sign that said, Congratulations for the success, in painted yellow letters, along with the elevation, 5,416 meters, or 17,769 feet. That's more than three miles high, about halfway to the cruising altitude of a commercial airliner.

Then they stepped back out and made the final push to the pass. At last, they reached the top. Strings of tattered Tibetan prayer flags came together at a large sign that said, Congratulations for the success, in painted yellow letters, along with the elevation, 5,416 meters, or 17,769 feet. That's more than three miles high, about halfway to the cruising altitude of a commercial airliner.

Marilyn had proved she was every bit as capable a hiker as her husband.

Marilyn had proved she was every bit as capable a hiker as her husband.