I have been spending some time trying to finish my book about the Continental Divide Trail last year. It was such a fantastic experience in so many ways and now I think about it some of the most memorable moments were pretty scary at the time. When you are out in the backcountry for days on end you just get on with surviving and dealing with what nature throws at you.

Many times I was hiking up high along the ridge with storm clouds brewing around me. A bit like a kind of hiking Russian roulette. As soon as the thunder started or lightning dropped out of the sky it would be time to make a fast decision and head down to safety. Frequently I saw what I call a ghostbusters sky with dark rolling and boiling clouds overhead. It is a breathtaking experience to sit and observe a storm directly above you!

Excerpt from my book

Eventually I made it over the high pass with dark grey clouds collecting on either side of me towards the peaks. I had reached the Red Conglomerate Mountains and sure enough the characteristic red stone reached up high into a stormy sky. Despite having cleared the pass some trail markers on the ground went up to the left over another higher pass. This really confused me as the map showed a different direction and for 10 minutes I pondered on whether to climb higher or look for an alternative route. To my left dark clouds now started dropping off the peaks so I quickly decided to descend fast into a gully below. Sliding the last few feet into the narrow channelled shallow stream I splashed along it whilst pushing through thick vegetation. Wading through the cool water in my trainers I turned to look back at the mountains and saw the cloud dropping even faster. Then on the distant pass I spotted a lone horse rider looking down at me with cloud nearly enveloping him! This was totally bizarre, as I had not seen a soul in two days.

I realised what a good decision I had made, as within 10 minutes a fierce lightning storm ripped down through the valley. If I was still up there I would have been right in the middle of it! Thinking quickly I squatted down next to the stream with first my umbrella and then my tent thrown over myself. I was sitting on a slight hump that I thought would be the safest place away from the large pine trees. Within minutes it was lashing with heavy rain and suddenly the wind was blowing hard. At one stage the Pine trees were bending to near right angles and some really close lightning strikes gave me a scare cracking the nearby forest.

On leaving the gully I looked across at the storm in the distance, a huge mass of almost black swirling cloud. I had never seen anything like it before.

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