Week 50: The Trek Leaders

If you've been reading my posts you know that I recently went on a company trek on the Great Wall of China to support Special Olympics.

The event was great -- fun people, beautiful scenery, phyical challenge, and much more. But it would have been a bust if we didn't have great leaders. There were three people who made everything on the trip run smoothly.

The three of them led us on the wall every day, hiking many miles up and down steep and sometimes crumbling areas. Peter walked in the front -- he knows this area of the Great Wall very well, typically trekking along it for 200 days a year. He was a great combination of Crocodile Dundee and a history professor, explaining many aspects of the wall -- from the most basic (e.g. "bush toilets") to the more impressive (emperors and dynasties).

Laura and Cindy were our other guides, walking in the middle of the pack and at the back respectively. The three of them kept in contact by walkie-talkie and always made sure that the group was close together and cohesive. They really helped us bond as an overall team.

Besides leading the trek, caring for our safety and sharing information about China past and present, they made sure we had ample food and water and that our accommodations and transportation were in order. I know how much effort it took to trek -- leading it and handling all the behind the scenes must be a huge job, and I am very thankful for all the work the three of them did to make is such a wonderful experience.