What Happens When You Say "Yes"

Typically I’m the cautious one in my family. Things that normally don’t scare my sister scare me: I usually go into cold water slowly, I am cautious before jumping into water I can't see the bottom of, and I definitely think twice before doing anything that could remotely be scary or frightening. But on this trip, I've been the first in the water every time. I didn't think twice before I did something. I let myself leave my fears so far behind they couldn't catch up. I just walked out to the edge of the cliff and jumped. I walked right into the cold water, not even thinking about how cold it was. I've gone for the scary things...and every single time they ended up turning into my favorite moments of this trip.

Instead of writing a post about all the things I did on this trip, I'm going to talk about the scary things and the moments of pure adrenaline. And we're starting with the scariest one of them all, cliff jumping.

I am not afraid of heights. I'm also not afraid of falling. But for some reason, jumping off of an object that is set high in the air into another object below, that seems scary to me. A few years ago I would have stood on the edge of this cliff and not even considered jumping ...but this time, I did.

As you drive along the road that leads to the Cog Railway in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, there are multiple touristy spots to stop at and swim in the Ammonoosuc River. There are pools, waterfalls, and short jumps you can take into the river towards the bottom of the road. But as you climb the mountain higher and higher, you begin to reach spots only the locals visit. My favorite is Upper Falls - a popular cliff-jumping area, only jumpable certain times of the year when the river is high enough for jumpers to not hit the bottom. Luckily, the water was at its highest all year during our visit. You have the option to jump off three different rocks, ranging from about ten feet in height to twenty-five feet.

I walked to the edge of the cliff with my sister, studying the jumpers before us to see where to land. Then without thinking, I jumped. For a split second, I thought about how long I was in the air, and then I hit the water. I got chills, both from the temperature of the water and the fact that I just did that. I popped out of the water, a huge smile plastered on my face. I couldn't believe I just did that. Quickly, I swam to the edge of the pool. I'm freezing but it feels so good in the heat of the New Hampshire Summer.

After drying off and a bit of lunch (consisting of pb&j because nothing else tastes better on a hot summer day) my hands finally stopped shaking from the adrenaline of the jumps. Before I knew it, we were off on our next crazy adventure: drive to the top of Mt. Washington. It’s 7.6 mile-long drive up winding roads on the side of a mountain to the peak, 6,288 feet up. It’s both terrifying and insanely cool all at once. As you drive higher and higher, you can feel the weather changing. Suddenly it’s not hot anymore, and in the place of heat, the mountain has turned cool. A slight breeze begins to blow and you need a sweatshirt. You can also see the terrain changing. Forest turns to grass which turns to a rocky mountainside with almost no plants. The higher you go, the more insane it gets. Around every turn are rest spots to help cool your car's breaks when coming down the mountain.

My sister, my uncle and I sat in the back of my dad’s pick up truck the whole way up. (I know I’ve used the word “insane” a lot, but there really isn’t another word to describe it…everything about this trip truly was insane). In the back of the truck, you feel like you’re flying. All you can see is the mountainside to your right, and nothing but the valley to your left.

And then you reach the top…and it gets even more insane. There’s a parking lot at the summit where you can get out of your car, walk around, and climb some stairs to the very top of the mountain. Everything around is covered in clouds. You are in the clouds and above the clouds at the same time. It’s cold and windy but perfectly beautiful. Hiking to the top of Mt. Washington is definitely now on my bucket list.

After a day of adrenaline full activities, we decided to take a chill day swimming in the Swift river off the Kancamagus Highway. There are spots to pull off on the side of the highway with paths that lead down to the river. You can swim in pools, explore among the rocks, or jump off the rocks near the waterfalls into the cold pool below. There is even a natural water slide you can slide down. The current is so strong, you need to swim out of it or get pulled out before it takes you over the waterfall. It’s equally nerve-racking and smile-across-your-face-exciting. My favorite thing: the water is so perfectly crystal clear you can see thirty feet around you in all directions anywhere you swim.

Later in our trip, once back in Maine, we went on a morning hike and spent a day playing in Sebago Lake. Sebago Lake is a beautiful, clear water lake with multiple good places to go swimming, particularly at Sebago Lake State Park. We spent two whole days at the park swimming and reading in our Enos by the shoreline. Thus far, we have seen Maine from the water to the coast and the mountains, and now we were going to see it from the air. Taking a ride in a seaplane has always been something I’ve wanted to do. I love airplanes in general but there’s something about a plane that takes off and lands over water that is fascinating to me. The flight was crazy. We flew over multiple lakes, the cabin we were staying in for the week, and even saw Mt. Washington. Did I get motion sick halfway through the flight? Oh yeah. Was it worth it? 100% percent.

This week I’ve seen the sunrise almost every morning, jumped off cliffs into an icy cold river, swam in crystal clear lake water, drove to the top of a 6,288-foot mountain in the back of a pickup truck and stood amongst the clouds, went down a natural slide on the side of a highway, hiked to the top of a mountain, flew in a seaplane, and watched the sunset every single night.

So what happens when you say “yes” to scary things? You get unforgettable memories, crazy stories to tell, and adventures like no other. You also get some of the best feelings in the entire world.