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Mount Mingus, and beyond….

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So we left Jerome and the Asylum.

 

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And made our way out of town….

 

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Passing what looked to be an interesting burger joint.

 

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Before we knew it, we were climbing again.

 

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I swear I never had any idea Arizona was this mountainous.

 

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This one was called Mingus.

 

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Which lead us into more snow, and the Prescott National Forest.

 

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It was rugged country.

 

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And clearly, they must have rugged cows.

 

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Up and over we went.

(Pay attention to that sign.)

 

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And down the other side to the dry grasslands of Prescott Valley.

 

 

A half an hour later?

 

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We were back at our resort…

 

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And I felt like death warmed over.

 

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It was 3:30 in the afternoon and I went to bed.

 

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Where I stayed for the next 3 days.

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday? This was my view…

 

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I didn’t eat, sleep, shower or get dressed….

I was dizzy, nauseated, weak as a kitten and had the worst migraine headache imaginable. Turning over in bed took more energy than I could manage.

The fourth day…. our 35th wedding anniversary for which I had big plans?

We spent here –

 

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Where I was diagnosed with severe altitude sickness and dehydration.

 

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Isn’t that romantic?

I was flat on my back…. but not the way I intended!

The doctor told me I experienced too much elevation too soon and drank too much alcohol.

 

 

I was given anti nausea meds and told to pound the Gatorade. Constantly, day and night.

I was also told no caffeine and….

 

 

 

Positively no booze.

Yes… my nightmare come true. I couldn’t drink!

It was unfathomable, but fact. Alcohol and caffeine are dehydrating and were off limits until I acclimated and felt better.

 

 

This was not the vacation I’d planned.

 

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And this was not the liquid elixir I had in mind.

 

 

 

35 thoughts on “Mount Mingus, and beyond….”

  1. Well, I was initially gonna ask how come you didn’t go into “Haunted Burgers”, since it sounds like a place you’d be interested in, but now I know why.

    Damn, can’t believe the elevation hit you hard like that, and the alcohol (which usually makes things better) didn’t help, eh?! Sheesh. The unexpected things that happen sometimes…It was Jon Bon Jovi that said, “Life is what happens when you’re busy making plans.” Or at least that’s where I heard it first.

    Glad you’re better now though. Sorry you had to go through that.

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  3. Dorothy Parker had no rhymes about that. 7,00 ft for alititude sickness seems a bit low,it usually eases not soon after you descend… Did you get the sore throat? (We both got it a little once but we were up at 8-11000 feet)

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  4. Oh you kids–when you go on a vacation from Maine in the winter you go to a place the complete opposite like FORT LAUDERDALE!! No snow! No mountains! No ghosts! No asylums! (We allow the nuts to roam the streets!) No one getting sick!
    For your 36th you come to South Florida with normal Margaritas, all sun, flat land and beaches.

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      1. I was there in December 2017. Didn’t see you. Although there was this one woman collapsed outside a bar about 11am… 2+2. …I think that was the year the weather was ridiculously good. Year before December was a wash out.

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  5. Wow! I never considered that high … my home town was 7,600′, and I often hunted and camped at 10,000+ … I used to teach gun fighting classes near Prescott in the Chino Valley. Hope you are better now …

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  6. Oh that is not sexy. That is sad. I did not get the altitude sickness in my youth. I was around people who did, but I was fine. I felt lucky. Climb mountains, blah blah blah. Now, these days, I can’t even stand over a stairwell without wanting to die. Tough stuff.

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  7. River,
    What an unexpected twist. Ugh! Presumably, you made up for lost time once you started feeling better? BTW, I had steak and lobster for dinner last night and thought of you. My ears start turning red and itch ever so slightly whenever I eat lobster., so I
    don’t eat it very often. But when I do, totally worth it. Mona 😎

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  11. Had to go back and re-read this because I was talking about this post over Easter brunch (see, people DO read you!). A relative may be going to visit friends in Colorado after living on the East Coast for the last 30 years of her life and was concerned about the high altitude since she has asthma and other medical problems. AND, she does love her wine. Guess there will be none of that for her until she acclimates.

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