The time we were rescued

A short account of a small adventure in Phoenix shortly after our wedding...

[Chris] Before going to the Grand Canyon we went hiking as often as possible to get our bodies ready. (If you read our account of our Grand Canyon trip you know that, apparently, Emily's body didn't get the memo.) One of these hikes was a last minute, late night hike up one of the foothills in Phoenix near the Loop-101. There was no trail and it was just us and our flashlights.

There is something about being out late at night that is soothing. Nobody else was around, the lights of the city illuminated the sky to the south, and a cool breeze rolled away the warmth of the day. As we scrambled over rocks we talked about the upcoming trip and our respective days' events. Occasionally we stopped and enjoyed the view of the neighborhoods, mountains, and city lights.

After not long we reached the top, walked around to see the views in each direction, and sat enjoying each other's company. We started back down and noticed the lights of a firetruck off in the distance.

"Hey Em, wouldn't that be funny if they were coming for us?" (Technically, I don't think we were supposed to be out there.)

"Ha!" Long pause... "Chris, they did turn this way."

[Nervous laughter] "Oh, crap."


"Oh my gosh, they're turning on this street."

"Duck down!" (Why duck? I don't know.)

And then, BAM! The giant spotlight illuminated the rocks to our left and began to scan the mountainside. We decided we had to keep walking down and face the sure-to-be-awkward outcome. Sooner than hoped, the spotlight found us and graciously lit our path, baking our skin, blinding us, and scarring our retinas in the process. We met our heroic rescuers coming up the mountain about a third of the way from the bottom.

"You guys okay?"

"Yup" (Read: "You've been watching us hike down the mountain in your friggen spotlight for at least 10 minutes, do we look like we need help??")

Apparently, some well-meaning moron in one of the nearby neighborhoods called 911 because he or she saw someone "signalling for help" with a flashlight on the top of the mountain. The fact that we were constantly moving around must not have been a clue to our mobility.

It was an awkward experience but it always makes us smile.