“It’s like a dare or a challenge, isn’t it?” Fran said. “You set out to do what you know is hard and tough. Maybe reach a peak no one ever saw before. You don’t go out for the pleasure of the kill as a hunter does. You’re making a new trail of following someone else’s who had dared before you. And when you’ve done it, boy, you feel good!”
“That’s about it, Fran. You’ve conquered one of the difficulties Nature constantly presents. You push yourself ahead, beyond endurance sometimes, but when you reach the summit, you want to shout, ‘Look, I’m here too! I share your lonely grandeur if only for a moment of time.’”
Then in a more matter-of-fact tone he said to Judy, “I guess you haven’t climbed enough to feel that way about it, but it’s that spirit in one form or another that has led to opening up parts of the world that would otherwise have remained unknown.”
“Oh, I agree with you perfectly, Father, but I was only wondering what happened to Karl and Marian.”
“Yes, where are they?” Fran said impatiently. “We’ve been here for half an hour.”
Mr. Lurie looked at his watch. “It’s only one-twenty-five. How long do you figure, Fran, it will take us to reach North Maroon Peak?”
“At least another hour. We ought to leave now.”
Fran gave his call and after repeating it several times, a faint answer could be heard. At last, they caught a glimpse of the two figures slowly toiling upward.
“They’re O.K. Come on, let’s push on,” Fran said, settling his rope and knapsack on his shoulder.
“I think we ought to wait for them,” Mr. Lurie suggested. “Marian looks as if she could use a little encouragement.”