On the mountain with SEALs

Every once in a while when I go skiing after work I run into the Navy SEALs training. The Navy SEALs do their cold water training in Kodiak and they also learn about surviving in winter conditions. One of their exercises is to climb a mountain with all their gear, climb back down and then camp. I generally run into them while they are on their way up the mountain. It is kind of cool to skin on by 70 or so troops as they climb the mountain. They are all on snowshoes and carrying 70 pound packs with rifles so it is not hard to skin up the mountain faster than them.

Seeing all the SEALs on the mountain always puts me in a good mood. I chat with them on my way up and am always impressed with their 'can do' upbeat attitude. They always seem very happy - even if it is raining or bitterly cold. I get the feeling a lot of the kids have never even seen snow before, but they always seem glad to be on it. Knowing that these are the types of kids we have in our armed forces makes me feel a lot better about our country. It makes me feel a whole lot more secure. Patrick