Moonlight Mountain

Chapter Three - Heatstroke

Ava was sweating and taking yet another gulp from her water bottle by the time they reached the halfway point up the trail, an hour and a half after starting their journey. Sure, the trees provided some shade, but the constant walking uphill was wearing on Ava. Moonlight Mountain wasn't as easy to climb as she had originally thought it would be. She was out of shape, as this was her first big hike of the year, due to the season only being early summer. 

Sherry and Ava were feeling it, too. However, Ron and Julie seemed to have endless energy, as they were chatting as though it were nothing to be climbing this mountain. They didn't sound out of breath at all. 

"Time for another break..." April announced breathlessly, stopping beside Ava. Ava stopped too, feeling her legs shake. On the way up, a few hikers had passed them so far, but they must have been more experienced because they didn't look tired at all either. 

"Okay, okay, ten minutes. Do you see anywhere to sit?" Ron looked around. 

Ava went to a small clearing off the side of the trail that had fallen trees near the back of it that would be fine for sitting on. The rest of the group joined her in the clearing, either sitting on tree stumps or the ground. 

"It's amazing here so far," Sherry said, eating another snack. "It's a hard walk, but so worth it. I think the next look off isn't too much farther. Maybe another few hundred feet up the trail."

Ava nodded in agreement. Despite being exhausted, she was glad she had come. The woods around her was so peaceful, with the birds chirping and the light breeze rustling through the leaves overhead. They had also seen a few squirrels cross their path so far.

After their break, they continued. Ava was constantly taking pictures along the way; photography was something she loved. Her friends and family often had to put up with her taking photos of everything, including every occasion. They were her memories, stored either on several SD cards, her laptop, or in photo books. 

Suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, Ava felt a chill in the air as they walked towards the next look-off spot. It was on the side of the mountain, with another view overlooking the lake, only up higher. Now there was a rather large open spot, and you could see more of the mountains on the other side of the lake. Shivering, Ava rubbed her arms as they stood in the spot. 

"What's wrong, you cold?" Ron asked his daughter. 

"Just a chill. Must be this look-off," Ava decided. "The air must be chillier up here." 

"Maybe. But I don't feel much colder. You should feel sweaty after all that walking," Julie said, concerned. She reached out and touched Ava's forehead. "Wow, honey. Your skin is hot. You shouldn't be feeling cold at all." 

When Ava's mother said that, the chill went away, and suddenly Ava felt a little dizzy, like she was overheated. "I think I'm going to be sick," she grunted, rubbing her stomach, which was  now churning. 

"Oh no, these are all classic signs of a heatstroke," Julie reached out to put an arm around Ava's shoulders. "Sit down, honey. You need another break. Don't over-exert yourself, it's only two-thirty PM, we have all afternoon and we're already more than halfway up."

Ava did as her mom instructed, once again sitting on a fallen tree branch next to the trail. Everyone else milled about on the trail, waiting with her to make sure she was going to be okay. 

Ava put her head between her knees and took some deep breaths, hoping the churning in her stomach would go away so they could continue. She wanted nothing more than to get to the top, and not ruin her trip to the mountain she had been wanting to visit for a long time.

"Do you need to change into your tanktop to be cooler as we walk?" Sherry asked her. 

"That's actually a good idea," Ava agreed. "But nobody look. I'll have to go behind a tree so no other hikers see me." 

"I'll come with you, but I won't look," Sherry promised and helped her stand up. She was a little dizzy, but they made it a few feet into the woods and Ava hid behind a tree while she changed. 

"That feels much better," Ava sighed with relief as she stuffed her long-sleeved shirt into her backpack. She also took another gulp of water, noting that she was almost through with one water-bottle.

"I brought Gatorade," Sherry offered, handing a bottle of red liquid to Ava. "It has electrolytes in it. Saved me when I went hiking with Ashton." Ashton was Sherry's boyfriend of six months. "Thanks to Gatorade, I didn't get a migraine even though me and him walked a long time in the heat last week." 

"Thank you," Ava took a few gulps before giving it back to her friend. "You get migraines?"

"Yeah, I've only noticed them worsen in the last year or so. Sometimes they get so bad I throw up." Sherry put the Gatorade bottle back into her backpack and they went back to the trail where the rest of the group was. "I just haven't really told anyone because I didn't think of telling you guys, I guess."

Ava was concerned for her friend. "You're okay at the moment, right?"

"Yes, since I've been taking sips of the Gatorade, trying to savor it. I brought the one large bottle of that and a bottle of water." 

"Maybe they have medications to help prevent migraines," Ava said thoughtfully. 

Sherry shrugged. "I've been looking into it with my doctor. There's no cure, but she is going to prescribe me some medications."

"How you feel, Ava?" Julie asked, interrupting their conversation. 

"Much better." Ava did feel better, her stomach was okay now, probably thanks to the Gatorade. "Sherry let me have some Gatorade."

Julie smiled. "Good. Do you need longer to rest?"

Ava was determined to get to the summit of the mountain sooner than later. "Nope. I'm fine." 

"Alright, then, let's go." Julie led the way and they headed up once more. 

Ava no longer felt sick, or chilled, and wondered what that was all about. Had she been starting to get the symptoms of heatstroke, or something else? She shrugged it off, wanting to enjoy her day and not let any sickness stop her.