Jessica Chamberlain was emotional as she stood at the top of Kings Peak, Utah’s highest summit, and watched the fourth and last group of young women in the Centerville Utah North Stake arrive at the mountaintop.
“I had tears in my eyes, realizing how incredibly hard all these girls had pushed themselves to make it to the top,” said Chamberlain, who serves as stake Young Women president. “Every single young woman and leader made it to the summit. It was a beautiful moment.”
Over three days and two nights from July 31 through Aug. 2, the 23 young women and 20 adult leaders backpacked, hiked and climbed across rocks, boulder fields and marshy areas to the summit — 13,528 feet above sea level in the remote Uinta Mountains — and then back down again.
The 43 youth, parents and leaders from the Centerville North stake who participated were placed into four smaller groups to hike together and to follow backcountry rules for smaller group sizes.
The stake worked with the U.S. Forest Service guidelines and spoke to a ranger as they prepared; for example, camping far enough away from water sources and properly taking care of waste. They were allowed to camp at night together and take a picture at the top together and staying in their small groups as they hiked.
Some were fast, some were slower, some thought it wasn’t too bad, and others found it to be one of the hardest things they had ever done. They had altitude sickness, blisters and other issues to work through.
But even with these struggles, “the overall attitude of the group was one of positivity, happiness, encouragement — and a sure feeling that we were going to make it to the summit,” Chamberlain said.
Young women, their parents and leaders shared what this accomplishment meant to them and how they drew closer to Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father through the experience.
Jesus Christ can carry the burden
On the first day, the young women hiked from Henry’s Fork Trailhead about 8 miles to base camp, near Dollar Lake. That day, each had a full, heavy pack that made hiking difficult. The second day, when they climbed 12-13 miles to the summit, they left their full packs behind and had a smaller day pack with food and water.
The lighter packs made their journey so much easier, explained Sarah Scott, 18.
“Sometimes in life I carry weight and burdens that I don’t have to carry. Christ already took on that weight through His Atonement, and because of Him, I don’t have to bear my burdens alone,” she said.
Leaving her heavier pack behind made Kenzie Dennis, 12, think of Jesus Christ as well.
“He is always willing to carry our packs for us. The trail was still really hard, but it would have been much harder if we had to carry our packs. Our lives will still have problems, but if we let the Savior in, He will lighten our load,” she said.
Sometimes she thought of the trail as being rather “ugly and hard.” But then, as she looked around and looked behind her, she would realize how beautiful it was. “Sometimes in life we miss how beautiful things are because they’re hard, but if we take time to recognize the Savior in our lives, we can see how beautiful it really is,” Kenzie said.
Her sister, Kayla Dennis, 14, said she didn’t really want to go on the hike at first. “But I am really glad I did because I developed a stronger connection with Christ.”
Her parents were also on the hike, and they found out about a family emergency at home. They wondered whether they should keep going or return home.
“We prayed together and had a strong feeling that everything would be OK,” Kayla said. “I’m glad we stayed, because I learned more about who I really am and what I am capable of. It really was one of the best experiences.”
The whole experience was a lesson for Jaydee Webb, 18, in patience and trusting God’s plan.
“I had to be patient with myself as I walked up the mountain and have patience for the trail, trusting that even though it doesn’t look like it at the moment, I will eventually get to the top.”
As she looked back, she saw how far she had gone. “God loves us so much that He gives us hard things so we can become stronger than we ever thought possible.”
Camille Taylor, 16, said her testimony was strengthened that Heavenly Father cares about her.
“When I do fall and make mistakes, He will pick me up and help me to keep going. He knows my fears and struggles, no matter how insignificant they feel. My Heavenly Father does not leave me comfortless; He is with me,” she said.
Unity: ‘Go together’
As the four smaller groups hiked with their assigned young women, parents and leaders, they found wholeness.
Emma Fullmer, 18, felt unity in her group because they stayed together and supported one another.
“One lesson I took away was that God wants us to come unto Him, but He doesn’t want us to come alone,” she said. “Spiritually, we need our brothers and sisters, and they need us. We are stronger when we lift those around us, the way Christ lifts each of us.”
Her sister, Elizabeth Fullmer, 16, didn’t think they would have made it to the top by themselves.
“I know that it was through each other and through God that we all made it safely to the summit and back down.”
This theme was one of the most impactful lessons Caroline Beckstrom, 18, learned during a devotional on the trail.
“‘If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together,’ and that couldn’t be more true,” she said. “This trip helped strengthen my relationship with my young women and my Heavenly Father, and I couldn’t ask for a better group to go together with.”
Before the trip, Camille Taylor said she was nervous about going. She didn’t know many people and didn’t want to be alone. But the girls she knew noticed her worries and comforted her — and she made many new friends and strengthened relationships.
“I was not alone. Heavenly Father was looking out for me,” she said.
Joy, positivity and support
Centerville Utah North Stake camp director Baely Smith agreed with others’ assertions that the hike was challenging. But she said it was a life-changing and testimony-building experience that brought them all closer to the Savior. And the young women now know they can do hard things.
“It was uncomfortable, exhausting mentally and physically, but we also experienced so much joy and happiness in working together to reach our goal, cheering each other on and feeling God’s love through answered prayers and joyful growth,” Smith said.
Ava Smith, 16, saw the joy that came from everyone helping and supporting one another.
“It reminded me just how much God loves us, how blessed we are to live in such a beautiful world, and how truly amazing life is. What made it even more special was seeing a Christlike attribute in each person there. It turned the experience into something unforgettable.”
Her sister, Mia Smith, 18, said, “It strengthens my testimony so much to watch these young women push through their own struggles to reach the top — while at the same time noticing others who were struggling and immediately cheering them on.”
The others’ attitudes and mindsets impacted Lillian Hilton, 17.
“Kings Peak wasn’t easy, but the moment I stopped focusing on what was bothering me, it got loads easier. It helps if you surround yourself with people who radiate positivity, like on this hike.”
‘These young women are capable and strong’
As stake Young Women president, Chamberlain said she felt strongly during the planning process for a camp this year that the stake could do a longer and more challenging backpacking trip. She submitted a plan, route, schedule and other aspects to the stake presidency, who “wholeheartedly supported the idea and were integral in helping everything run smoothly and well,” she said.
Faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, Their guidance and a positive mindset increased the group’s capacity, Chamberlain said, and made all the difference.
The stake president, his first counselor and their wives joined the hike. Centerville Utah North Stake President Daniel J. Wadley said it was amazing and rewarding to watch the young women and their leaders and parents rally around each other and help each other reach the summit.
“So much like our experience in life, at various times some were strong while others struggled, but the young women followed their leaders and banded together to make sure everyone made it to the top and back down again safely,” President Wadley said. “These young women are capable and strong, and they are being prepared to light the world with their faith.”
Jennifer Webb, the mother of Jaydee, trained with her daughter to be able to accomplish the rigorous hike. She said each person had an obstacle that could have prevented them from participating in the hike — altitude sickness, broken toe, injured knee, extreme fear of heights, blisters and many more. But they all made it to the summit. “No girl or leader was left behind.”
She said the experience opened leaders’ eyes that taking girls and women on this kind of activity was an option. Though the summit is called Kings Peak, they celebrated by renaming their accomplishment “Queens Peak.”
“Those girls and women are strong. We did something that hadn’t been done before. Every one of our female majority group made it to the top. There were so many prayers offered. God is our strength,” Webb said.
Mia and Ava Smith’s father, Dustin Smith, said as a “girl dad,” he was beyond excited to do the hike with two of his daughters.
“There’s just something about being in nature that makes you feel our heavenly parents’ love in such a real way. I’m so proud of every single young woman because they all made it to the top — it was such an emotional and special moment.”
