I remember thinking, almost every day, “Just a few more days until I’m back in Kathmandu with a bed and a bathroom.”

Trekking to the Mount Everest base camp was the coolest thing I've ever done, and ever will do. It was also the most uncomfortable, awful, terrible experience. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

I had been obsessed with Mount Everest for a long time. I didn’t think I would ever get there, but in 2016, I was in good shape, and I knew I could probably physically do it. I spent a year preparing. The only thing I couldn’t prepare for was the altitude. Where you land, Lukla Airport, is already about 9,000 feet up. The base camp itself is about 17,000 feet up.

I got lucky. The altitude took away my appetite, but that was the only real effect. The real struggle was mental. You see the helicopters taking people down who couldn’t handle it, so you know you have an out.

Whenever I doubted myself, my husband, who is ex-military, reminded me of what I’m capable of. I also had a lot of support from back home.

My adventures these days are more relaxed and more local. I met Bridget Butler, who goes by Bird Diva, at the beginning of 2020 and I loved her approach to bird watching. She calls it “slow birding.” It’s not about finding the most exotic birds or seeing the most species or competing with yourself or others. The point is to enjoy yourself and relax and open up to your environment and the creatures who live there.

My dad was a big birder when I was growing up. I remember his old bird book from the ’60s and him always pointing birds out to me. It wasn’t until I was older – after traveling and having more experiences – I was able to appreciate the sweetness and simplicity of exploring my local environment with just my eyes and ears.

I never would have guessed that someday I would stop on my way to my car after work, in a parking lot I’ve walked through hundreds of times, just to figure out what kind of bird I’m hearing.

When I’m out with my binoculars I’m focused, but I’m also at ease. Natural. Spontaneous. It’s kind of the opposite of hiking the Himalayas.

Haley Duquette is a hospice nurse case manager at Home Health & Hospice. She’s been with us since 2018.