es from Michiown trails and
Emily York is from Michigan and is a senior at BYU-Hawaii, majoring in university studies, focusing on Hawaiian studies and music. York arrived in Hawaii six years ago and has spent her time squeezing in as much excitement and adventure as she can. York loves chasing adventure, but of all of them, her most significant experiences have come from living the gospel. “It is way more of an adventure when you live righteously. You actually get somewhere,” said York. She lives by her personal mantra: getting closer to nature to be closer with God. York, who is an avid hiker, said about hiking Hawaii’s difficult trails, that the “most exciting part is going with a new group every time.” “I am drawn to hiking because it has a lot of soul,” said York. “Life seems really intense up there. I think everyone sort of becomes a more pure form of themselves when they are on a mountain. All you have before you is a path to walk up.” York believes getting to the top is what draws her through each climb. “Every time I look at a mountain, I want to be on it. Things feel more right up there. Everything just becomes clearer up there.” While hiking, York will often slip ahead of everyone to get some alone time. She loves using the solitude for meditation and prayer. “Usually I end up hiking by myself, so I always have good prayers. If I’m hurting, I’ll just sing songs to myself to keep me going,” said York. York feels the most important thing for people is to individually find their own adventures and their own ways to be closer to God. “Someone else might not need the same thing,” said York. “Everyone has a different mission on earth.” York experienced some of her earliest adventures with Carrie Stephens, senior in mathematics from Texas. York and Stephens were roommates when they were in the dorms. One of their most daring adventures involved a spontaneous trip to the Na Pali Coast of Kauai with no
reservations or accommodations. “We picked up a tourist map and asked someone which way to go. We hitchhiked there and the guy said, ‘You know this is a really dangerous hike.’ Once they got there, they noticed everyone else hiking the 20-mile Na Pali Coast was prepared to camp along the way, carrying large backpacks with tents and sleeping bags. All they had were their clothes and water, but they decided go anyway and made sure they left early in the morning. “We ran into these little hippy camps in a valley. It’s just people who feel happy with simplicity, themselves, nature, God. You can trade with them, but we didn’t bring anything to trade,” remarked York. After many intense hours of hiking they completed their roundtrip journey. They went down to the beach hoping for a bath in the ocean and a soft plot of ground where they could sleep. “On the way, this guy was like, ‘Where are you going?’ and we said we were going to the beach to shower. He said, ‘You can come to my house.’ He fed us and we hung out there for the next day, and then we flew back.” Some other adventures the two friends set out on together included circumnavigating Maui by hitchhiking, and being picked up by a family who shared their Cheezits with them. “We were starving,” York recounts. “One time, at 2 in the morning, we were going to spend the night at Waimea. We went outside to try and find anyone who would like to hike it with us,” York said. After recruiting a third hiker they biked to the Waimea trailhead and made it to the summit by 5 a.m. “We made it up in the dark without a flashlight,” said York. York dreams of her future travels: the newer the experience, the better. York would like to spend some time living in Africa and some time living somewhere in the mountains. - C ARRIE COLLINGRIDGE september 30, 2010
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