Yesterday I went with my dad and brothers, along with my cousin and uncle, for a guys backbacking trip in the Charon's Garden Wilderness Area of the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge. We'd been planning this trip for several months and thought we were well prepared with plenty of supplies. When we got to the Elk Mountain picnic area, where this photo was taken, it was much hotter than we had expected. We thought the heat would make the hike in more uncomfortable, but didn't let that stop us. We followed the trail to Sunset Peak and the Crab Eyes for two to three miles, but it soon became clear that we would have to start conserving water. By the time we got to a good spot to pitch our tents, we only had about two gallons of water to last seven people until we hiked out the next day. In 100+ degree heat, and carrying 30-50 pound packs, that wasn't much. We ended up sitting up against a large rock face, where it was about 10 degrees cooler, for three and a half hours to try and stay cool and conserve water. Finally we decided we really needed to just get out of there. We divided up the last of our water for the hike out, and each got about a quart. The thought of having to drink stagnant bison water gave all of us enough motivation to push through the heat and turn a two hour hike in into an hour hike out. The little bit of water we each got lasted us until we got back to the car before it finally ran out. All of us were so happy to be back in an air conditioned car that we didn't even care that we had to cut our trip short. We stopped at a gas station a few miles outside the refuge and all got Gatorades. After all we'd been through, that was the best Gatordade I'd had in my entire life.

This was a FAKE, yes I said fake, ad that I created but I thought it would be a cool idea for a Gatorade Ad. Maybe they will hire me to make a real Ad. :) Wishful thinking. I also had another catch line that said "Have the energy of a Toddler." But this one is much better.Let me know what you think.