Wilderness Training 2, The Intermediate, is a thrilling roller coaster ride of the experiences in rugged wilds and mountaintop triumphs. As book two of the Wilderness series, this story is wonderfully woven with comedy, terror, honesty, joy and excitement. Based on the true experiences of cancer survival and wilderness travels, the reader is directed to revealing correlations between the physical and spiritual characteristics of hiking and spiritual growth. Discover the vast, vibrant beauty of His creation with each page-turning, captivating account. Allow the physical and spiritual principles discovered during the practical application of hiking to liberate your spiritual growth, so that you too can experience an intimate, joyful relationship with the Lord in ordinary, everyday circumstances.

I bank my thirst and fatigue and carefully scan the ground before me. Leaves dance frantically in the fitful wind. Jutting, sharp rock line the trail. My emotional pendulum had swung from hysterical to grateful to complete exhaustion. High adrenalin has drained all of my physical strength. Panic has drained all of my emotional resolve. And fear has drained all sensibility, all logic. I continue to scrutinize the high crags and cliffs for the tawny mountain lion, straining to see beyond my human ability, willing myself to distinguish that cougar from its concealing habitat. I want to simply click my heels and be home, far away from the high threat of the aggressive lion. Its scream reverberates in my mind, oh how that scream can completely unnerve a person, I actually felt the scream right down to my bones. Fear-filled perspiration burns my eyes. I don’t want to be here anymore! I really should have known better, after sighting the cougar more than once, I should have known I was being stalked. My heart is violent. I seem to be shifting in and out of reality but I’m not sure. Time is so very elastic. The mountain lions sudden attack is lightening fast, faster than my mind is able to process. Soundlessly I gouge at its eyes. It is painfully clawing at my bloody, flailing arms …

Marybeth Haydon is a Spirit-filled Christian mother of three, an avid, passionate hiker and has earned her certificate as a Wilderness Leader. Her exciting Wilderness Training series currently includes The Novice, The Intermediate and The Expert. Marybeth lives with her family in Northern California where she is at work on her next book, Beyond Wilderness Training.