When Andy Met Kat
A three minute read by Kat M. Lui, LAc
The founders of Wise Mountain Medicine met in the hallways of their medical school’s clinic at the National University of Natural Medicine in Portland Oregon.
Beneath the cold grey skies of the Pacific Northwest, despite the exhaustion that comes graduate studies and the mountains of homework, a spark formed as the two passed each other silently in the halls as they moved from one patient to another.
On September 2, 2017, they went on a hike that would become the beginnings of a relationship cemented in trust, adventure, and always being there for each other.
What began as an easy two mile hike to a popular watering hole became a 14 mile smoke filled trek of a lifetime, as they were dangerously caught between the Eagle Creek and Indian Creek fires in the Columbia river gorge.
You can read the whole story here, on Kat’s website. It’s a harrowing 20 minute read.
The Eagle Creek fire burned over 48,000 acres and merged with the Indian Creek fire. It was started by a teenager who threw fireworks down a steep canyon on the Eagle Creek trail. Fifteen hikers (including Kat and Andy) hiked out 14 miles from Punchbowl Falls to Wahtum Lake. About 150 hikers were temporarily trapped at Punchbowl Falls, and spent the night in the woods before hiking out the next morning.
Twin Falls
We didn’t take a lot of photos. But this one captures Kat’s excitement of the beauty of nature, despite being caught in between two forest fires.
By 8pm, our small group of 15 were found by firefighters, about 3/4 of the way from Eagle Creek to Wahtum Lake. One of them said, “Well, we could go the short way, but that’s like going through the stairs of Mordor. I think we’ll take the long way!”
We safely reached our destination by 1am.
The night was so dark, the smoke was so thick, that we couldn’t even see the waters of Wahtum Lake, which were only a few feet away.
Just four years later, Andy and Kat embarked on yet another adventure into the unknown: their first brick and mortar business. Those qualities that were cemented after dating for only two months - trust, adventure, and knowing they could depend on each other - create a solid foundation for their business. These are the qualities they rest on, whether it’s just another everyday Wednesday, or a major life transition.
Not a bad way to start a relationship!
