(clicks) (wind rustles)
- [Narrator] There's gotta be something
that I've never experienced that I'm about to.
(gravel crackles) (upbeat music)
There's gotta be something that happens to you
when you're out there.
Something in the solitude and the serenity.
And I wanna know.
I wanna know what this is about.
I wanna know why people risk broken collar bones,
risk being stranded,
risk seeing wolves.
This is a whole new world for me.
(upbeat music)
Hi, I'm Analise Cleopatra.
I'm from Miami, Florida and I moved all the way
across the country looking to figure out
who I am outside of everything I ever knew.
This summer, I'm taking on something totally
out of my comfort zone.
I'm going bike packing for a week in Oregon's back country,
To meet my new mentor, Mother Nature.
And I've never camped or mountain biked before.
So I've got a lot to learn.
- [Woman] You ready?
- [ Woman] What's the worst could happen?
Man, it's so nice out here.
I can't believe you talked me into doing this girl.
- (laughs) Surprise.
- That's an evil laugh.
- [Analise] This is Dej'uanae.
- So how long is this trail?
- Um, I think it's 10 miles total.
And mostly uphill.
- Okay.
- [Analise] She's my rock my safe space and my friend.
I tricked her into coming along for this ride.
- Yeah, it's that serious huh?
- [Analise] She doesn't know how to backpack either.
- Oh, gosh,
- [Analise] So we're gonna have to learn together.
(laughs)
It's fine, everything's fine.
Wait, we're going over here?
- [Dej'aunae] Yeah.
- [Analise] Okay.
(upbeat music)
- This is so foreign to me,
I don't even know how to use my body.
I don't know what to put in my body.
I'm an anxious person generally.
Like the past two years,
I've gone to the emergency room twice for anxiety attacks.
They're like,
"No, there's nothing wrong with you.".
And I'm like, listen you don't understand.
I'm dying.
Like I'm dying right now.
(upbeat music)
- [Dej'aunae] We made it!
It's over.
- [Analise] We just started actually.
- [Dej'aunae] Damn.
- [Analise] That's a pretty lake.
Brooklyn Bell is a super badass pro biker.
And she's based here in the northwest.
She didn't even know my name when I DM'd her
on Instagram to see if she'd lead Dej'aunae
and I on this crazy trip.
But she really wants to see more of us in the outdoors.
So here we are.
(upbeat music)
- So it's day one.
We made it.
We drove out here.
Set up a tent.
- Oh, sorry, here hold that (laughs).
Let's do it again.
- It should feel kind of like an orange.
It's like firm but a little bit soft.
- A little squishy?
- Yeah.
- It's a little harder than a,
this is like an unripened orange.
- [Analise] I'm really excited.
I'm not as scared as I was.
I think I'm ready.
(laughs)
Yours is such more flimsy.
- Yay!
- [Analise] I just wake up everyday worrying
about everything all the time.
I haven't done this in like a year.
I've been all messed up inside.
The doctor did tell me,
he said, "You have anxiety so you need to exercise
"at least 30 minutes a day.".
Andale, let's go.
(laughs)
(upbeat music)
- Oh, are you taking the photo?
- No.
People can do great things with support.
And I think that's what's gonna get us through this
is supporting each other,
trusting each other and uplifting each other.
Last night I got to do some star photography.
I did like a time lapse of Saturn setting.
Which is like awesome because I'm in my Saturn return.
And I was so happy.
(upbeat music)
(snaps)
Listen, listen, okay.
If you've never slept outside you have to try it.
It's so, so peaceful and not at all as hard as
I told myself it was gonna be.
There's something really special about just carrying
the bare necessities and listening to all the stories
that dreams have to tell.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa.
- [Analise] I like had to you know,
I pooped outside yesterday for the first time.
It was fine.
You just bury it.
- You got it.
- This elevation's really getting to my lungs.
- Have a little piece.
- I'm gonna puke if I do that.
(inhales) (exhales)
I have no oxygen.
I was talking to Brooklyn last night,
and I told her one of my biggest issues is saying,
I can't and knowing when to stop.
(inhales)
- [Analise] So we met up with the other girls,
we talked to them about how Dej'aunae was feeling
and decided that it was best for her to go
back with them for the rest of the day.
Brooklyn and I kept riding.
Whatever we get done,
I'm gonna be so proud of what my body is capable of doing
and what we've accomplished.
But I'm not trying to like crush it.
I don't wanna crush anything,
I just wanna heal things.
I wanna learn,
I wanna experience it.
And I wanna blow past it to like set an arbitrary goal
or distance.
That's not the best use of my energy and soul.
(upbeat jazz music)
Like I'm sure in the future I'll look at it
and be like,
oh, wow, that was great.
I did that.
Yesterday, all my energy was focused on not dying
or falling off a cliff to really have fun
or enjoy the scenery.
It was really technical.
And I just really didn't wanna fall on those rocks.
It just no, man.
It was scary.
Shit.
- [Brooklyn] Hey, Analise, are you okay?
- Yeah.
- Hey.
- [Analise] My expectations for my journey
are so widely unrealistic.
But unrealistic dreams are the ones that take you places.
(water gurgles)
- [Woman] Your mother called.
- (laughs) I didn't hear from my daughter in two days,
so I just calling to see what going on.
Yeah, like that.
She tell me she doing this thing.
And she gonna ride 300 miles and there gonna be bears
and cougars and things and now she ain't gonna call me?
(upbeat music)
The climb, I was so anxious and scared of it.
I definitely feel jealous of how easy Brooklyn
makes things look.
I wish I had that sort of grace.
It's ridiculous to compare myself to her because
she's literally a professional athlete.
But it's a humbling experience.
(upbeat music)
It was really hard,
but I knew it was gonna be hard
so I didn't let myself be surprised
or discouraged by that.
And I listened to my soca music the whole time.
Just the beats the drums really helped me keep going.
- [Brooklyn] Woo who!
Nice job Analise.
Yeah, girl.
You can do that.
- Thank you.
- Good job.
- [Analise] I had a lot of support and I was able
to go pretty far.
And it feels really, really good.
- [Woman] Last morning.
- Oh, it's terrible out here.
(upbeat music)
(rings)
- [Analise's] Hello.
- Morning.
- [Analise's Mom] Good morning,
I've been waiting for this call.
- [Analise] (laughs) I know.
- [Analise's Mom] You made the climb?
- [Analise] Yes, I made the climb.
- [Analise's Mom] All right, all right,
okay baby.
- [Analise] Guess what else?
- [Analise's Mom] What?
- [Analise] I went even further.
Yesterday was my longest day.
We did almost 30 miles.
- [Analise's Mom] Any cougars or deer
or anything like that?
- [Analise] No, not yet.
- The beary bears, raspberry bear,
huckleberry bear, blackberry bear.
(upbeat music)
(rains pours)
- (mumbles)
(laughs)
- [Analise] Thanks.
This is what we came for.
- This is your reward.
- This is my reward.
This is everybody's reward, what.
- My name is Brookey.
And if we go downhill we're gonna cookie.
And if you wait for me at the trail head,
you better have cookies 'cause that's the best in my head.
(laughs)
I don't know.
- [Analise] So what did I find out there?
Friendship, trust, peace, relief, stars,
and the audacity to accept myself.
I found out that I could fly down muddy hills in the rain.
Pedal through fear,
support my friends,
and let them support me,
and sleep under a setting Saturn.
I found that fear gives away the beauty
when you lean in and accept the uncertainty.
I found that the same release of control that lets me
flow like water through this landscape,
works in the rest of life.
And if I ever need a reminder,
the river, the waterfalls and the trees
are all there just waiting for me.
(water rushes)
♪ Up to three four ♪
♪ Oh when I get ♪
(upbeat music)
♪ Oh when I get Jab on me tombstone ♪
♪ What man, I'm telling you ♪
♪ I got blood in me vein cha ♪
♪ Black blood in me vein cha ♪
♪ Black blood in me vein ♪
♪ Must be going insane ♪
♪ Black blood in me vane ♪
- [Analise] It's so good.
♪ Black blood in me vein ♪
♪ Jab, we're going insane ♪
♪ 'Cause me mother was jab jab woman ♪
♪ And she picked up my jab jab man ♪
♪ He give us some jab jab sticks ♪
- Ah.
- [All] Happy Birthday.