Higgs's friend, Joe, has been after him for a couple of years to join him in a climb of Mount Rainier, and in 2009, while recovering from cancer surgery, Higgs realize it's time to say yes. Life is short, and death is long. They drive from Tulsa, Oklahoma to Mount Rainier and back. The climax of the trip is the climb, but the story goes far beyond Rainier. They stay on the road for three weeks, along with Higgs's wife, Louise, and Joe's wife, Laura. Along the way, they pass through the cities of Boulder, Twin Falls, Portland, Seattle, Mendocino, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Flagstaff, and...