I’d never climbed a mountain before.

At the start of this year’s House of the Holy festival in Abtenau, Austria, a group of friends from the UK and Sweden decided that’s just what they were going to do, taking on the First Pass in the nearby Tennengebirge range. Accepting their kind invite and relishing the challenge, I joined them.

Of course, this was not an extreme ascent requiring specialist gear. Rather a hike up increasingly narrower trails with the occasional extreme drop. Not for amateurs either, the climb was still gruelling. With the gradient tending towards near vertical in places, and scree slipping underfoot, I soon learned to clamber with all my will, determination, and limbs.

And four hours later, with a few unplanned breaks taken into account, we made it to the rewarding vistas of the summit.

There will always be a taller peak. A greater ascent. Betterment comes from taking that individual responsibility to grow beyond. To push past the expectations of others, and find fulfilment in actualising what is truly possible.

But with cuts and scrapes carving my legs in memento, and my feet finding blisters in places I never predicted, I’m proud of what we achieved together.