Suddenly blinded and terrified
By savak03
@savak03 (6684)
United States
January 11, 2009 1:59am CST
Most of you who have been reading my discussions and comments know that I have recently moved to my current location. For many years I have been living in the south where the land is flat and the sun don't set until a reasonable time. Since I've moved up here with my daughter I have had to adjust to driving up and down mountains and since we live on the east side of these mountains the sun starts going down around 4:30 and it gets really dark by 5:00.
I had a couple of jobs to do on Saturday (which for me was only a few hours ago, but some of my friends here are on the other side of the planet so I wanted to be clear about the time frame). They had to be done between 12 noon and 6 PM but it started raining here just before noon so I waited to see if it would stop. It didn't so I had to go in the rain. To get to where I needed to be I had to go over the top of a mountain. I don't usually mind the trip because it is lovely scenery here but I'm not very fond of driving in the rain. Anyway, as I got near the top of the mountain I found I was driving into a cloud. It was a novel experience and not much of a problem because it was still daylight and the cloud wasn't very thick.
I got where I was going and did the first job and made it to the second one while it was still partially light outside. By the time I finished the second job full dark had set in and it was raining much harder. I got back on the interstate and started home which meant I would have to go back over the top on the mountain to go back down the other side to my home. Just before I got to the top of the mountain I drove back into the cloud. The closer I got to the top the thicker the cloud became. It wasn't long before I could barely see the road at all. I couldn't even see if there was somewhere that I could pull off and being on a mountain I was afraid to try. I was scared. I was going so slow by then that I was afraid an 18 wheeler would come up on me and run my little toy truck over and not even notice it. It was all I could do to keep myself from stopping in the middle of the road but I knew that if I could just get over the top of the mountain and start down the other side I would soon drive out of the cloud.
I gripped the wheel with both hands and kept my eye on the little I could see of the center line and finally I started down the other side. By then my head was pounding with a headache and every muscle in my body was knotted up with stress. When I finally got home I made a personal vow that if it was raining I would not be going to the top of any mountain for any reason.
Am I the only one who has been caught in a situation like this? If you have a story to tell please share while I let my heart rate calm down.
2 people like this
8 responses
@ElicBxn (64169)
• United States
11 Jan 09
Not quite the same, but one day, back in the 1970's, I was working nights, and was seldom up early in the day.
I don't remember what time of day it was, but it was VERY foggy, and the sun was out so it was also very glarey. I was in the interstate and suddenly a blood vessel broke in my eye!
I was now also in pain and could barely see out of one eye! I was, happily, near an exit and got off the highway.
I don't remember much beyond that, but about 5 years later, a co-worker, who was deaf, commented that I had a "road map" in my eye because of the veining in my eye as a results of the problem. I thought it was a very interesting term so it stuck in my memory for the last 25 years.
1 person likes this
@ElicBxn (64169)
• United States
11 Jan 09
Oh, yes, completely. I think it was only the pain that caused the temporary loss of sight, that and it was my dominant eye. While I don't have a "lazy" eye like my mother or a "wandering" eye like my sister, I am, none the less, so dominately right eyed that I really can't see thru those "3-D" glasses. I mostly lost sight because it took a moment for my brain to switch over to the left eye.
1 person likes this
@savak03 (6684)
• United States
11 Jan 09
I'm glad to hear that. Like I said I can actually imagine how much it hurt because I've had blood vessels pop like that in my legs and it smarts like the dickens. In a more sensitive place like an eye it must have felt like a knife stabbing.
1 person likes this
@TheGreatWhiteBuffalo (4822)
• United States
11 Jan 09
Welcome to the world of Professional driving...
You know you really have to get your head out of the clouds... ;)
Those reflective lines on the highway are great aren't they? Imagine if you didn't have that to follow? And certainly being able to keep moving is a good thing there are also other variations of lighting that make visibility much better as the cloud to earth contact is usually less dense right at the ground level, so low riding fog lights are crucial low intensity or angled beams that shine low to the ground help a lot the headlights might reflect off of water particles maybe use fog lights with out the headlights and any combination there of for best visibility, sometimes parking lights help, four way flashers are nice but the intense light might be too bright and that could prevent having optimal vision.
There are a few things to consider to help you see in the event that there is a next time for what ever reason.
The other thing is learning to control your stress levels and relax as if driving on a sunny day for there is nothing worse than getting all tense for no reason at all.
1 person likes this
@TheGreatWhiteBuffalo (4822)
• United States
14 Jan 09
Ahh yes,
That thing called life... I wonder does it just happen or can it be planned?
1 person likes this
@savak03 (6684)
• United States
11 Jan 09
Ah yes, words of wisdom from a professional driver. I truly intend to keep my head out of the clouds from now on. I will admire the way the clouds envelope the mountaintops from a distance.
I always wondered why people with little pickup trucks would have those lights mounted at bumper level. I always thought it looked a little ridiculous but I can understand now what they were good for. If it wasn't for those little reflective thingys defining where the lines were I would have surely wrecked or drove over the side of the mountain.
Although I intend to plan better so there is no next time I realize that I may not always be in control of the plan so I will keep these things in mind.
By the way, I have always wanted to be a truck driver but life kept getting in the way.
1 person likes this
@Ithink (10106)
• United States
12 Jan 09
I have had fog so thick that you had to go about 5 miles and hour I hate it! We also have the white-outs from blizzards. I also hate it when it rains so hard that you cant see.
Thank goodness for the white lines as there have been times that was the only thing to follow!
1 person likes this
@gitfiddleplayer (10362)
• United States
11 Jan 09
We went on a family vacation to Colorado Springs. We decided to drive to the top of Pikes Peak. It was cloudy but it was a nice day at the base. 14,000 feet later it was cloudy and the rain was coming in so everybody was trying to head down the mountain. I was white knuckle gripping the steering wheel because my brakes were 600 degrees and I didn't want to fall off the mountain and kill my whole family. I will never do that again.
1 person likes this
@savak03 (6684)
• United States
11 Jan 09
I know exactly what you mean. Around here people will be going down a 6% grade at 70 mph and still accelerating. I cannot understand how they do it without going splat at the bottom of the mountain. Since I have been here I have been avoiding driving anywhere in the rain although I didn't know why I was doing it. I guess it was my subconscious telling me it was not safe. Although I consider myself new to this area I have actually lived in this part of the country before. I guess the body remembers even if the brain refuses to.
@Roseo8 (2947)
• India
12 Jan 09
Hello Savak......Wow what a terrifying experience..And I am glad you and your truck came back home in one piece........Driving in the rains and that too with low visiblity is risky and on the lonely mountains it will be really scary as well.....
Well I live in the middle of the town and fortunately for me I have had no such terrifying experience to narrate to you....I just drive my car for small errands around town,but when going on a long drive or in mountainous areas for a holiday I prefer to be in the passenger seat.....
...I ma sure if I was in your place driving down a mountain,through a cloud and in the rain I would have been really scared.....So dont worry calm down and in future try not to go out when it rains or you feel you will be late returning home......Good luck 
...I ma sure if I was in your place driving down a mountain,through a cloud and in the rain I would have been really scared.....So dont worry calm down and in future try not to go out when it rains or you feel you will be late returning home......Good luck 1 person likes this
@savak03 (6684)
• United States
12 Jan 09
I am lousy at sitting in the passenger seat. I'm the kind of person who has to be the one in control, at least when it comes to operating the car I'm riding in. I don't intend to go anywhere like that again when the weather is bad, and I'll be sure to start early enough that I can finish and be home before dark. I am a firm believer in recognizing and accepting my own limitations.
1 person likes this
@crigal (105)
• United States
12 Jan 09
Don't believe I've ever been in a situation like that but I know one day here in San Antonio it started raining hail and hard..and I mean golf ball size! Well my daughter was with me and she got really scared and started crying...felt bad for her but we got home ok with no damage on the truck. The main thing is to stay calm in a situation like yours or in just about any situation. Glad your ok...
1 person likes this
@zandi458 (28102)
• Malaysia
11 Jan 09
Like you I have also relocated myself to the interior some 2 hours drive from my original home to run the business left by my father when he passed away two years ago. Reaching this place needs a skillful and careful driver as the roads are not only winding but hilly and steep. Driving certain time say around 5pm makes it impassable because of the thick mist and can barely see road more than two feet in front. The situation is made worse during rainy season. If I were to go back to my house I will make sure that the weather is fine and leave as early as possible. There was a time when I was caught in this thick mist and even with the headlights on I can't see the road, I have to park my car at the road side and spend few hours inside waiting for the mist to clear. It was very cold and luckily I brought along my jacket and some foods. That was one terrible experience that I swear never to repeat.
@savak03 (6684)
• United States
11 Jan 09
When I have night mares it is usually about driving and not having control of my vehicle. This was just like my nightmares but I couldn't wake up. I am still shaking from the fright and I will never go up there again if it's raining. Ever since I have been up here I have hesitated to drive if the weather was bad. I don't know why because it never used to bother me before. Maybe it was my unconscious mind telling me that driving here is not as easy as it was back home. I am really getting to the point that I don't want to drive after dark either.
@murugezh (273)
• India
11 Jan 09
Wow it's looks like my experience too but i was a kid when it happens. When we are gone to our relative house I have taken my brother's bike and went in to the forest deeply. I don't know the correct way to return back to the village again. In the middle petrol also empty in the bike. I know there are some fox in the forest. I was scared and I came with bike to an main road after 3 hours walk that was too far from the relative house. One the villager came by that way and he brought me to the village of my realtive house again. The time when reach the main road was 6.00 PM. I walked so fast and I reached the main road. This is happened when I am 14 years old. Still I can remember the swetting I had that day to walk with that bike which is too heavy for me in that time. My parents cried a lot on that day.
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