Zach Bunch
Audio By Carbonatix
“I had some back and forth with the publisher about putting a picture of me rock-climbing on the front of it because it’s more than rock-climbing. It’s a book about navigating challenges of life,” says Melissa Strong of her debut memoir, Climbing Through: A Courageous Story of Grit, Healing and Second Chances.
The book starts with the then-sponsored athlete debating an indoor or outdoor climb, a choice that hints of trouble ahead. But Strong was an expert, having spent seventeen years solving bouldering problems around the world. And the accident that followed had nothing to do with the inherent dangers of climbing.
After working for nearly two decades at the Dunraven Inn, a decade ago Strong decided to open her own eatery in Estes Park. A space right outside the Rocky Mountain National Park entrance became available for what would become Bird & Jim, but it needed serious work — the popcorn ceiling had to go, as did the bowling alley finish on the floors, and the former restaurant’s old pine tables needed to be rejuvenated.
Staining the tables didn’t achieve the desired effect, so Strong resorted to the Lichtenberg technique, which employs electricity to burn branched patterns into wood. Often, this is done using a microwave transformer modified with mini jumper cables, and Strong had already successfully burned several table legs. But then, in a momentary lapse of focus, she grabbed the cable clamps with both hands.
Electricity surged through her body and she was unable to let go, unable to scream for help before everything went black. She awoke minutes later on her driveway: A tripped breaker had saved her life. But her hands were charred, with exposed bones and blistered flesh.
The road to recovery was long and grueling. Strong chronicles her journey with unsettling detail, recounting her screams that echoed through Estes Park and the 38 consecutive days she spent hospitalized at the UC Health University of Colorado Hospital. Her treatment and numerous surgeries, led by Dr. Ashley Ignatiuk, were novel — those with such severe electrical burns don’t typically survive.
Adam Strong
Strong wondered if she would ever climb again. When her bandages came off five weeks later and she saw her swollen, pieced-together hands, her optimism wavered. But she managed to grasp a pen that day and wrote what would become the first words of her book.
Before moving to Estes Park in the late ’90s, Strong studied literature at Loyola University in New Orleans; critical writing was a regular part of her classwork. “Then, it turned into writing for me, writing about climbing; but I always wrote to process things as well,” she says.
“Writing, for me, was a healing process. When I looked back on those words that I wrote right when I came home from the hospital, they were very cold and very distant,” Strong recalls. Her reporting was matter-of-fact and limited in perspective; the lasting impacts of her condition were still unknown.
But over time, the tone of her writing shifted. While paragraphs about her physical condition can be disturbing, Strong frequently revisits her mental state in the book. Naturally, it fluctuated between grief, anguish and fear. But more often, she describes a sense of determination, measured hope and abundant gratitude.
Through it all, Strong expresses how thankful she is to be alive. She speaks of her husband, family, friends and other members of her community, as well as the hospital staff, with reverence and appreciation.
Bird & Jim
Spoiler alert: Despite losing parts of several fingers, Strong returned to climbing and successfully opened Bird & Jim in October 2017, six months after the accident. The modern mountain restaurant focuses on seasonal, scratch-made Colorado cuisine.
At the time, there was nothing like it in the touristy town. Estes Park also lacked a bakery-coffee shop concept and artisan pizza, so Strong later opened Bird’s Nest to meet those needs; the building also has stylish private event space.
In the book’s epilogue, Strong writes, “With the help of the Bird & Jim and Bird’s Nest teams, I found the support I needed to welcome back the previous version of me — the carefree young woman with a passion for climbing, and life.”
To celebrate that life, Strong will be at Bird & Jim to talk about Climbing Through on Tuesday, March 3, the day it’s released by FalconGuides; two days later, she’ll be at the Tattered Cover for a Q&A and book-signing.
“I’m hoping that by sharing this story, I’m able to help people get through any hard time that they’re having,” says Strong. “It’s really fun for me, listening to the takeaways people get from it. Hopefully, I can hear more of that at some of these events.”
Melissa Strong will be at the Tattered Cover, 2526 East Colfax Avenue, at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 5; get tickets here. She’ll also be at the Douglas County Library in Highlands Ranch on April 11, the Estes Park Public Library on April 24, and the Boulder Bookstore on June 24. Climbing Through is currently available for pre-order on Amazon.
