Reading
Stranded in the mountains!
One day three friends, Peter, Mike, and John, set off on a long hike into the remote wilderness of northern Montana. The day was beautiful and clear, and each felt eager and at ease as they began the long ascent up a narrow mountain trail. Though the mountain had a dangerous reputation, nothing bad could happen on a day like this, could it?
As they neared the summit of the mountain, the gentle breeze suddenly turned into a strong gale. The sky darkened and lightning flashed ominously. John asked hesitantly, "Should we turn around and head back before the rain hits?" Peter replied confidently, "You needn't worry. We'll find a cave somewhere and ride out the storm. It'll pass quickly, and we might be able to resume hiking in an hour."
So, they continued on. Before long, a heavy fog rolled in. Visibility was cut to just 10 meters. "What shall we do?" cried John. "Since we can hardly see now, we might as well look for a cave now," replied Mike. "I'll head this way and you can head the other way with Peter", added Mike. "No, that would be stupid!" exclaimed Peter. "We ought to stay together, because we may never find each other in this fog."
So, they waited and waited hoping for the fog to lift. As time passed, each man worried about being stranded on the mountain overnight. Finally, Peter said, "Dangerous as it is, we have to keep hiking. We have no food and there are bears around these parts that will be out feeding soon. We need to go on." "You must be crazy!" replied John. "We can hardly see! One false step, and we'll all plummet to our deaths. As much as I'd like to get home, we have to stay here!" Shaken, Peter asked, "What do you think we should do, Mike?" Mike replied thoughtfully, "Well, you may be right that it would be too dangerous to spend the night here, but on the other hand, we might not even see the night if we tried to continue and fell. So, I don't know, but we at least ought to think of a better plan before trying anything stupid!" So, reader, what do you think they should do??
Questions
Choose the best explanation for the following phrases…
- in this article, "plummet" means:
- the phrase "lightning flashed ominously" means:
- a "strong gale" is:
- to "set off" on a long hike means:
- the phrase "we can hardly see" means:
Are the following statements about the reading correct?
1. In the article, John says, "As much as I'd like to go home, we have to stay here!". He means that his preference is to stay on the mountain and not to go home.
2. The phrase "Nothing bad could happen, could it?" means the author is certain nothing bad will happen.
3. Peter is the most confident and bold member of the group.
4. The phrase "We might as well look for a cave" means that we should look for a cave because there is nothing better to do and there is no reason not to do it.
5. The phrase "We ought to stay together" means "We must stay together".