Fifteen thousand feet up Mount Kilimanjaro, Beth Muehl decided she should no longer coach the Northwest High track and cross country teams. Thirteen years was enough.

"I just remember feeling so calm," she said Monday at Northwest, during her farewell to past and present runners. "I'm a big believer in signs. That was when I knew I kind of wanted to pursue other passions."

And so, after coaching all but one semester since the school's inception, Muehl leaves behinds a dynasty she helped build. The Jaguars have won 17 girls and 9 boys cross country titles at the district, region or state level; two in indoor track; and 20 combined in boys and girls track and field.

This spring was the best season in their track history. The Northwest girls became Montgomery County's first-ever Class 4A state champions, with ten runners winning gold medals at Morgan State University.

And the Walter Johnson social studies teacher planned to come back for more, according to Northwest Athletic Director Jim Tapley, before a two-and-a-half week trip to Tanzania earlier in the summer.

"We were cleaning out the showcases in our building recently, and she said we needed to talk," he said. "I'm like 'Oh, no.' One of the greatest things about Beth is she always got kids to buy into the team concept in an individual sport, which isn't easy to do."

That's evident, Tapley said, in another statistic. Since Montgomery County Public Schools began its Sportsmanship Award Program in the 2002-2003 school year, Muehl's teams have been named the county's most "sportsmanlike" 23 times.

She was "more than a coach," said Jaguars assistant coach Dave Knight, whose daughters India and Kennedy run for the school. Knight and his wife, Lexi, have assisted Muehl for the past three years.

"She's really been the administrator, coordinating all the events for our team," Dave Knight said. "We're a good balance. My wife and I are more the coddling types and she's the disciplinarian."

Tapley said a replacement has not yet been interviewed, though "that process will start soon."

Interestingly, Muehl's career at Northwest happened on a whim. After running track at Bucknell University, she moved to the Washington, D.C. region intending to become a lobbyist..

"But I was going for a run one day and just decided I want to be a coach," she said.

The signs are now pointing toward other interests. Muehl has an eclectic photography portfolio, from "thousands" of Northwest football pictures for best friend Randy Trivers (Jaguars football coach from 1998-2006) to animals, sunsets and impoverished schoolchildren on her African voyage.

Muehl said she also wants to get a second master's degree in international development.

Her plans don't take long to change, though.

"I'm the type of person where a friend tells me to come to Saudi Arabia tomorrow: 'Great, I'll be there,'" she said. "I always tell the kids that life moves fast, so make sure you're happy with your decisions and have no regrets."