Alpine Lakes Wilderness Backpack Adventure

Aug 19

I have put in many miles this year hiking to various beautiful destinations but it’s been quite a while since I’ve spent the night under the stars. In this backpacking adventure I head just over 6 miles into the backcountry to a stunning lake. Being about two and a half miles beyond the popular destination greatly reduced the number of people I saw, in fact I only passed one other hiker heading in! As a bonus, it was in the midst of the Perseid meteor shower and it was a cloudless night; all combining into a great night in nature.

Hiking is something that I grew up with. My father, working for the National Park Service, often brought me along to the parks. I would wonder around and look at all the big trees and the grand vistas. I would walk through meadows and long to fish in all the mountain lakes. To this day Yosemite Valley never ceases to make me feel small. Hiking is a part of me that will never leave me, I always wish to be among the trees and mountains. I breathe better when I am here.

I have long believed that nature is for all who respect her. To enjoy and appreciate nature requires only quiet observation and the willingness to explore. It is good for one’s sole to spend time convening with nature, to remind oneself that we are part of a cycle that exists beyond our cities and networks. While our digital age has brought with it many great conveniences the journey away from such comforts can have an immense impact on a person.

I choose to spend time with the trees and wild beings not only to capture images of these places but to regularly remind myself that I’m not a big as I believe myself to be; I’m not as important as I would want others to believe. By no means am I unimportant, there is importance to all beings, only that I am a small part of a much larger existence that I can and do have an impact on. It’s easy for that impact to be self-serving, benefiting only myself in the time I interact with my surroundings, but I choose the harder path. I choose to record these wondrous places to inspire others to also explore the areas around them. It is when you are truly, vulnerably exposed to the world at large that people can see just how much it is worth saving.