If, as Yvon Choinard (the founder of Patagonia) suggested in "180 South," adventure is what happens when everything goes wrong, then today was certainly an adventure.
That said, I don't think the adventure we had was the result of Jake dropping his bottle, or Hank failing to properly retrieve it, or even Gabe's stones, which fell from nowhere like astoundingly well-placed mortar bombs. No, I think it was Nature (capital N, as Matt so aptly wrote in his post yesterday). Yes, it was Nature telling me that I need to cut the Gordian Knot that ties me to society and all its ills. Yeah, that's what happened there beneath the waterfall: nature making herself heard, telling me that iPhones are simply modern-day shackles...Either that or Jake pulled me in.
Aside from our adventures, Oak Spring Canyon was beautiful today. I'll remember more than just Jake's laugh as the bottle splashed down again or Hank's inappropriate comment about the crayfish attacking someone's face or Ryan's suggestion that we throw more water bottles in after the first. I'll remember the California Lilac bushes blooming on the slopes above the canyon, the Great Horned Owl stirred by our scrambling, the Cooper's Hawk troubled by a pair of crows, that section of trail where the flowers and brush constricted and we moved as if through a tunnel. I'll remember the sun filtering in through the clouds and the warmth of it on my back. Mostly, though, I'll remember scouting ahead, hiking alone up towards the 52 and turning back to see all of you perched in different nooks and crags like peregrine falcons at nest, each of you with your moleskine notebooks out, scribbling observations, waxing eloquent, crafting Haikus.
And I had proof of it, if only briefly. Locked somewhere inside the sponge that my phone became are pictures of you guys writing in some pretty impressive spots: Ryan tucked in a little niche in the gorge, David at the top of the falls, Jake and Hank on a cliffside perch, and Matt on his lofty promontory, rising above us all in his quest for true solitude.
Please understand I write this post with soggy bottoms, so I'm going to make it quick, because if I don't remedy said soggy bottoms soon, this could blossom into the worst case of swamp-ass this side of Oak Spring Canyon. And so I acknowledge that the rain we had last night was a mixed blessing. Yes, it allowed us to enjoy the waterfalls, but it also left that waterfall pool deep enough to render it a drowning hazard.
As we stood on the bridge during the hike back to the van, David noted how quickly the water had dropped from a couple of hours before. I imagine that, by tomorrow, it will be back to where it was before we received that rain. We caught Oak Spring canyon at a good moment. For that, I'm thankful.
If anyone would like minute-rice for breakfast tomorrow, don't bother bringing any; I've already got a box. Your meal will taste only slightly of iPhone.
NOTE: MAJOR CHANGE TO OUR PLANS!
Bring your warm clothes tomorrow! Because of a winter storm warning tomorrow night, the roads may be closed on Thursday morning, so we're going to go up into the Lagunas TOMORROW and Friday. Thursday will now be movie morning.
I suggest that you wear layers (ie. tee shirt, long sleeve, jacket over it) so you can shed your jackets if you get hot as we hike, but can still be warm during lunch breaks and sledding missions. Snowboarding clothes are generally good, but you'll cook if you wear snowboarding pants. A stocking cap and gloves are musts. If you have hiking boots, bring them. Pack snacks and water and, if you want, a few dollars for a possible convenience store run.
Additionally, if you have sleds of reasonable size you can bring them as well. I plan on strapping mine to my pack in case we come across any kamikaze runs.
You can also bring a change of clothes so you're not cold on the way back.
Today's hike was filled with excitement. Our first major stop allowed us to scramble along boulders and enjoy nature. At the destination of our hike, we were faced with a massive rock shelve with a water fall running through the middle, which we traversed with ease. This is also the location where we learned about miscommunication and that "hold on" has 2 different meanings. While I sat on the rocks overlooking the waterfall, I thought about the movie we had seen earlier that day. The relationship between nature and man seemed eminent as I felt a connection to the unconquered world around. Mr Aiston's dive reminded me of the power that nature has of disconnecting us from the material world that we have set up around ourselves.
ReplyDeleteThere is no word more appropriate for our hike today than reckless. Whether it was throwing grapes at people or pulling Mr. Aiston into the creek, our hike was nothing short of an adventure. It was a beautiful hike. I loved being to scramble over the rocks as we hiked up the creek. It was really fun being able to follow the creek and hear the water running over the rocks. It was peaceful and calming on the hike ever when people were being pulled into creeks. I know that the memories we made today will cheer us up on rough days, and it is not a memory i hope to forget soon.
ReplyDeleteToday, I spoke to Nature. I spoke to her with the burning desire to seek wisdom and peace, to question perhaps the moment when I, Matthew, might experience that apogee of life when I have come to fruition with an absolute understanding of my place, here on planet earth. I listened intently. Sitting atop this jutting boulder, high above my companions, I had breached that communal physical state from down below and had transcended, rather, into one of quiet, unbroken solitude. This moment, this brief moment of extended consciousness hurled me into a nonalienated state of being, a true and real state of being: in which my body was inextricably entwined with the earth and my mind, lame to her awesome grip, was transfused with her honest and real existence, her nonalientated existence. I sing of you and to you oh Nature! O' Hear me brothers, I sing to Her, to Nature!:
ReplyDelete“Calming stream down below,
steadfastly hustling through the grove,
eclipsing of time
thwarts you not
and... Your beauty,
stretches infinitely, and thusly
wrought,
this place!
Ah, Nature's standard of Prose,
to Me? Poetry!”
Gazing out above the scenery, I saw the clouds placed in great rows like factory made scoops of creamy, frothy ice cream wafting across the horizon, carelessly indulging – sunbouyed. They created such a view, one which rendered me into awe by both: its profoundity; and its incredulous ability of striking a touching, heart-pounding affection into the deepest confines of my being. The former, opened my eyes while the latter inculcated into me the extreme importance of this place. As a degree, extreme being the absolute maximum. Intoxicating as it was! I tell you my companions, Nature is where our nonalienated existence awaits!
A place to sit and,
brew and think alike so that--
my mind may flourish!
Let me return now to more...'normal,' or perhaps more 'understandable' Rhetoric. Honestly, dudes, men, fellas, etc. and of the like ah-huh ah-huh ah-huh, today was an incredible day. Hilarious things happened, tragic things really, and in truth, we all managed to find our own little (or grand, too) places in solitude. That's what it's all about really, I see it as so: we take this journey together seriously, we all seem to have an honest and sincere sense of motivation as well as intent in regards to how we wish and have wished already to proceed with this project, this experiment if you will. Thus far, I am pleased to write that this experience as a whole as been a success and a true pleasure on my part. I've enjoyed it thoroughly and I look forward to our next three days of hiking. Perhaps maybe, we'll even have an adventure albeit any dangerous or lofty circumstances!
Today's escapade was another great experience. I am hesitant to use the word adventure, on account of the newly assigned negative connotations. Some things did go wrong today, but that doesn't take away from any of the awesome moments that filled the time before and after the more, say, adventurous moments. I had a great time today, but I didn't feel the same creative and spiritual rush that I did yesterday. I'm not sure if it was the fact that our writing session took place within a few hundred feet of the 52 bridge, or the lack of a lofty view from the top of a peak, or even the anticipation of our trip to Sonic. Whatever it was, I just didn't feel as disconnected from the craziness of the world as I did on Monday. Perhaps I need to find a bit more solitude and expand my esoteric vocabulary like Matt, or maybe fully immersing myself in Nature (maybe not exactly in the same fashion that Mr. Aiston and Jake did) could further my experience. Anyways, here are some Haiku's.
ReplyDeletePeering up the falls
Bubbling water bounding
How do I get back?
Flowing beneath feet
silently gliding dark murk
reaching for shoe laces
Scrambling all day
waiting for my salvation
beautiful; sonic
I look forward to our next "adventure", however more perilous it may be.
Mitch, while adventure has taken on an unsavory tang in our comments, you must understand that even when Choinard says adventure is when everything goes wrong, he thinks of it as a good thing. Yes, it sucked about my phone, and yes, I did become one of the Soggy Bottom Boys, but I will never be able to hike Oak Spring Canyon again without laughing about the situation in which I found myself. I'll also find it hard not to smile when I think of you guys peppered across the hillside, writing.
ReplyDeleteSo adventure might be when things go wrong, but that's where we learn and affect changes in ourselves and we come away better for it. I'm reminded of my altitude sickness high on the Mountaineer's Route on Mt. Whitney. I puked my guts out and sat down, dizzy and delirious and ready to give up. If you looked out at what I saw at that moment, at the steep snowfield we had to traverse and the short runout beneath it ending in a 1,000 foot cliff and above it the last pitch of mixed snow and ice my wife eventually led us up, unroped, you'd know that adventure can suck while it's happening, but then you look back and realize it was a defining moment. My wife was empowered by it. I was humbled by it. And, most importantly, it told us we can count on each other when the shit really hits the fan. So...by all means, give me adventure. As for tomorrow, with our new plans to go up into the Lagunas, you'll find yourself fully disconnected from society. There won't be a road, a house, a power line in sight. And, can I end by saying, Mitch, that your use of "immersing" was exemplary just there. Two meanings, just like "Hold on". Good on you!
I feel like the problems that are plaguing Mitch are the same ones that I am faced today. For whatever reason, the 52 freeway was really killing the moment for me, as much as I tried to put it out of my mind. Even as I say that, however, I still feel that our adventure, as I believe there can be no other word for it, was an experience that I will never forget. I haven't laughed as hard as I did when Jake and Sir Kiernan decided to engage in the full experience of nature. That is why I am so excited for tomorrow. The conditions seem perfect for us to have another memorable experience. I even appreciate the fact that we are not doing it on its scheduled day. Our plan seems to be the perfect recipe for adventure. So while I am in no way hoping we suffer another cellular casualty this week, I am excited and determined to make tomorrow as memorable as today. And while I feel, for some reason, like the ball is primarily is Jdo's court in terms of how adventurous we get, I am amped to do my part to fully immerse myself, perhaps only in the metaphorical sense, in the wonderful world around us. Now, as I promised yesterday, here are Haiku's:
ReplyDeleteOn top of the world,
looking over the whole earth.
Is this what God sees?
That (^) was pretentious,
and yet in no way untrue.
Needed to be said.
Even on my Mount'n,
I still cannot get away.
Damn I-52
Saw a sweetass bird.
sadly, couldn't photograph.
Such disappointment.
Distant commotion,
Kiernan is turning irate,
Jake wishes to jump.
Elusive bottle.
What destruction you have brought?
Goodbye, sweet iPhone.
Red Tailed Hawks
ReplyDeleteSince this is my first blog and I have yet to post about our interim adventures thus far, It is fair for me to say this has been an outstanding week and its only day two. The first day was a great hike. As we ascended the mountain and reached the top, although it was a bit chilly, I still was able to find a way to connect with nature and really concentrate on appreciating the environment and what it has to offer. Although I do appreciate the wonderful solitude of being in nature, I also appreciate the time spent with my friends and peers and Mr. Aiston, because there is never a dull moment.
I have started to reflect on the fact that I am usually the center of disaster. Whether it is Gabe getting cut up by a log, R.B. breaking ribs on the playground, Mr. Aiston falling into a river, or Ryan being pelted in the head with almonds, there seems to be a common denominator in our actions. I am slightly ashamed to say that it is me.
I think we can all agree that Gabe is to be blamed for Mr. Aiston and I falling into the river, because most of the events that led up to it were at the hands of Gabe. Thanks to Gabe I am currently suffering from a major case of swamp ass. Thanks Gabe.
I can't wait to see what new adventures await us in the nest few days. The week will only get better.
Trying to hold on-
Mr. Aiston has my back-
Oh wait, he does not-
Another day, another adventure. The river debacle, which in no way was my fault, was the highlight of the day, but my favorite part was just before that. Everyone had their own niche spread through the rocks. I sat there with my moleskin and write dude, but did not write very much. I merely observed the sight before me. The water trickled down stream from one pond to another, deep in some places, shallow in others. Birds circled overhead and a hushed whispers carried from across the valley. The wind made it very chilly, freezing my already wet feet from cray cray-fish hunting with jake. Although very cold, I had no desire to reach for my pack a mere three feet away and pull my jacket out. I was perfectly content just sitting there atop my ledge. I liked what Ed Abbey had to say about his solitude. Everything was "we" where it was only him out by himself. He considered the bugs, plants, and animals all to be with him in any place. It's hard to be alone when you can appreciate all the life of mother nature around you.
ReplyDeleteIt will be different tomorrow in the snow. Can nature still be appreciated in the same way when blanketed by snow? Im excited to find out and hit the sled slopes. My Ziffy Bogan is all patched up and ready to go.
I find my relationship with nature to be incredibly hard to articulate. I hate the cold, I hate rain, I hate insects, I hate working out, and I hate mud, but there's something so primal about climbing the side of a gorge, as we did today, that awakens an inner beast within. I feel exponentially more manly. It may just be the testosterone-filled company or my refusal to shave, but both times I've gone hiking this week, the weather hasn't bothered me, I've trekked through wild terrain with little care, and I climbed a tree for the first time in years. There truly is something within Nature that is blocked inside concrete jungles. It's as if a man can't truly be a man with urban life's worries corroding his strength.
ReplyDeleteI've been trying to figure out why I hate working out, yet have absolutely no problem on long, difficult hikes (although we have yet to tackle anything really difficult). As a soon-to-be collegiate athlete, I know the sort of dedication it takes to push your own physical and mental limits. I've done more lifting and plyometrics than I would ever care to admit, and yet, I still hate it. Working out in a weight room just feels like endless repetition. You start with weight on a bar, you do your reps, you end with weight on a bar. It's near impossible to see any sort of physical result, minus the quick burst of andrenaline and the post-workout endorphins. Still, those are pushed away from attention in lieu of aching muscles. When I'm hiking, I see the immediate results. My own body-my very own blood, muscle, and bone, pushing me up over craggy rocks and muddy slopes. I am conquering the terrain (in a nature-friendly way, of course), and doing so under my own power. It's just me carrying myself. It's a far more fulfilling feeling than returning to the rack, with the same weights in the same place, and squeezing out another set of reps.
I have difficulty putting my thoughts into words. I'm wonderful at making up polished bullshit on the spot, filling my writing with fluff that looks great on the surface, but lacks any true insight. This style of writing is forcing me to be 100% original and real, something I now realize I rarely do. I guess I really am learning about myself in this class.
gazing, pondering
water trickles down rough rock
rain refreshing lands