I love coming back here a week later and really having something to talk about! And boy, is there much to talk about. At the beginning of this week, I found myself feeling exceptionally unprepared for a big vacation I had planned, starting Wednesday. And my feelings were just, for I did not end up preparing or packing until about 10 PM the previous night (where we were leaving the next morning by 9). Alas, my wife and I made the last minute stressful preparations, but I came to realize it was my fault for overcomitting myself to too many tasks. On the one hand, I'm glad I'm done with the recordings I've been working on for the local choir; but man did I not give myself as much time as I should have prior to this week. In any case, I was reminded of that valuable lesson.
As per the vacation itself! Besides myself and my wife, there was my brother, my brother-in-law, and my close friend. We all traveled to a place in the middle of the Great Basin desert, which is WAY off the beaten road- and you have to drive like an hour onto a dusty one just to get to the hike to it. The scene: a gulch (a canyon level with the desert terrain), which doesn't even come into view until about a mile into your hike to it; and when it does, WHOA. It's just so cool to see the majestic, rounded sandstone walls, and arches, and the green life abounding by the stream that runs through it. The hike into it is one of the coolest parts about it, too, just due to the nature of it. That being said, we showed up a little later in the day, so we only had a matter of a few hours of daylight from the time we set foot on the sands. But we managed to descend into the gulch and hike to a river-side spot and setup camp. That night, the sound of the cool river was almost completely drowned out amongst the buzzing of insects, the chirping of nocturnal birds, and above all, the absolute ROARING of frogs (seriously, it almost sounded more like a herd of sheep than anything).
The following day, myself an two others went ahead to search for a seep to fill our water supplies. Sure enough, we found one, and it was pretty good! The beautiful things about this place is that the water that seeps through the walls is purified by the sandstone it passes through. So, if you find one of the right few ones, you can literally fill your supply with no filtering needed. Despite how clear the stream looks, the same cannot be said for it- though it is a very refreshing stream. In fact, with water shoes on, we followed that stream most all of the way for more than a half-dozen miles we traversed the gulch. We came across multiple waterfalls, seeps, and just downright beautiful scenery, as well as the occasional friendly hiker(s).
At length, we reached the exit we were looking for. And it is here that I had to come to acknowledge a thing I did not like. You see, it was over a decade ago since I had traveled here, and at the time, I was only a young teenager with a group of Boy Scouts. You, yourself may have memories that either go back 15 years or even go back to your teenage years, in which you remember a certain experience in a much more golden light than perhaps it deserved. Now, I say that, because almost 15 years ago, I had earned the nickname "Mountain Goat" for how I handled this exit. The exit consists of a very steep rock face that climbs its way out of the gulch at a rapid uphill pace. Even more amusing, when last I was there, it was a very unaided experience- you just have to climb and find your steps carefully. But this time, someone had anchored a couple of ropes on a higher precipice that helped the more uneasy hiker make their way up with a lessened far of slipping and falling down quite a ways.
All this being said, I found that almost 15 years later, I was not as much the mountain goat now as I was back then. Within the group I had with me, I was certainly still relatively more confident climbing it. But I found I had a harder time, and was more uncertain and anxious about my footing and ascending pattern. But my complaints are only the tears of a clown compared to my poor wife. It wasn't really until that experience we discovered how much she is not a fan of rock climbing. To her everlasting credit, though, with help from her brother and me, she bravely climbed up and over that rock face and made it to the top! Honestly, I'm not playing it up when I say her courage inspired me. That was no easy task for her, and she had the faith in us and herself to see it through. That being said, I ended up climbing that rock slope twice, since I had to leave my pack near the bottom to help her.
But we all made it to the top, and boy what a wind blew there! It felt like all the winds of Wyoming had just funneled a fine straw right across the landscape we were climbing out of and crossing. We traveled for another two or so miles. But with the hot sun, strong winds, flying sand, somewhat steep climbs, and the fact that my brother has both sleep apnea and insomnia (terrible combination, right?) and that it was heavily taking its toll on him, it seemed like we were traveling for dozens of miles. It took us quite some time, but when we finally reached the parking lot, we were...... crestfallen. Yes, it turns out there are two parking lots, and I had led us back to the wrong one.
What made it almost worse was that we had budgeted our water carefully, and had just a little more than we needed to make it that far. But my brother-in-law and I figured things out, saw that our cars were parked 2.5 miles away, and set out to get them. With the tiny reserve of water left in my canteen between us, we made it alright enough! The worst part of that jaunt was the loose sand beneath our shoes that made it feel like you were hiking twice as far with half the progress to show for it. But made it we did, and as we pulled into view, the cars were a welcomed sight for the other three weary travelers. Then, we took off west for three hours and slept that night comfortably at an AirBNB.
The following few days were dedicated for us to relax, see a few things in the desert cities, and just have a fun, relaxing time. We had ice cream tacos. We pet dogs. We saw a B51 Mustang start its engine (twice- and boy was that magical!). At the end of the trip, it was both happy to be able to go home, and sad to have to leave behind the fun experience we had. But at the end, what thoughts have I collected? Well, one I've shared already, with the inspiring courage of my wife (and I should add, my friend was also very brave, as he wasn't too keen on climbing that rock, so he's an inspiration, too). I've shared the experience in which I found my golden memories were not as golden as I had built them up to be.
If there's any additional thoughts I have to share, perhaps it's this. As we traveled through that gulch, the sight of it all, for me, as almost too beautiful to imagine such a thing could ever be destroyed or come to an end. But then, as is the case with all Earth and things around us, it all must come to an end one day. However it happens, who knows, but we call our experience here on Earth temporal for a reason. But I have it in good faith that all true, good, and beautiful things are never truly lost- and that they are, perhaps, made even more perfect and beautiful- but only so in a place and existence that transcends this one in understanding and comprehension. Some may call it paradise, others heaven, and others something else. But I believe it's there, and is prepared, and has been from times and places well beyond our understanding of time and space.
In addition, I also think that this hike reminded me about the beauty of contrast. Believe you and me, if the Great Basin desert doesn't teach anything else, it's got that one nailed! Especially that hike, though. For miles and miles around, there is nothing but barren desert-scape, and sand and hot scorching sun. And yet, for this crack, this ancient reef on the desert floor- it suddenly finds itself bursting into life. It doesn't even take a great river, or a large reservoir- just a humble stream that now flows through, and the occasional spring that seeps forth. Can't the same be said of us? In the end, however many styles we adorn, however many professions we master, or titles we gain- by virtue of our own selves, we put out a light that is purely natural, and cannot be recreated by any artificial means. Remember that.
And lastly, the lesson of friends. I know it's probably the cheesiest of the things said so far, but I am so glad my friends and family could join me on this venture. However beautiful the place was, and however adventurous the journey felt, it would have been a fairly hollow experience at the end, for me, had it not been for the fun company. I was glad I had the wise wisdom of my friend to remind me when I was starting to over-complicate an idea, or even started decided to do something less than smart. I'm glad my brother-in-law was there, as he was probably the strongest and most physically adept of us all, and was a major help in helping my wife ascent that rocky slope, and helped me in bringing the cars back to our tired group. I'm glad my brother was there, to help us go in the right direction, when I had started to doubt my memory of the trail that led us to the right place. I'm glad my wife was there, to take all the photos she did (and to brighten up the ones she was in with her natural light and beauty). All said and done, I'm glad all of them came along, because it made it just that much more fun!
I'll be the first to admit I sometimes tend to be a lone wolf, and just do things on my own. But I'm thankful for my friends who help me, support me in the good things I do, and give me a slap on the wrist when I start to become a little too stupid. I wouldn't be the same person I am today by a long shot if it weren't for them. Think about the friends and family in your life, and consider the good impact they've had on you.
Well, as expected, this was one long entry. Until next week, enjoy this now suddenly warm weather!