"Finding Kananaskis....."

Kananaskis... was established in 1977. A few years after my first beginnings in the wild places...

In 1858, the explorer J. Palliser named a pass there Kananaskis; and since then the surrounding mountains, lakes, river and the areas out to the foothills, are now known as Kananskis Country...

It is indeed a small magic kingdom... and when there you do sense you are in the presence of something royal and very meaningful...

This special wild place embraces many rugged peaks; a pass higher than at the Columbia Icefields; beautiful rolling foothills; even canyons; and an amazing white water river... I believe Kananaskis means 'a meeting of the waters'. It is one of my earliest, most favorite areas for adventures and for placing these small Summit Stones...

I remember... Ridge walks and summits like the Fortress, the Fist, Indefatigable, the Windtower, among so many others...

I remember... River kayaking and rafting on so powerful whitewater through rocks and mist...

I remember... Extended pristine hiking along the Continental Divide route...

I remember... Exploration of the Highwood and the hidden valleys there...

I remember... Endless wild back country, many with trails, some with none... Canyons too; even touching old ice of an ageless glacier...

Finding Kananaskis... has deep meaning in finding one's spirit out there and to discover oneself among the wild places... And that is its true gift to us...

I recall reading of the Visions Quests of others gone before me... and my own to Three Isle Lake in the quiet season...

Kananaskis 'Finders' of Summit Stones have been many including the Link here to the "Two Jonathans", and that of Traxx whose images are above, and who writes himself...

"Memories are stored in the mind but shaped by the heart... The day I found this Summit Stone I was 'on patrol' in the back country. I had a few hours left on my shift so I rolled down the road to Spurling Creek. I found two Summit Stones that day. The Stones were in little ziploc bags that I initially mistook for garbage left near the trail. It didn't take me long to realize how wrong I was - The Stone I currently hold was discovered early in the hike and, I'll admit, I hiked all the way to the pass that day reading the Muse... I sat in the sun (and wind!) at the pass, enjoyed the view, ate the last of my food for the day and finished the Adventure Muse (twice that afternoon)... Having often mused on the topic of adventures myself - familiar with many of the contributors to the Muse and learned of others thru the Muse... Continue to muse my days away - just in the process of becoming a (temporary/permanent?!?) fixture out in the mountains of Kananaskis. I do treasure the find - I think this little gift is an interesting way to communicate - a one way conversation of sorts... One of the things I like about the Muse is that it reaches every finder at their own levels of understanding and it is something one can return to at a later date and continue to find new meaning and new levels of meaning there. These days the Summit Stone is an integral part of a small shrine that is accumulating out of my work in Kananaskis and the Adventure Muse is on my bedside table. I'll think I'll hold on to them a while longer until I find a safe spot to pass them on (I think that they may not be as easy for the next person to find)"...

Traxx is one of those adventurous souls who has taken on the additional responsibility of caring for such wild places...

So many adventure experiences are still patiently waiting for us to wander and muse over while discovering ourselves as we find Kananaskis.......

DSD

Traxx Flickr Link: http://flickr.com/photos/jeremymcivor/1009028546/in/set-72157594300892168/