"So...How Many Is That......."

Recently... just after summiting a double peak mountain, here near Banff, and after focusing on the basics - safety in position; warm fleece; a bit of food and hydration... a close friend and I were sitting back to back, listening to the wind and some nearby rockfall...

"So... how many is that?", he asked quietly... For a brief moment, I thought he meant how many Summit Stones have I placed as I had just secreted two into the summit cairn there... Then it dawned upon me... he was asking how many mountain summits have been climbed and counted now...

After a moment, I just as quietly replied... "I honestly don't know....."

And then I found myself in the midst of that rush of intense emotion; often with a tear in my eye; that comes upon me as I realise just where I am... yet again... what it takes to get here; and the long journey that has gone on for years now leading to these special moments...

The emotions and tears this time also reflected a growing awareness that I've had these last years that... I am just so grateful to be there... at that wild place... in that moment...

I truly have no idea how many mountain summits I have climbed now... I counted every single one past 100 and continued to record them after 150... Now I tally such adventure summit experiences in a much different way...

It is not in their number that they have meaning anymore... It is simply that they are... an adventure gift to be experienced... a gift of memories created and cherished... a gift of intense moments lived and shared... and an unopened present full of envisioning what other adventures wait patiently out there for us...

After over thirty years of such wandering our wild lands... across lakes, down rivers, among islands, over mountains, through canyons... I feel more of these emotions... that gratitude... and allow it to wash over me and through me so that while I may not 'count' certain things anymore... I will never forget the experiences that created them...

I really don't know either how many Summit Stones I have placed now; but they are out there as a simple reflection of such emotions that we all have... that sense of gratitude... and in the belief of the importance of raising awareness about giving back to these wild places... and the real need to pass forward these opportunities for adventure to the generations that follow us.....

DSD

"J. Alan Hendricks...The Adventurist"

When I first saw the Title: "The Adventurist", I immediately had to visit that site... I loved the concept of an 'Adventurist'...

J. Alan Hendricks promotes real enthusiasm and has a distinct objective of "Promoting exploration, education, and personal challenge through adventure" within his blog writings. The Adventurist started out in 2006, with an intention to advocate that, as Alan says, "Life is an adventure. Live it"...

He also highlights that his blog has , "Shown me that people care about a lot of the same things I do. The environment, nature, and adventure". Themes I certainly relate to myself...

When embarking upon this creative journey, Alan wrote back in November 2006, "The term 'Adventure' means many things to many different people. It could be a quest, a life statement, a great undertaking of sorts or it could just mean something new"..."An Adventurist to me encompasses someone who is strong willed, determined, and won't let anything stand in their way of achieving what they have set out to do. They look for the excitement, the thrill, the ADVENTURE of doing something that most people would never do"..."This blog is about History, Science, Ecology, Nature, and of course... Man's quest to delight in it all. So grab your pickax, throw on those snowshoes.. or grab a kayak and let this adventure begin".

Now there is a great deal of energy and enthusiasm in these words... Meanings to create motivation by as well...

And with all of this "The Adventurist" has become, for many of us, a part of our days journeys.

J. Alan Hendricks efforts are ones of giving back, and passing forward, to the Adventure Community, by keeping us current out there. Hike on over and enjoy some time with him...

DSD

(Above Images By 'AdventureArt')

A Google and Blogger Thanks...

As I approach one year of blogging, and am thinking of an anniversary post of sorts, I am also musing about how Blogging is such a unique medium... The digital world seems 'elemental' to me at times... It seems important to me to acknowledge that Google & Blogger have committed to and provided for such 'giving back' to the Internet community; while providing access, means, and opportunity for those of us adventurers to connect with each other...

Read their history on their site: Three friends, starting with a unique idea, facing adversity, and then turning an interesting project into an amazing adventure journey of their own...

The Blogger Team at Google have a vision of: "Helping people have their own voice on the web and organizing the worlds information from the personal perspective."

This certainly allows for another whole level of fellowship...

A simple example is this journal of mine, with its potential links, comments, and formats, that Blogger provides. I never would have become part of the connectedness and experiences of the Summit Stone 'finders' who choose to share their stories here, nor the many other adventurers who visit and comment, or even link back to their own sites...

The Blogger Team is on a climb, a journey, an adventure, of their very own making...

As in the Scottish mountain route image of 'Rest and Be Thankful' above, they deserve a moment of pause to appreciate their efforts...

My thanks to the Bloggers at Google...

DSD

"The Man By The Lake....."

I remember... a few years ago... one of my most profound experiences of being aware of a 'finder' of a Summit Stone & Adventure Muse... This was a moment of 'passing forward' I will be forever grateful for... One of those fleeting opportunities that almost never occur when I see and share in what a 'finder' experiences upon discovering a placed gift...

This happened upon descending from mountain climbing, where the trail out passed very near an alpine lake, embraced by a very rocky shoreline...

I had placed a few painted stones and Muse that day both upon the summit and earlier at the trail head itself... What was most profound though was not the climb itself, a solo endeavor, to a peak visited before for musing and reflection... What provided a lasting memory of that day was what I saw just before reaching the trail head, about an hour before last light...

I saw... just off the trail, a young man, sitting quietly, and reading the Adventure Muse. He was stopped by some large rocks beside the glacier fed lake, and was also holding and turning a Summit Stone over and over in his other hand as if polishing it or making sure it was real...

I passed by... slowly and quietly... just above him along the trail. He had his boots and pack off. There was a breeze gently moving the trees; the water was a bit choppy too... and I am sure he didn't see nor hear me...

Only the side of his face could be seen... Then I was so very touched by what I noticed next...

This young adventurous soul, was not only reading the Muse, but also quietly crying.....

Not wanting to disturb his very private, very special moment, I simply kept moving on down that mountain trail...

I don't know exactly what he was experiencing, but would truly like to believe, the finding of some words, some quotes, within the Muse, and his deep contemplation, may have somehow touched his spirit that day and that maybe the Summit Stone was reminding him of something...

I know it did me...

As I found I too had a few tears welling up in my eyes as I carried quietly on.......

DSD

"Mt Temple..... Mt Temple....."

I have had the privilege of being upon this mountain, very near Lake Louise, Banff, five times now... Four of these five adventure experiences, I made it to the summit; the one exception was retreating from a stormy day of sleet and snow; although it too had very special moments... Mt Temple was also my first solo; it allowed us to summit a group too on the 100th anniversary of its being first climbed; and I later returned to this temple of mountains for two more solo climbs of musing and contemplation...

Mt Temple was my first opportunity to enjoy the experience of 'flow' while climbing... After not summiting the first day, due to that terrific storm, I returned the very next day when the rock was now sure, the gravity much less, and the passing of time slowed greatly... It wasn't so much climbing as it was a 'flowing' up the route...

I am re-minded of J. Waterman's quote which says:

"No climber, active or inactive, young or old, can help but look back to one of their earlier climbs with a sense that they had touched something beautiful and elusive, and found movement upon rock and ice as creation... In these remembrances most climbers find necessary definition for the rest of their lives."

We have returned to Sentinel Pass, by Mt Temple, many times more over the years... One time I recall a special musical experience, when some wandering soul was playing the flute in Larch Valley below us... the crispness of each note and the echo at the end was captivating...

I remember... Mt Temple as a place of meditation, for contemplating the themes that this blog reflects...

I remember... gazing across at the Ten Peaks and the pristine waters of Moraine Lake, and appreciating those who protected this area and passed it forward for us to now enjoy...

I remember... reading in Larch Valley, and finding and choosing the quotes that are now in the 'Adventure Muse'...

I remember... that wolf in this valley of larches, on one solo very early alpine start, just across an open area, where we approached each other and yet both kept our distance, as it should be, out of instinct, intrigue, and respect...

I recall the climbing upon Eiffel and Pinnacle mountains, as the second and third Larch Valley summits, all to gain further vistas and perspectives on Mt Temple...

We have enjoyed over twenty summers in this area... I am so grateful for this time and the adventure experiences gifted us out there...

And still find myself exclaiming quietly... even after all these years... as we drive or hike closer to this mountain... "Mt Temple... Mt Temple..."

DSD

"You Don't Know...If You Don't Go....."

It was a four in the morning solo alpine start... A day where I almost didn't go.......

You could hardly see a car length away, the valley was so socked in...

The elusive goal was Mt Edith; a three summit mountain close to Banff, Alberta...that invites a traverse across its rocky heights... Having looped around it in both directions before; this time my choice was to do Edith Pass first, then up to Cory Pass. This is a longer route, and has a sustained but moderate elevation gain on the way in, but is worth every vista...

The thick mist was so low, the trail itself had a great deal of dew and moisture along the way...

Everything was glistening green and so fresh... There was even enough moisture on the trail to see where animals had passed...

This approach affords the very best view of Mt Louis, and through the low drifting clouds it did indeed make its presence known... I have since climbed the classic technical route upon this amazing mountain and touched in person, the rock I had read so much about over the years...

I almost didn't go that day either, due to some lingering 'Fletcheritis' over the challenge...

The Valley of The Gargoyles is best approached this way too; with its terrific rock monoliths, which truly look to be stone carved monuments, wings and all...

As I gained altitude, the moving sea of clouds seemed to giving way to shades of color and muted sunlight... The north peak is first from Cory Pass. It is the smallest, but highest of Mt Ediths' three summits. I had summited there a number of times before, which was good preparation for this solo traverse of all of these rocky sisters...

The center peak is quite a blocky spot, and it was here that it became apparent that the clouds were actually lowering within the valley itself, as I was now able to see above them, and even to locate other mountain summits, looking like islands, as they stood just above the drifting waves of mist...

Mt Ediths' south peak is likely the more challenging scramble of the three. We completed a technical route there years before, but this was my first return since...

All three summits provided very special moments of quiet... No sound... complete stillness...

The descent was swift and direct back to the trail, while the trail then itself wanders to and fro, all the way down to an open grassy knoll... Here I have often stopped to muse and meditate upon the day just experienced...

I have placed many Summit Stones & Adventure Muses on these paths during these Mt Edith climbs, while later recalling what was offered to me those days... and re-mind myself just as often...

You don't know...

If you don't go.......

DSD

"Touching Rock.....Touches Us....."

"I am glad to touch the living rock again and dip my head into the high mountain sky." J. Muir

The experience of touching rock... touches us...

We develop a feel for the rough or polished granite... a sense of the loose or firm quartz... and can become a part of the desert rock or northern limestone that we embrace on any particular adventure day...

Think too... of how this simple example of Muir's musings have had such lasting effects, like the substance of stone itself... Countless adventurers have read Muir's writings and then have since experienced their own spirited relationship to rock and stone and mountains...

How I wish I could have shared a few seasons with him in the High Sierras...

Time to return to the mountains.....

DSD

Remembering Colin Fletcher.....

Colin Fletcher, the amazing, inspiring writer and adventure hiker recently passed at the age of 85... He was an immensely witty and truly talented Welshman... To quote from at least two of his works Colin would often: "Head outside and search for my wilderness muse..."

My first books of his were "The Complete Walker", and amazing adventure narratives of his trips such as, "The Thousand Mile Summer" and "The Man Who Walked Through Time"...

His rafting return to the Colorado river truly inspired me...

He was a very personal man who had such a passion for adventure, especially hiking, and also for sharing through the written word... Long distance solo treks were his main choice of activity, and Colin's skills in the art of telling stories about these were legendary... From his readings it is known that he also enjoyed collecting unique rocks; that contemplation and musing were very important to him, and that he quietly appreciated being quoted (as I have in the Adventure Muse and here on this Blog).

While he often described himself as 'crusty', he was a quiet and powerful advocate for giving back to and passing experience forward about our wild places, and the adventures they may hold for us... It seems so appropriate that his close friends are going to scatter his ashes among the coastal wild lands...

Colin did indeed 'walk through time', as his ponderings, his writings, are timeless and are a legacy that will certainly endure...

DSD

"A Special Kind Of Light....."

The very next time you are out kayaking, canoeing, rafting... whatever, on the element of water... Take a moment to gaze closely at the water itself and through the waves around you...

Take in the vibrant greens and blues...

Focus very closely upon the light as it passes through and is reflected from this element...

I remember... sparkles of sunbeams on the water while paddling a northern lake... losing myself in the shine from a mountain river... drifting aimlessly across a brightly lit coastal inlet...

I remember... shimmers of light on a talking stream during a Yosemite hike... climbing among high mountain lakes throughout the Rockies... Mt Temple's reflection in a lake with the same name...

I remember... similar brilliance reflected in the sunglasses of my partner and friends while out on the waters... also when we rafted up in the Broken Group Islands... and later again in the southern Gulf Islands...

This kind of special light; along with that from the beginning and end of each adventure day; and that found within endless alpenglows... has become another favorite adventure experience...

This special kind of light could make you believe that its... almost as if jewels are suspended in the water... and also that if you only try... you could just reach out and grasp a handful of them...

Actually you can... The jewel is the moment you have in that special wild place... and what you may grasp is a memory as valuable as any rare gem.....

DSD

(Images from: Top - Gipstein; Middle - Monkman; Bottom - Gold)

"THE Adventure Blog..."

The 'Adventure Blog' was created by The Adventure Junkie, who is now from Texas, while previously from the upper Mississippi River area I believe. He is an avid adventure blogger who is giving back to us all by keeping us up to speed on:

"News, Commentary, And Insights On Adventures & Adventurers".

It is my emphasis on the 'THE' above as this Blog is indeed one of a kind!

The Adventure Junkie is another Master Blogger, and there are not many out there, with over a thousand posts to his credit since January 2006. And very enjoyable posts at that as not many days go by where I am not visiting to read and muse over something adventuresome.

His own recent accomplishments include climbing upon Kilimanjaro and an African Safari Trek, and then posting enjoyable stories and pictures from there.

The Blog itself covers adventures of mountaineering, climbing, paddling, dog sledding, high altitude, outdoor news, and adventure racing, among others.

Here we have a fellow multi sport adventurer who also believes in making meaningful contributions to our outdoor community. The 'Adventure Blog' clearly embraces the spirit of our efforts out in the wild lands and the fun of musing & sharing about them...

The Adventure Junkie's writing reminds me of a favorite quote:

"People who seek adventure are true poets of living." Anon

It is really good to have another fellow adventurer journeying along these trails with us.

Definitely visit and enjoy his energetic Blog...

DSD

(See Link to right of this page)

"Musing On Lessons....."

Lessons in musing... Musing on lessons...

Just recently we booked ourselves to try out and learn a further adventure activity skill; one that is new, challenging, and also one that I am not that comfortable with... but I do need to study and practice...

Lessons are things that are about both something to be taught; more essentially 'learned'...

I believe it is essential for lessons to serve not as a rebuke, but always rather to encourage... Especially when it comes to safety and enjoyment of activities in our wild lands...

Grey Wolf said: "Elusive lessons hold the most to be learned...".

Grandfather, a Mountain Elder, also wrote about the nature of such elusiveness: "You call these elusive mountains; but I think you are the elusive one. There is more within you than you know".

From the depths of my memory; this last adventure learning experience connects to so many other times and places, initial anxieties, uncertain excitement, and the desire to ever push oneself ever just a little bit more - and also to the power of what we may learn out in those wild places; especially about ourselves. Grey Wolf said about such learning too: "That is the true gift".

This is also a re-minding for us of the 'Beginners Mind', as in the Goya bottom image above which reflects an old wandering master, who himself says with his actions, "I am still learning"; and to try and see each adventure day, every adventure experience, with new eyes and an open mind...

Do we really continually learn throughout life..? Can you really teach an old dog anything..?

After thirty years of adventuring, it would seem so... And if I can, being an adventurer of middling skills, then anyone can...

Adventures are such a potent means for new levels of learning and lessons... This new skill will be quite useful; a confidence builder too... But maybe the very essential lesson here is that, yes, each of us can indeed try out something new and adventurous wherever we are at as for age, skills, or whatever.....

DSD

"Grand Canyon & Black Canyon Finders..."

Just recently, after my "Canyon Spirit" post, and our adventures out with those spirited Australians and the engaging young couple from Nevada... comments were made here from two amazing 'Canyon Finders' themselves... who discovered a few Summit Stones & Adventure Muses while out on their own journeys...

Our Anonymous Grand Canyon commenter wrote:

"I just completed my second kayak trip down the Grand Canyon and was fortunate to come upon a stone you had left at Spencer Canyon (Mile 246). I first looked through the bag, then told one of the rafters in my group, one that enjoyed geo-caching, there was a small geo-cache, located about 150 feet away. When I came back she was reading the Adventure Muse and told me it appeared it was meant to be kept. Not wanting to disturb someone's 'monument' it took some convincing to get me to keep it. The clincher was the kayak paddle on the back of the book. I knew then it was left by a fellow yaker and, if I didn't take it, it would likely wind up in the hands of commercial rafting customer that may not appreciate the significance of the gift.

Yes, I did take it, not knowing exactly what I would, or should, do with it, but it has become to be my most cherished momento of my trip... I was a solo kayaker supporting a group of 7 rafters. It was a bit lonely and stressful at times (2 raft flips/swims) not having a fellow boater around, but the stone indicated to me the river gods were watching over me.

Thank you DSD... if it is meant to be passed on to another in a land of adventure, I will respect that and ensure it gets placed somewhere appropriate. But if not, I will keep it as a memory stone, a reminder of the great adventure and fortune I had in the Grand Canyon."

Here we have a thoughtful person of significant confidence and experience out giving solo support to a rafting group in the Grandest of Canyons... A safety kayaker assumes a mantle of serious responsibility, where a flip & swim can involve real challenges in responding, and heightens the exhilaration of such adventure. I myself cherish these comments from 'Finders' who themselves have so enjoyed their experience... I also like to believe there are rivers gods and elemental Grandfathers who reflect the spirit of these adventurers and the wild places they are journeying through... I hope this 'Finder' enjoys their memories and that simple touch stone for many years to come...

Our Anonymous speaker from Black Canyon said:

"Our memories of kayaking Black Canyon are more meaningful to us because of your gift of these Summit Stones and Muse. We found one up Boy Scout Canyon below the rope section and then much later in the Emerald River Cave, put up on a small ledge, we were lucky enough to discover another. Each is unique and a beautiful stone, with '06 and '07 on the back with DSD. This must be when they were painted or put in these spots. They are our little treasures and we will value them always. The Muse is full of great quotes. We were excited to locate your blog from details on the inside cover. We love these stories of other finders and are happy to be finders ourselves."

I believe 'treasure' is found to in the spirit and attitudes of adventure that such "Finders" have... The Summit Stone is simply a reflection of this... The wisdom in the Adventure Muse, while not my literary achievement, seems to mirror a person like you, and their musings over their experiences... This blog is written with all of you in mind...

What serendipity in having two kayakers, finding two Summit Stones, in two beautiful canyons...My enthusiasm in placing these, and your excitement in finding them, only adds to our shared gratefulness for such wild places and the special opportunities they provide us...

Now you are indeed both part of a "Finders" story here as well...

I am so glad all have kept a Summit Stone; some may even pass forward a quote from the Adventure Muse; all will give something back of their experience, in their own way, I am sure...

I am so very grateful for their comments here.....

DSD

"Desert Spirit....."

"Rivers... are greater than their grandest canyons and biggest drops... for nearly all there is something more, something ineffable yet deeply satisfying, as we join with the ancient currents and flow, for a brief time, between the timeless banks." Bangs & Kallen

Our recent Grand Canyon rafting and Black Canyon kayaking adventures reminded me of this favorite quote and the nature of 'desert spirit', as in the energy, enthusiasm, fun, and friendliness we often find among fellows out in our wild lands...

The power of this most human element is immeasurable...

Such 'spirit' is most evident when it is a shared adventure experience; one of appreciation for nature's beauty, and a real presence of enjoyment, laughter, and fun...

A fellowship is created when people share enjoyment of experiences like deep canyon moments...

We rafted the Grand Canyon among five Australians, who had so much energy, with such vibrant humour and an appreciation of life's opportunities... They have been friends for a long time and seem so very young at heart... They are indeed spirited souls...

Kayaking in Black Canyon also offered a shared experience with a young couple from Nevada itself, married not yet two years, who at the beginning of their journeys together are already very thoughtful and reflective persons... One surprised the other with this adventure in a way we have over the years as well... They are such friendly and caring spirits...

I remember... the most beautiful Grand Canyon vistas, so very cold waters, endless smiles and laughter, standing under a refreshing canyon waterfall, the most intriguing conversations, a sunrise of gentle colors...

I remember... Black Canyons' hot springs, rain caves, reflections off the waters, quiet moments of drifting, the warmth of the rock, hiking to hidden places, the contentment of the familiar sweep of the paddle, emerald colors...

I remember... the immense depth of each place, the intense colors, especially the reds, the faces within the canyon walls, and the soul of the ancient rock layers themselves...

Kayaking and river rafting for us has always been a means to become part of an elemental medium... There have been many such rivers over the years, all with their own unique liquid expressions... Many done with such spirited groups, others experienced together, or solo...

Adventuring upon a river, now within the depths of deep canyons, adds other memories and meanings for us now too...

Deserts are places of paradox and contrasts... The sky and the waters; bare rock along with the fresh green of new spring plant growth; furnace like temperatures and bone chilling water - to assume these wild lands are barren would be wrong, they are so very full of life...

At times my spirit for adventure wains... Getting out there with adventurous souls, like these Australians and the young couple from Nevada, sparks within me the desire to adventure on...

We so appreciated them all sharing their desert spirit with us... The Australians will surely live and laugh very long lives... The couple will just as surely love and journey far too...

What amazing spirit they all have...

And too, yet again, I gathered small stones, and yet again anonymously placed many more...

I hope they enjoy their Summit Stones & Adventure Muse.....

DSD

"Happy Birthday World Wildlife Fund Canada..."

World Wildlife Fund Canada is today 'Forty Years Young...'

May 16th 2007 marks WWF Canada's four decades of achievements and stewardship for our wild lands and the creatures who live in them...

WWF is celebrating many accomplishments including the protection of wild spaces both at sea and on land. They also advocate for reducing pollution and increasing energy efficiencies.

WWF's efforts in recovering Endangered Species are probably what they are most well known for, particularly in funding over 700 Endangered Species Recovery projects. WWF works tirelessly too, internationally, on initiatives like rainforest protection.

I especially appreciate the adventures of WWF supporters such as the Trans Arctic Canoe expedition that is being undertaken this year which will raise awareness and funds for further WWF efforts.

Their stewardship provides a potent example of what can be attained when we work together towards a shared goal of giving back and passing forward...

That is, indeed, inspiring and worth acknowledging.

Happy Birthday WWF...

DSD

(Images by: Top - WWF Logo; Middle - Hoselton Tigers; Bottom - WWF Forest)

"Another Spirit Within The Experience..."

There are many spirits to be found within our adventure experiences.....

P. Ament offers another perspective on certain 'spirit' created out there, and I think, on the nature of giving back and passing forward... He wrote: "The spirit of the experience is what hangs in delicate balance... Success... might not be judged by whether someone reaches the summit. It should be judged by whether or not the time spent on the mountain upgraded the mountains beauty - rather than degraded it. A mountain's beauty is 'upgraded' by virtue of the spirit that is infused into its slopes by those who pass near it... The word is replenish, to give back. If we hope to draw into our spirits the beauty... we must return to it whatever is, or should be, some of the beauty that hangs from the edges of our souls. The inner feelings and ideas of those who visit the area are what is left there... Sometimes those attitudes and spirits are every bit as much garbage as piles of discarded oxygen bottles... The criteria for success should be measured by whether the experience has been one of integrity, pristine awareness, and love for one another and the mountains...".

I so strongly agree that who we are in these environs and what we do there in our wild lands all either contribute to that natural place... or not... Can we really 'be' out there and have it just remain a neutral experience where our presence is not assumed to have some impact?

I'm not sure...

Just being aware of this opportunity, means we are now more respectful of such a musing as Aments'...

We pass forward so much more when our adventure efforts do not impact anything other than ourselves, and possibly those whom we adventure with...

Passing forward here can also mean we preserve for others the opportunity to enjoy the same profound and powerful adventure experiences that we ourselves have so enjoyed.....

DSD

Images by: Top - Wiltsie; Middle - Moyes; Bottom - 'Climbing' Magazine Cover of Ament.

"A Story Of Two Jonathans....."

I have been just musing these last few days about some first beginnings, and my very first awareness of two Summit Stone 'Finders' out there.....

Quite a bit of coincidence here and much serendipity, as they both happen to be named 'Jonathan', and we all frequent the same adventure wild lands.....

Here is what Jonathan L. wrote back in 2003:

"I was climbing today... and upon my return to the car I found upon my windscreen a wonderful 'summit stone' courtesy of DSD. I found it really cool, touching and uplifting".

Jonathan amazingly happened to get a response from a 'Gary' later on 2003, who wrote:

"I was sea kayaking in the Broken Islands... Among the rocks at one of the beaches our group found two summit stones. My experience was similar to your Jonathan".

A year later, Jonathan M., a 'Finder' of two Summit Stones in Kananaskis Country near Fortress and Rimwall Mountains in 2004 & 2005 wrote:

"Have any of you found a Summit Stone by DSD on your journeys? The stones are small with exquisitely painted mountain scenes on them. They are quite a treat, and the collection of intriguing quotes entitled 'An Adventure Muse' is a priceless gift. I was delighted with this find."

And Jonathan said of the Muse and the experience:

"It is a wonderful compilation of inspiring quotes from various wilderness adventurers and others who possess a deep appreciation of nature."
"It is clear that the entity behind these stones and this publication is a dedicated outdoors person going the extra mile to make the outdoor experience even more special for people like me."

"It truly is an uplifting experience to find one of the gifts and to consider the great expenditure of time, talent, and energy that DSD has made in this unique endeavor."

"I am not so interested in discovering the identity of DSD as I am in sharing the stories of the discovery of these little but powerful gifts."

These comments were made very early on in the first years of this Summit Stone journey...

A friend had told me about them. I had little computer and Internet experience back then and was taken by the amazing connections to be made upon this medium...

I myself was so very touched by the two Jonathans' musings, especially considering at that time I had believed my anonymous efforts would never really result in such a connection with 'Finders'...

I am also very humbled by their appreciations... And to see that this gesture has put a smile on a few faces out there, and encouraged further appreciation of our wild places, makes every effort worth every moment...

My partner and the same friend encouraged me to acknowledge the two Jonathans' as two of the very first 'Finders' from those early years and as the original persons to share thoughts about their Summit Stone experiences... Posting about them and what they wrote is just my simple way of saying thank you.....

DSD

(Pictures from Jonathan M. at Clubtread)