"A Mountain Fire Tells Many Tales..."

We were watching the coals... the crackle and spit of the bright sparks...

The glowing so deep within... the gentle movement between light and dark...

When GrandFather said quietly, "A mountain fire tells many tales...".

I waited patiently as I knew one of these may follow...

And it did...

A tale of immense storms and difficult challenges; of elusive summits and dark valleys; of grey wolves and grizzled bears; across the rushing rivers and polished rocks; and especially of ephemeral spirits and elements of many kinds...

Mountain fires do indeed share many tales with all of us.....

DSD

"Just Climb A Little Higher..."

"Just climb a little higher..", the Outward Bound Instructor had said three times now...

"Just climb a little higher...".

We were leading our group on a difficult mountain scramble and I had taken on the role of route finding. I have since come to so enjoy finding a way over rock and scree and vertical terrain; but back then I had no experience in this artful skill at all... My novice perspective at that time and limited outlook did not really let me see past my own immediate position on the mountain.

Being so focused on my own little world of rock and exposure, I don't think I was being of much assistance to our group... It was a very good thing that on this day I was being shadowed by one of our Instructors... Always there, much like my real shadow, for support and guidance. I couldn't count the times I was confused about where to reach or step next... yet each time that Instructor just quietly said, "Just climb a little higher...". I then saw what I hadn't noticed before... almost as if a new route appeared before my eyes. Each time with a slight change of perspective came different options; more choices of where and how to move...

After the last time these guiding words were said, then there was no more route to find...

Instead a vista that brought a tear to my eye had opened up; an expanse that was there so quickly I was surprised. The most blue of blue sky's shimmered above our heads... and just to the side was the traditional summit cairn...

This learning metaphor from such real experience has assisted me so well over the years when finding my way again on new terrain in adventures and life. All I have to do, to be able to see more clearly, to gain new perspectives, is just remind myself to just climb a little higher.....

DSD

"Mapping Your Journey..."

Early on in Outward Bound, in later years during multi-day treks, and still now when wandering the waters I take out a small moisture resistant ditty bag, and uncover yet another small journal... Those blank pages have always seemed inviting to me... Like the tide, I never know just what will turn up. I often wonder what unknowns, what sorts of secrets will appear through these written musings...

Mapping our journeys in this way through the use of a personal adventure journal has many, many benefits. There is a real potency in the simple use out there of pencil and paper... Seemingly simple words can resonate with an energy; much as any warm campfire...

There are many styles of journal writing we can utilise when wandering: Writing backwards is great for the memory; while writing forwards is a powerful enhancement to ideas about future adventures and our commitment towards them. Our memories can be sieve like at times; but the written word, even drawings and symbols representing our experiences, are not. There is no perfect format to follow; no index to use. Any individual style is really up to you. Often many of us will include other items along with our words: Souvenirs, memento's, and drawings all can be symbols that remind us and tell stories from out there in ways that words alone may not speak to. Such a record, in a personal journal, is not a map we purchase and follow, but one we create as we actually go along... After years of use, it becomes such a familiar piece of gear. Many times the dreams of where we want to go next out there are from a cherished awareness of where we each have been... Such an adventure journal can, over time, become a treasure for each of us, as valuable as any of the other essentials. Most keep such writing to themselves although I recall a shared journal we also used on Outward Bound with very fond memories.

The endowment of words you map for yourself in this way Dear Finders, will become a journey in itself, and a wild place legacy like no other...

DSD

"Images And Emotions From Out There..."

"When one enters the wilderness with his camera, assuming he does so with a spirit of mystical participation, he should trust his reactions and his visions." A. Adams

Adventures and deep experiences...
Images and emotions...
Findings and feelings...
My appreciation to Trevor Anderson for sharing all of these with us today...
DSD

Trevor Anderson: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24767994@N00/

"Full Circle....."

Just as the sun was setting I spotted it... yet another smooth polished cobblestone; perfect for some small naive art... My eye often wanders in this way, gazing, looking as I was now upon this quiet secluded island beach. The end of another so beautiful day of sea kayaking... I gathered it up and journeyed home where this stone waited patiently. It seemed wanting of a sunny day scene so that is what I painted; then tucked it into an 'Adventure Muse' and set it out ready...

It accompanied me to the summit of Mt Yukness to make friends among the other stones of the cairn up there... Just after gently placing it I spotted another rugged looking shard which I gathered in my pack just before the rain started... It needed a rainbow painted upon it, much like the one viewed on the descent. Then it joined us on that rafting of the Grand to be placed at a well deserved rest point among the sparse rocks and plants by the river... When packing up at waters edge, I stepped upon another small cobble and into my life jacket pocket it went... to jostle and bounce and meet the rapids as we all hooted and smiled... The canyon scene painted upon that one may have seemed out of place in Killarney, but I don't think a 'Finder' would mind when discovering it out on Silver Peak... The view of Georgian Bay and the lakes there is stunning... By one small, very clear lake, one more cobble asked me to take it on a new adventure... This one out in the High Sierra's... It was painted with a full moon and a thousand stars like that which may be experienced out in the Yosemite highlands... The summit it rests upon is not well travelled, so it may be there a while enjoying the lunar vistas... Its brother I gathered up that day was perfect for a dual scene of night and day, which often reminds me of our northern lakes... So it was placed there by some quiet waters under the sitting log of a campsite... This northern resting place has much history and mystery there... The rocks to be gathered are of unique shapes and colors... Painting them requires musings of another kind, and after doing so, one in particular was then placed in sister waters deep among yet other coastal islands...

While standing then at that point of the compass, I saw the glint of the setting sun on another wave and storm polished cobble... I slowly wandered over, gathered it up, while turning it over and over in my old hand... And then, full circle, I begin again.....

DSD

"The Gift Of Experiences..."

Most of us bestow things upon one another during this season of giving... I have often mused, and written about here, over the nature of another kind of offering... This is a deeper kind of present for another, or as an endowment maybe for ourselves, which holds out such potent and significant meanings...

Remember... what you felt so strongly during that river rafting trip; recall the energy and emotions when out on those trails of your favorite hikes; think for a moment about when you were sea kayaking to that coastal island you were sure no one had ever set foot upon...

Feel again those same sensations, that enchanting sense of wonder, when you attained that very first summit; go back and relive that special time when a certain spirit animal appeared in the trees before you, just when you needed it so...

All of these knowings, and so many more from out there, are the gifts of adventure experiences. These are the gifts that the wild places wrap up for each of us, that we give ourselves too when we head out, that we also present to others in so many shared ways - the gift of experiences...

So, remember too, that canyoneering day when you pushed so hard to get beyond yourself; that very long rappel into the the mists so memorable; the times lowering into the depths of those caves so dark and yet so illuminating... all are also such potent and powerful gifts of experiences...

We do give one another, and ourselves, such nice things at times - yet a gift of experience holds another level of enduring beauty within it...

That which we experience out there, and then weave into our experiences back here, are truly meaningful offerings - of smiles and laughter, of challenges and effort, of sunshine and tears - these are bestowed upon us through journeys within the wild places... They become branded in our memories; they touch us in our very hearts; and they are always there to further inspire our spirits... Such life defining moments we meet with and undergo out there, regardless of when solo or those shared in fellowship, is what is really at the end of any rainbow. Then if we pass forward these adventure experiences, they then become a gift twice given... and that is a beautiful experience too...

So, in the spirit of this season of sharing and giving, do I wish for you Dear Friends, Dear Finders, that the gift of experiences becomes a bountiful cherished present within your lives...

DSD

"Stand Tall..... Be Proud....."

At that distinct point, when you know inside yourself, when your adventure goal, your wild place project is finally attained...

Then stand tall... be proud...

You planned and prepared as best as any of us could.

You have walked through the coals and made this real.

You now are where you envisioned yourself wanting to be...

So, stand tall... be proud...

When at your high point on this journey, it is important to pause, to savour and enjoy that moment in the process.

Take the time to look out over the four points of your compass if you are standing upon a summit, at the end of that trail, maybe looking over those waters, or simply now returning to camp...

All the steps you have taken this year, the efforts you have made, navigating the inherent trials always present, feeling the contentment and the excitement...

And, stand tall... be proud...

Yes, there are traditions which share that we are never as 'great' as our greatest accomplishments; nor as downcast as our worst setbacks... Even accepting this, it is still important to glance back, to gaze upon where we have stood before, and where we stand now.

Quiet and heartfelt celebrations of our journeys in this way are important and so very meaningful...

Again, stand tall... be proud...

Being proud in certain ways - developing an internal pride of the quiet kind has real energy and is another way of propelling ourselves further still; a powerful means to sustain our momentum...

So, Dear Finders, Dear friends, stand tall... be proud...

And then rejoin us at your launch point, back near the waters edge, maybe at tree line, and share your story with us of how at that moment this year in your adventurous life, you found yourself, standing tall... being proud...

DSD

"The Fellowship Of The Wild Places..."

"Walk tall as the trees, live strong as the mountains, be gentle as the spring winds, keep the warmth of the summer sun in your heart... I have been to the end of the earth, I have been to the end of the waters, I have been to the end of the sky, I have been to the end of the mountains, I have found none that are not my friends..." North American Aboriginal Proverb

Such wild place friendliness... such fellowship out there among the elements, from our partners in adventures, from those who also wander the pathways and trails... to each of us this sunny December day...

DSD

My sincere appreciation to Trevor Anderson for the above amazing feeling images:

http://flickr.com/photos/24767994@N00/

"On The Summit I Say Their Names..."

Having never shared this before, I pondered if I should... but it is my sense I am not the only one at all who practices this very private, very old tradition...

On the summit I say their names... I safely stand up among the clouds, face the sun or moon, often into the wind, close my eyes, and slowly say their names aloud...

I say the names of past fellows who have journeyed the path with me; the guides and wild place teachers who have shared their hard earned wisdom; the close family and friends who still walk the same trails today...

I say the names of those who are now gone from these particular elements; the ones who knew and accepted me for who I am with all my flaws and faults; especially the ones who have challenged me to become something more...

I say the names of those who made us laugh; each one who shared a tear with me; and those whose courage and resiliency I believe have been an example for us all...

On the summit I say their names... and practice an ages old quiet tradition of respect, of acknowledgement, of remembering, of bringing the past back to the present... An ages old tradition of becoming grateful...

And when we are each gone, when we are no longer among the wild places but have become a part of them instead, I hope to hear my name and yours carried out there among the winds when someone on a summit says them out loud.....

DSD

"I Dreamed I Was A Wolf..."

I once dreamed I was a wolf...

Such a vivid, yet ephemeral experience... so very real... so full of life out in the wilds...

With my eyes I could see so much and in all types of light; my ears were so attuned to every sound, every movement... All my senses connected to everything that was present and maybe even things not so evident... I was able to run faster than seemed possible, all my limbs moving with such grace... My perceptions of the world about me changed in ways hard to explain. I ran long and far through mountains and valleys, and then I stopped and looked across a meadow to see a person watching me who looked very familiar... A human who I know I should recognize, whom I sensed also knew me...

Then.. when I awoke, I asked, 'Was I a person dreaming of being a wolf, or maybe then I wondered... am I instead a wolf, who is dreaming of being a person'...

Or might we truly be one and the same; and that is this is no dream, but really the way of things...

DSD

(My thanks to K.Taylor for the top image and M.Hamblin for the bottom image)

"Of Canyons And Crutches..."

It was such a great day for canyoneering... The desert heat, the colors, the surprises for both flora and fauna, unexpected waters deep between canyon walls, the immense fun of rappels, the scrambling and wedging oneself among ages old rock... such a great day...

We were having so much fun; I think my jaw hurt a bit from the smiling and the laughter as we returned to the cars. Then, while sitting there and chuckling more I looked up to see two quiet fellow adventurers - one who moved slowly by on a pair of crutches. The parking lot was full of climbers, hikers, and canyoneers... all themselves full of adrenaline and enjoyment, with that glow on their faces of mixed sun, accomplishment, and wild place wonders...

Our fellow on the crutches though, had no smile, no energy radiating from him, no magic in his step, no boisterous voice to talk and sing about the days adventures out there...

He was in obvious discomfort and moved like one who was new to the crutches, one who had only been recently injured, one who moved slowly not only because of this injury but also as a cause of the realisation of lost opportunities...

I could only wonder what had happened, and could truly empathize with his situation, as those of us who have experienced severe injury all can, in what that may do to us and may take away from us... The two seemed to wander a bit aimlessly, one seemingly not knowing what to do as his partner had been waylayed, and one very likely wondering what may come next during that long path of recovery... They went to their car, rested, then wandered off to watch some other climbers having their vertical fun. I had to move fast, as I had already decided to place a Summit Stone & Adventure Muse on their windshield... I simply walked by and tucked it there...

There have been small things gifted to me during my own injured times, such as very helpful words of encouragement, and useful shared experience of how to get by; I hoped maybe a quote in the Muse and the possible meaning a Finder may create about a small painted cobble, just might provide a bit of support at this moment in his trial...

They returned; had a puzzled look as they picked these up; the one on crutches sat with the door open while the other stood and watched... I sense they knew what it was...

He held the stone, and spent some long minutes looking through the Muse... Slowly, so slowly, the most beautiful smile crept up his face - one of those big, broad, full of energy, crinkle the eyes kind of smiles. I couldn't help it and found myself smiling in the same manner as I watched from beyond the cars. That smile, that look upon his face, was wonderful as was their animated discussion that was now underway...

Sometimes we all need a spark, a moment, a word, a gesture, even the most simple of things... just so we can see a little bit further along our own horizons and more of the possibilities that wait for us out there... even in the midst of the most trying of times...

I still smile today when I think of our great day of adventuring and even more so about that parking lot among canyons and crutches...

DSD

"Your Summit Strengths..."

As adventurers, even though we see much out there, often there can be hidden from our own eyes... certain secrets...

The truth of it is that we each have our own unique 'summit strengths'...

Novices sense their presence, while experienced ones have learned to respect and apply the vigour of what makes each of us individually strong. They are there regardless of how we define our own 'summits' in adventure and life... We discover these areas of power, durability, and stamina often in surprising ways. We develop them here, even more profoundly out there, through our own adventure ways and means while testing, toughening, or hardening and tempering ourselves...

As with all such strengths, when they are exercised, they become even more enduring, more resilient, more likely to assist us; to be there when we really need them - like in times like these...

What might your secret resoluteness be Dear Finders; what are your own particular strengths that make up the sum of you as an adventurer... Is it your enthusiasm, your distinct determination, the ways in which you plan and prepare... Might they be found in your persistence, possibility within your willingness to support and encourage others; maybe they are hidden among your unique physical abilities, or your skills of many kinds... Could they be seen in your talents in teaching, sharing, and leading others. Might they be discovered in what you've learned about yourself out there and how you bring that back here. Are you like the rivers that always find a way to keep flowing. Are you of the mountains that stand tall and weather the elements so well. Could you be reflected in the desert in its quiet yet powerful presence. Maybe you are of the canyons which have endured the millenia, or like the small coastal islands which meet every storm head on while only becoming more beautiful each and every season...

Are you of the bear, wolf, or eagle clan who mirror the character and bearing of their spirit animals during such trials...

Your 'secret summit strengths' are there my friends, and in times like these, we are all called upon to exercise them...

DSD

"Each Of Us....."

"Each of us is on a climb of a different sort, facing our own mountains, struggling to cross our own rough seas." Anon

Yet another element we all share.....

DSD

"Watching The Tide Go Out..."

There have been many moments where I have found myself just watching the tide slowly go out... While beach hiking, searching for cobblestones, and especially at the end of sea kayak trips out there. This time is so special... It allows for gently reflecting on the adventure days and nights just passed... For remembering the many preparations over how we get there, the visualization and all the efforts to journey to this point in time... For pondering the challenges offered to me, many accepted, some not this last days... For just musing over each of these moments, especially the unexpected ones, like the range of emotions the wild places affords each of us...

Then I just pause and quietly watch the ebb and flow of the tide and waves easing in and drifting back out...

I muse over what wonders I have seen... they are always there, I just need to open my eyes a bit more. These moments are for pondering too about why I came again, even when the elements may not have been agreeable.

I remember... sitting just so and thinking about all the seasons, the years gone by... the special times shared, the intense solo experiences, the many sea shores...

I remember... those feelings of excitement before a challenge, at times the anxiety during the course of some adventures, the sense of completion and accomplishment and even a bit of relief sometimes...

This is a time especially for reflecting upon that sense of contentment after those special goals, within that tiredness from well earned efforts, and the price of admission agreed upon and paid out there...

When quietly watching the tide ebb away I experience again the joy of seeing the sun glinting as jewels thrown upon the water as I have posted about before. The waves can be so meditative with their gentle mantra moving slowly across the sand and rocks...

You may see many things on a beach that couldn't be seen before as the tide ebbs away... just as we may now see with new eyes after very challenging adventure experiences.

And that is a lot to get out of the simple observation of the ebb and flow of our lives out there...

So, after these challenging days back here and those of island kayak adventuring out there, I am just watching the tide go out and sharing the moment with you.....

DSD

"Of Bamboo And Storms....."

"The bamboo, which gives way, survives a storm, while a brittle oak may be uprooted... In the adversity of life's storms, we should bend, but we need not break." Deng Ming-Dao

Such a simple, yet powerfully potent concept...
DSD

"Only Its' Eyes....."

There is a time of day... hours before first light, when adventurers - climbers in particular; rise to set out upon the earliest alpine start... These are hours of the deepest darkness; where the intense mystery and the quiet may close in upon you in either comfort or anxiousness...

On my solo scramble that particular very early day, I was following the old saying of adding time to your day by being earlier up; rather than hoping for extra hours at the end when energy and weather are more unpredictable... I was moving on the trail before three am, amidst that crispness and cold air the mountains are known for...

It was so very pitch black; such an intense quiet, only the crunch of my boots and uphill nature of my breathing was apparent...

Then... What I saw I was not sure; not sure at all... A sense of something, a glimmer of not one but two small points of light...

Just two small points of light - and then they blinked; closed for a short second and then turned and looked more directly, very intently, upon me...

I was no longer alone on that trail, maybe never was, but whatever was now sharing the path, of it all I could see were its eyes... only its eyes...

Eyes with a light behind them; reflecting an intelligence of another kind; wisdom of another nature. I do swear they shifted color ever so slightly as they watched me watching them...

After a few moments of quiet stillness my fears and anxieties diminished, were no longer as intense, and were replaced more now by curiosity and a feeling of kinship... It was a moment of reminder; of looking back to our ancient selves and where we have all come from... I was reminded too that our four legged fellow companions are always out there, we most often simply do not see them as they view us...

In a playful way as I have often done with my own furred companions, I made myself blink in a long, slow manner, as this is what many animals do when first meeting each other, deciding neither is a threat, and are then prepared to begin to trust...

And these two bight eyes blinked back just as slowly...

It was a connection; an understanding of sorts that I sense may have passed between us then... I moved further along the trail to see what would happen next, feeling clumsy in my movements and the noise I made... This creature moved along with me, yet only the eyes could I see, and it moved in total and absolute silence... We continued to share what I believe were a few more moments where each of us was wondering about the other... and then with a wisp of what may have been grey... it was gone...

Many say or write that the eyes tell all... When I looked into those eyes I saw our wild past. It affirmed for me yet again that we are not so far from our other family out in the wild places as we may think...

I will never forget those eyes.....

DSD

(The bottom image above is thanks to Blomquist, while I have misplaced my note regarding the top image.)

"There Can Be....."

"There can be no mountain without a valley, no wave without a trough, no rainbow without a storm." Grandfather, Mountain Elder

I will be posting some of my favorite Quotes on adversity this next while along with my usual weekly musings... It is never wasted effort during times like these to ponder things in different ways to gain more useful perspectives... That is what we adventurers are very good at!
DSD

"From Such A Perspective..."

I have always believed... that we have yet to truly understand the unique, powerful, and mysterious relationship we have to those who fly overhead...

Stephen Lyman wrote:"To the Winged Ones who see the larger picture from above".

Those of our winged family who have such a view of the world have much they can teach us...

I remember...Coastal kayaking among eagles young and old passing so closely by... A ridge route scramble, where quietly above us, maybe not noticed by all, was a great flight of wonders... Being solo on Banff's 3rd highest summit; higher than any mountain is sight, where my friend for the day was a single companionable bird...

I remember... Rafting the Grand; both in the midst of serious rapids and those quiet moments of floating and contemplation, when diving among us were winged creatures of to many varieties to count... There was a Columbia Icefields summit; where that magnificent creature of the air led the way... And there, flying overhead, on just a past adventure, we were once more sharing blue sky and even a more blue ocean with another of our wild place family out there... And yet again, during this season for climbing, after just a glimpse of a passing shadow, I waited to look up because I knew what I was wondering and hoping for... and was not disappointed...

There they were; not so far above, following our route - the mist in my eyes that moment from more than the cold...

A beautiful feather fell from the sky at some point that day and had landed near the summit cairn... While I didn't get a picture, it now rests with the register along with some small painted cobblestones...

I truly do believe we share a close relationship with the 'Winged Ones' that we do not fully understand yet... Scientists can't seem to agree on if we evolved some how from them; or maybe they have evolved further from us...

It does seem though, that if we could soar high above, especially during troubling times, and view the world from such a perspective, much would be seen differently by us on this great rock we all share.....

DSD

"Adventurers Don't Give Up....."

Adventurers don't give up...

We may change course, traverse around obstacles, maybe just back off and find another starting point sometimes...

We often choose different goals, frequently modify objectives, even set our focus upon another more attainable summit...

But adventurers don't give up...

We may try a hundred times, have to then try a dozen more, only to find just a few more efforts are still needed...

We attempt to understand things differently, we discover ways to use new eyes, we even create totally unusual means to get by out there...

Still, adventurers don't give up...

We often curse the conditions and weather, maybe batter ourselves against the elements, and at times we just can't seem to get ahead of the winds...

We do our best to plan and prepare, to temper and train our body and mind, and yet sometimes still no further ground is gained...

We may give in at moments, we ease off, we let go a bit, time out in ways, we may even quit for some intense brief moments...

We learn hard lessons, and then have to frustratingly learn them over again, and sometimes even more painfully yet again...

But adventurers don't give up...

We sometimes doubt, we often question ourselves, we usually feel anxiousness, and fears, and the occasional waning of confidence...

We make mistakes, have setbacks, even royally screw up...

Even still, adventurers don't give up...

We get injured, endure endless soreness and discomforts, feel physical, emotional, and spiritual pains...

We have to earn our way through tiring efforts, we shed tears and sweat, we go out as a group only to find conflict at times, we share with partners and may then go our separate ways, we head out solo and also might feel very lonely...

We complain, we grump, maybe even whine...

At times we lose our inspiration, certain moments undermine our level of enthusiasm, our dedication may even lessen when the distractions increase...

We get tired, we struggle, lose our way, get way off course, we fall, we flail, even mumble that we might have had enough...

But still again, adventurers don't give up...

We know... that if we go out long enough, and far enough, and high enough... we all will experience such trials many times over...

Then, when the years have passed and we ponder the lives out there we have lived, even with the inherent endless challenges...

We will still smile, and remember, and muse about how we have never truly, ever, given up...

We know in our hearts too that the wild places will never give up on us...

Then we'll turn once more into the wind and begin yet again because adventurers don't give up.....

DSD

"Of Wild Place Strongholds..."

"Somewhere among pines at sunset, or alone in a cool quiet of morning, perhaps with a friend on sunlit rock, or in some near illumination on a mountain... are strongholds of our lives...".

P. Ament

Of confidence and internal strengths...

Of bonds, of closeness, and fellowship...

The elements of these within us...

We often discover and share among the elements about us...

Our wild place refuge; our wild lands strongholds...

DSD
My appreciation to Mike Warren for the above images:http://flickr.com/photos/mike-warren/