Taking a Break

 

Golden Lake in the Wind River Range of Wyoming
The Wind River Range, Wyoming

Dreams of a river
Full of trout,
And an alpine summit
Without a route;

Of slippery slopes
All clad in ice,
And trail suppers served
Without any rice;

There’s alpine tundra
Filled with flowers,
Lonely mountaintops
With red rocky towers;

Huge herds of Bison
Shake the ground,
And Mule Deer run
Without a sound;

A strong wind answers
With silent breath,
The persistent questions
Of life and death;

Bull Elk bugle
Their signalling call,
While Aspens brighten
A mountain fall;

There are spongy hummocks
Of wetland grass,
And clear blue lakes
As smooth as glass;

The horizon’s filled
With massive peaks,
Snow-melt fills
A maze of creeks;

Unknown trails
Are everywhere,
I wonder which
Will take me there;

There are boulder fields
And talus slopes,
Berry vines
And climbing ropes;

Happy faces
Wide open spaces,
A lot of places
With few human traces;

I open my eyes
And step back onto the trail.
I breathe in deep;
Choose where I’m going;
Smile; and exhale.

Audio:

Mountain climbers nearing the summit of a mountain

Author: David Appleton

I was born and raised in Texas and currently live in the Texas Hill Country, spent some 30 years living in the smack dab middle of Colorado, and have spent a lifetime adventuring and leading others on adventures in many parts of the wild world.

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