Tuesday, April 19, 2016

The Warm Heart

The Warm Heart-
So I read recently a story about Lord Horatio Nelson and in this story he was standing on the quarterdeck of his ship during a storm without any kind of coat to shield him from the weather. Now when his midshipman came and tried to give him a slicker he refused saying "my love for queen and country keeps me warm enough". Now when i first read this i kind of chuckled thinking hes just saying that because hes this great war hero and he has an image to maintain but then i read and learned more about the man and what i learned was very interesting. At the end of my readings i came to the conclusion that Lord Nelson wasn't really full of it, i felt that he said this because of a deep burning passion towards his country and a all encompassing love of the sea. Because of these two things he truly felt a warmth when he had the chance to display his passion and love. Now before you lose interest and start thinking what does this have to do with the outdoors just hang in there its getting better i promise.
So this past weekend I had the chance to go camping in the Black Elk Wilderness of South Dakota which reminds one more of Emyn Muil from the Lord of the Rings than of a South Dakota landscape but this is where i ended up. Now going into this trip i knew 3 things: 1. it was going to be raining when i got there 2. that it was going to get very cold in the night and 3. that when temps reach a certain degree rain turns to snow. So needless to say i was a little hesitant to venture out but was determined to test my gear and maybe myself as well. So after a very long and cold night learning that hammocks might not be the best shelter in the cold i wake up just as it starts getting light out. Now in that moment as i peer outside my brain registers 2 things 1. that there's about an inch of beautiful snow and 2. that i'm no longer cold. Now this lasted for only a brief moment but in that moment i realized what Lord Nelson was speaking of. See very few things in my life have i been more passionate about than i have for the outdoors and its wandering. I have loved a ridge line framed by a sunset for just simply being there and sharing that beautiful view with me more than a good many people who have stepped in and out of my life. In the end it was this passion and love that decided to show up and warm my heart on that cold morning, reminding me that nothing beats doing what you love!
So I guess the point of this little snippet is to encourage you to seek out the "ridge line"  that warms your heart, those vivacious excursions  that prick your soul and make you feel more human and alive than any amount of likes on your social media page. Seek out the battle that each and every human wants and desires deep down, the battle that will tell one his or her true worth. The fight where the only challenger is the wild and the ref is God and His creation. Seek out the answers that can only be discovered in a valley with a river running through it or on by seeing whats on the other side of that peak. The original outdoors man said it best in Matthew 7:7 "Seek and ye shall find...". Get out there, warm your heart and seek the wild.
thanks for reading
Luke
"There's no better companion than the trail. It doesn't care what your reasons for visiting are. It gladly waits and gives generously to those who seek it. It can serve as confidant, counselor and ferocious teacher all at the same time. The trail overflows with discovery, breakthroughs and epiphanies not the least of which is the simple feeling of freedom"

Tuesday, April 12, 2016

A easy skill to learn!

Circumspect- To be watchful and aware of your surroundings.
This was a word that was described to me as a young man in church actually. It was used in reference to always walking with your head on a swivel, always turning your body to be able to see all that was around you. As i got older and started venturing into the outdoors more and more I found that this concept of walking circumspectly was one that i could also apply to my backpacking life! I began learning to trust my feet and bringing my gaze up from the ground to the scenic views around me. I also began noticing more safety hazards and potentially dangerous scenarios before they could materialize. I credit this new mindset for keeping me in the outdoors, when there were so many distractions and things that tempted my friends and I to not venture out, I was drawn back again and again because i had learned how to truly see the outdoors in its stunning entirety.
So for years i had the opportunity to sort of develope this viewing habit, knowing what sounds in the woods meant animal or human, noticing cloud patterns and the weather that tended to accompany them and how to analize campsites for potential hazzards and so on. These skills began to develope more and more and then one day i had the opportunity to begin to share them with others. At Philmont Scout Ranch, heaven on earth to many, you have thousands upon thousands of young men and women traveling through this beautiful landscape every summer. Yet when they get home and their moms would ask them what all they saw many would reply "well i saw timmys buff and joeys kelty, and dads keens". going through a whole week of trekking and only seeing the back of the person in front of them. It was here that i realized that so many of our youth don't know how to be aware of their surroundings. They don't know how to trust their feet and raise their gaze. I can t tell you how many times i have gone out and set up my broght colored hammock on the side of a popular trail on the weekend and sat there and watched as kid after kid walks right by without seeing me. how does this happen?  They don't know how to walk quietly to be able to catch that elk crossing the trail or the bear eating berries. They arn't aware that in many regions the woods that they are hiking through could burn down within the next year or weeks and to enjoy the view, to soak it in cause they could be the last to see it in such splendor. They don't walk circumspectly.
So how do you make someone more aware? Do you stop them everytime you see something that they should have seen? Do you tell them to walk slower or to spread out more? Well as with so many things in the outdoors i let the woods and the mountains do most of the talking. My favorite plan of action is to keep my eyes out for a really great vista through the woods something you really only can catch just a glimpse of and i call everyone back to look at this view. Now i tell them that these little glimpses are the real gems of a hike, these are the views and moments that you'll truely remember. A moment you might not share with anyone else. A moment just for you. And then I encourage them to seek out these moments that the wild has many things to offer each and every person they just have to be looking for it!
So these are the things that I try and teach, this act of viewing deliberatly, on purpose if you will. I try an teach it to as many of the younger generation as i can and am writing this to hopefully encourage those of you with that indefatigable spirit of adventure that undying love for the outdoors to pass this simple lesson on when you get the chance. Lets teach the next generation how to  be aware of their surroundings, how to look for the little things that make each and every hike unique and great! Lets teach them how to trust their feet and raise their gaze!
Thanks for reading
Seek the Wild
Luke