dj.tigersprout's photoblog
Sensible Views from a High Plateau
Posted by dj.tigersprout (New York City, United States) on 10 September 2008 in Landscape & Rural and Portfolio.
ok, so i am sitting just before what could be described as the base of Blueberry Mountain. it had taken me an hour to get just this far and i hadn't even started climbing yet. i had 3 problems -- 2 quite serious and one quite superficial:
1. i was certainly in bear country, unprepared and quite possibly in danger
2. i was probably beginning to overheat and needed water badly
3. i was feeling stubborn and most definitely didn't want to leave without some documentary photos!!
my mind was racing -- all sorts of stories about gruesome encounters and surviving bear attacks filled my head -- but it eventually came down to this: some people were lucky and some people weren't. and of course, it was most often less about the people themselves and more about the situations they were in and the choices they made... after all, we all have to depart this world somehow, sometime... i figured that the chances that i would run into a mother bear and her cubs was quite low -- which also meant that i would most likely survive an encounter. i had been counseled that single bears most often looked up in interest and then headed in the opposite direction. so, using that rational, i then decided that most importantly i needed water, and i needed it right away... i felt alright overall, but the sun was really feeling quite strong and i didn't want to wait until it was too late -- i had been sweating almost continuously for about an hour and the back of my neck was really hot to the touch. so i would take my chances after all -- now i needed to make it to the next river!
i hopped up, threw my spare clothing over my shoulder and began trekking at as fast a trot as i could manage. the ground was uneven, soft, and wet, but the previous hour of plodding through it had given me some keen insight -- i just needed to tread as lightly as possible, the faster the pace the easier this was to do -- i just had to eye each step and hope for a good momentary placement. minutes passed, ground flashed by me, i was making some good progress -- spurred on by the hot streak of anxiety over encountering a bear... suddenly, a flash of foreboding struck me when the idea that even though i hadn't seen any sign of bears on the valley plains thus far, there might be a better chance of finding them closer to water!! eek!! that was almost enough to stop me dead in my tracks! but no, my dire thirst for water quickly prevailed and i continued on at the same feverish pace -- my camera bouncing on my chest, my left hand tightly grasping the slack straps so as not to get hit in the face. the nearing sound of rushing water was a beautiful joy to my ears and spirit -- it meant i could replenish my physical thirst, solving problem number #1, and also meant that i didn't have to turn around and head back to the other river that would now be 30 to 40 minutes behind me. what a relief -- i was really thirsty now!
i finally began to descend a slope towards the bright yellow bushes at the embankment. i dashed straight through the branches, impervious to the scratchy bark and clusters of leaves and nearly fell right into a 3 foot deep pool of water surrounded by large smooth granite stones. i caught myself just in time and hopped up and over onto solid rocky shore. i looked quickly up and downstream -- in all truthfulness, not very carefully. i was enchanted by the sweet sounds of running waters -- and ironically, i was feeling very animalistic at this point, so my human rational was completely gone. instead, i was on autopilot, running on a deeper, instinctual level and simply following the basic demands of my body. for a brief second, as i shielded my eyes from the bright glare of sunlight off the clear water, wild scenes of large herds of bison, or antelope stumbling into rivers in chaotic jumbles of hooves and horns played across the back of mind -- and i registered a gleaming natural epiphany -- so then this odd sensation i was experiencing was how it really was in nature for most mammals -- the constant and desperate need for water drove animals solo and in immense herds to the banks of rivers, streams and lakes, no matter the risk of danger -- no matter what terrible predator awaited them! in the end, simply everyone had to drink! and standing here, deep in the Brooks Range within Alaska's glorious Arctic Circle, completely alone in this isolated land of firey colors, i had just crossed this wondrously animalistic, universal 'truth'.
of course, as mind bending and special as it was, the thought was quickly obliterated as i threw my clothing down in a heap onto the rocks! holding back my wild craving for water one last time for rational to kick in -- i gently set down my camera on a flat and very dry surface, a good deal away from the water's edge... at last!!! i braced myself between rocks and began scooping water feverishly into my mouth with my right hand. i hadn't inspected the water, i hadn't inspected the place i was to drink -- i didn't even care -- there was ample water here and i was going to drink it til i couldn't drink any more -- by god!!
i had only got possibly 4 meager handfuls into my mouth (and mostly onto my chin) when i realized i had a big problem... my hand was simply freezing! it just wasn't going to work! my hand was already aching terribly...!!! i looked at it, confounded, what would i use if i wasn't going to use my hand? wasn't it the perfect tool? it only took a second before a second natural epiphany resounded brightly in my head: when an animal comes to a body of water to drink, it doesn't use it limbs, it sticks its head into the water -- mouth and nose first! i paused a moment, unbelieving, and then plunged my face directly into the river!! wow!! and to what success!!! freezing water swirled around my nostrils, but it didn't bother me one bit -- and my mouth drank easily, eagerly -- the cold temperatures causing no discomfort to my lips or tongue whatsoever.
glorious and miracle wielding moments passed: water was furiously consumed, my heart rate slowed, my body temperature rapidly dropped, my inner chaotic anxiety faded... and then all of a sudden, mouth, nose and chin dripping with ice-cold river water i became human again!! and what a scene! there i was, hunched over basically on all fours (for all you yoga lovers i had appropriated a very slack 'downward facing dog') face dripping and the world seemed so big around me! high above was the bright blue sky!! wow!! what i would have given to have seen myself from above -- the entire scene!! the frantic run to water, the crouching and the long intense drink! would it not have looked like pretty much any other mammal? in fact, i figured i probably had resembled a bear in some really strange and freakish way!! ;) i had a crazy laugh about that -- it was a blessedly needed laugh too! it certainly raised my spirits!!
i fell over onto my back and gazed at the sky -- what an amazing place! the water gleamed, the sun beamed, the clouds looked fluffier than ever... the colors were just radiant -- red, orange, yellow... i smacked my lips -- water had NEVER tasted better! ever!! what a amazing sensation! and strangely i no longer had any fear of encountering a bear. i sat up, gathered my belongings looked up at the towering flank of hill in front of me... i was back -- i was energized... i wanted pictures!!! i splashed happily back through the foliage and began climbing upwards, upwards. the sweating returned, but it was a normal sweat, a sweat of beautiful exertion. i drove forward, hearing my legs and lower back begin to wish for a rest -- i didn't stop -- i wanted height! my spirits soared and a gentle knowledge flowed through me from some portal that had probably never been open. i was alive -- and connected to this magical place. what had been so incredibly dire had suddenly become so sweet.
i finally came to a ridge of black granite stone a third of the way up the slope. what a view! i looked down over the way i had come -- nothing but flat plains for nearly as far as the eye could see! i could see the village rooftops, glaring in the bright morning sun -- i was truly far away! and it was amazing! i thought to myself -- this is why these people live here, they rejoice in the land, the mountains, the berries, they rejoice in the sky that brings them rain, snow and ice, they rejoice in the caribou and bears, in the wolves that roam these valleys -- this is how it has always been for them! i sat down, wiping fresh sweat from my brow. it didn't matter how much further i made it up the slope -- i had my wonderful views and i had had an amazing and life changing experience. it was only the morning of day 1 and i had already completely satisfied my inner goals for coming to this far away and exotic land -- well almost. i promptly set down my gear and immediately began composing shots. :D
all work protected by Creative Commons
