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It's not at all about the gear, but what this gear represents.
This pile of fancy things represents the beginning of an adventure - of remote places in parts of the world I've never seen before.
It's the continuation of a lifelong thread of humble exploration of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. This is a lifelong body of work and I'm just getting started.
In the wee hours of tomorrow morning, @as.pavkovich and I will embark on a 100 mile ski traverse of the Absaroka - Beartooth Ranges, which comprise the northeastern borders of Yellowstone National Park.
Along the way, we'll see firsthand the countless dead stands of whitebark pine, one of the first casualties of a changing climate in the GYE.
This expedition is not about the power of the human spirit, this is about the land and our relationship with it. This is about learning about a place that speaks for itself, but only to those who listen.
We must be their voice. Now, I go to learn, and to listen. See you on the other side!
PS- Sorry Paul, you can't come on this one. But he wanted to be in the photo and we couldn't say no.
In just a few days, we will begin our journey: a 10ish day, 100ish mile ski traverse of the northern Absaroka and Beartooth Ranges.
It feels chaotic and stressful to gather the gear, get work projects and client work all squared up, finish tiny house projects, so that I can be off the grid for nearly two weeks. Life is moving so fast right now, why am I adding this?
Because when we leave the trailhead, it will all fade away. When I go into the mountains, my life becomes a story. I can see the key moments, the challenges, the beauty. I can see clearly my place in the world of things.
There is a lot of noise in our modern lives. When I enter these wildlands, the noise goes away and I return home. I know my place in the world. I know where I belong. I know what is important.