Sub-Alpine Attitude

August 15, 2020August 12, 2020

There’s something special about a serene river surrounded by an immense meadow, surrounded by blue-gray mountains. Like Russian nesting dolls, the intricate scenery just keeps going. I was above 8,000 feet, in an area of Yosemite known as Tuolumne (too-all-uh-me) Meadows. It was an absolutely beautiful place, unlike anything I had yet seen in the mountains. I was now heading east through the Sierra Nevada range, ready to explore new regions. A stop at Tuolumne was a must.

The sun was already high in the sky, so I was looking to choose a hike that would afford me a little bit of shade. I decided to loop together Dog Lake with Lembert Dome, both highly-rated classics in my AllTrails app.* I set off with my trekking poles, happy to have them on the steeper part of the hike.

As I traipsed along the trail, my mind wandered as it typically does when I’m in nature. Sometimes I daydream about random things, other times I think more about my immediate surroundings. This time, I was reflecting upon my own attitude towards nature, or the settled thoughts/feelings I have for an area like this sub-alpine gem. Because I’ve spent so much time outside in various natural spaces around the world, I tend to notice little nuances and make connections across regions. My brain has become oriented to the natural environment in a way that allows me to appreciate and take-in so much more. An intern at Everglades National Park once worded it this way, “We have to teach ourselves to get rid of our city eyes. We have to learn to adjust how we see the natural world.”

There’s no doubt that spending time in nature is good for us. Yet if we only see the outdoors as a beneficial commodity, we miss out on so many spectacular things around us: the way the wind ripples the water surface, the smell of a sun-baked rock, the tiny rodents scooting around in the underbrush. I decided on all my hikes today, I would pay extra close attention to everything that was going on around me. I would look for tiny bugs, and trace bird calls. I would keep my sub-alpine attitude geared towards a relational outlook of the world around me.

Dog Lake was gorgeous. Lembert Dome awarded a phenomenal overlook. The meadow was alive, a living breathing thing. And me? My attitude was good… oh so good.