There are sheep in this picture. A ewe and yearling at over 400 yards.
Our last night in the mountains we were witnesses to a a rare treat of alpenglow light from the final rays of the sun. It was a good ending to a rugged adventure.
Though we didn't take a sheep, we saw some magnificent country. And any extended stay in the mountains changes you for the better. I for one returned a little worn around the edges but mentally refreshed; my mind full alpenglow, the popping and cracking of glaciers, the groaning peace of the peaks. Several days were spent weathered into our tents. With no electronics, and only a small notebook I was subjected to a rare forced dose of reflection. Below are a few excerpts from my field notes:
8/9/15 After fighting our way through thick brush for perhaps several hours, to arrive not in our base camp location but on a mountainside with no water; I understand vividly King David's desperation when he writes "as the deer pants for the water so my soul longs for you." In remote high country, shelter and water are so important: easily the difference between misery and enjoyment, and in the wort case a matter of survival. In the same way I pray that relationship with my God is as important to me as finding water in the high country wilderness. Just as water is critical for physical survival, community with the creator is equally critical to spiritual survival.
8/10/15 Opening day. Today Pete lost his glasses. Prayed that we'd find them as they were critical to our mission. We looked and eventually found them among the rocks of a ridge! Later a dazzling rainbow appeared in one of the valleys we past. I thought of how the Lord promised Noah that never again would he flood the whole earth. All of God's promises are sustained or fulfilled. He never leaves nor forsakes, not even a man in the mountains who needs to find his lost glasses!
8/11/15 Though many factors have gone differently than what we planned, the Lord satisfies our desire to see his wonders and live a life sustained (more obviously than normal) by him in a more raw and rugged way. At all times we live and move and have our being by the Word of God, but in day to day life this fact is lost in the clutter. In the mountains often our best plans are out maneuvered by nature, or our endurance of body or mind is pushed to the brink. This is when the Lord's provision is obvious, probably because we are forced to ask for mercies that are taken for granted in modern life. "Thank you Lord for a dry tent, a hot drink and meal, good boots, good friends and a wonderful family to long for."
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