Stop and Smell the Flowers
To say I’m an outdoor enthusiast is probably an understatement. Whether it’s trail running in the mountains of Colorado, trekking through Patagonia, or kayaking on remote lakes with my dog…I love the outdoors. I have long felt that there is no better way to clear your mind than to expose it to fresh open air (and I don’t mean in a shopping mall parking lot, unless that’s your jam). This could be as easy as sitting by a river and listening to the sounds of the water rushing, or smelling the pines in a breeze on a short hike. But sometimes it takes a little more, and that’s where I always like to challenge myself.
Recently I traveled with my friend Randi to Chile and Argentina for some exploring and trekking in Patagonia. We were surrounded by beauty everywhere we turned. As a travel photographer, I was determined to photograph one of the main attractions at sunrise, Mt. Fitz Roy, which is often not even visible considering the extreme weather conditions at that altitude. We grudgingly peeled ourselves out of bed at 2:30 am, and as over-served patrons stumbled out of the bars in the small town of El Chalten, we jostled around in our small but agile rental on a pothole ridden dirt road to the trailhead of Laguna de los Tres to see Mt. Fitz Roy up close. We would be hiking with headlamps in the night for four hours in prime puma territory. This terrified me, but I was willing to overcome that fear for the reward at the top, weather permitting.
I remember the silence of the night. There were strange noises along with creepy trees lit up by our headlamps in the dark. I began to think this was a terrible idea as we tried to find our way on the trail. But we trekked on, talking about nothing at the top of our lungs to scare off any potential curious Patagonia pumas. There was no human interaction for a few hours until we safely arrived at the Poincenot Base Camp where most trekkers were just awakening in their tents to hike the strenuous kilometer or so to the top. We already had 5 kilometers under our belt and were on a roll. So much so, that I couldn’t stop. I was hauling up that dark mountain. I had a selfish rhythm going and I was on a mission.
I decided to briefly pause to check on Randi, as I could no longer hear her poles hitting the rocks. I realized I had hiked right out of her view. As her dim headlamp came into view, I thought it would be polite to wait, but my adrenaline took over rationalization and I kept going up. And up. And up. It seemed never-ending, until it actually ended. I was the second to summit the lookout point with Randi and several others hikers joining us shortly after. Randi’s exhausted silence made me feel a bit of guilt for leaving her behind.
Mother Nature was on our side that morning. Minutes later one of the most spectacular sunrises burst over the horizon, adding so much color to the rocky towers they looked like they were on fire. Fitz Roy stood tall and powerful behind a turquoise blue lagoon. Camera shutters clicked away in the cold, windy morning, and all was right in the world. This was a moment I had dreamed of and here it was, right in front of my eyes.
After getting our fill, and nearly losing feeling in my fingertips from the cold, we began our very windy decent that almost knocked us off the trail. Not much later, I broke the silence of the trek with my apologies for leaving Randi behind in the scrambling to the summit. She replied, “To me, it’s not how fast I can get to the top, it’s about enjoying the journey. I want to stop and take it all in…smell the flowers, breathe in the fresh air, and take a look around.” My initial thought was to go on the defense and say, well I do that too, just quickly and efficiently. But her reply made me think about my continuous quests for the reward. In all of my treks I was racing to the end game, and not always stopping to smell the flowers along the way. I realized her words didn’t just pertain to these Patagonia treks, but also in everyday life. Sometimes we rush through our daily routine without taking the time to stop and enjoy the journey.
The hike down was long and gritty, but we tried to keep the adrenaline pumping through our bodies as we reached the rental car with our severe “noodle legs”. And as I sipped on a local ale at a patio in El Chalten after the long trek, I paused for a bit to look up at the beautiful land we had just immersed ourselves in, and thought…what an incredible journey this life really is.
***So my challenge to you today is simple. Take time out of your busy schedules to get out into nature just a bit, look around at this wonderful world we live in, stop and smell the flowers.
