Jagged spires
of rock guarding the
eastern horizon caught the red glow of a midsummer sunset. They gleamed
like spotlit temples against the azure sky. Darkness settled into the
valleys far below, but up there -- perched along the Continental Divide
at 10,000 feet -- we enjoyed several |
more hours of the evening's
afterglow.
We
were two dozen weary travelers camped in a
mountain meadow. Half of us were horses and mules. The rest -- five
women and seven men, some experienced riders and some not -- had come
together from across the country for five days of horsepacking. That
day we had touched wilderness.
"Our
lives are usually so planned that
there's hardly ever any surprise," said our guide and outfitter, Richard Clark. He
stood against the majestic backdrop of the Grand Tetons, a great bear
of a man with a soft voice. "The wilderness is a place where life isn't
so programmed. You can still feel a sense of risk." |