The Mountains Are Calling

LIFESTYLE

THE MOUNTAINS ARE CALLING

STORY BY KRYSTLE WATSON PHOTOS BY DCWATSON PHOTOGRAPHY

The mountains are every bit as alive as we are. If you don’t believe me, find yourself a dirt road, leave civilization behind, and seek out a place of solitude, serenity, and just LISTEN. Listen to the sounds of life; a squirrel gathering for its fall harvest, or the wind as it whispers through the tops of the trees. Take note of the sounds of nature without traffic, people, or factories.

The mountains are calling. . . . Every drive, hike, or venture through the woods is such a unique experience. Constant change, new sounds, new sights, new smells. . . . The mountains are calling. . . .

A green meadow surrounded by tall trees, giving a sense of privacy and protection from the rest of the world. Watch as a doe passes through with her fawns, or a fox readies himself for his next pounce. A creek runs with the purest, clear and cold water, filtered by nature, weaving through and meandering its way across the landscape, bringing nourishment to the land and the animals; a necessity for sustaining life. Nothing beats the magnificent feeling of awe when standing on a tall peak, the sunshine on your shoulders, a light breeze of fresh, mountain air; taking in rows upon rows of peaks, and ridges stretching for miles, as far as the eye can see. . . . The mountains are calling. . . .

To the Mountains I Go

There is something to be said for time spent in the mountains. The feeling of something ancient, something magical, and pure. Many books and novels revolve their landscape around the mountains or use them as a significant role for a journey, as a stronghold for the characters, or a mysterious venture into the unknown. Films bring a sense of personification to the geological features and trees, as if they hold some sort of knowledge, or secrets of the past. As they rise high above land, looking down on lower earth and its creatures, they resemble giant protectors, shielding us from the elements, protecting us from what is “beyond.” Venture out to them and be humbled by a force of nature that no man could ever tame.

There are deep rooted symbolic beliefs, myths, and legends originating way back in time, and some still carry on today. Mt. Olympus is most famously known as the home of the Greek gods, the site of the throne of Zeus, and the place where the Titans were defeated and sent to Tartarus. To set foot upon Mt. Olympus, you must be a god, and in the time of the Ancient Greeks, no mortals dared to test their feeble human strength against it. Many cultures consider the mountains to be sacred, the closest place one can get to the sky realm or the heavens, thus embarking upon a journey to achieve enlightenment and spiritual awakening. Many Native American tribes believe that powerful spirits lived in the mountains, most oftentimes malevolent in nature, paving the way for stories telling of forbidden lands. In the Bible, Mount Sinai is most famous as the place that God called Moses to receive the Ten Commandments. Mountains represent hundreds of places, events, and phases in our lives, physically and metaphorically. For many, mountains symbolize a journey, physical, mental, and spiritual. They also represent strength, growth, and the overcoming of obstacles. They are a source of majestic beauty, wonder, and inspiration. The mountains, they are calling. . . .

Mountains cover twenty-five percent of Earth’s land mass. From the Cascades on the West Coast, over the Rockies and on to the Smoky Mountains in the east, these geological features are found in almost every state across the country. Every mountain range creates its own diverse set of climates, provides shelter to different species of plant and animal life, and holds its own hidden treasures. Being in the rural real estate industry as a part of LandLeader.com, our brokers have the honor of being able to frequent this type of terrain. We pride ourselves in being stewards of the land, and with that comes the responsibility to have the knowledge, to educate others, and to demonstrate respect when partaking in recreation, hunting, or farming across such beautiful terra firma.

No matter where my travels take me, I always feel a sense of yearning, a need to be in, or in sight of, the mountains. A feeling of wonder always settles itself into my brain, with questions formed from curiosity: What is beyond that ridge? What is in the bottom of that ravine? How was this rock formed? The amount of exploration and mental stimulation that can be found is enigmatic. Hours can be spent exploring, hiking, driving, or just sitting, without the need for words. A feeling of peace envelops; time slows to a crawl. Phillip Connors sums it up with his quote “The greatest gift of life on the mountain is time. Time to think or not think, read or not read, scribble or not scribble—to sleep and cook and walk in the woods, to sit and stare at the shapes of the hills.”

Whatever your beliefs, upbringing, or experiences may be, spending a day amongst these wonders of nature leaves an imprint on your soul. Photographers capture the essence in their creative compositions. Hikers breathe in the smell of oxygen-rich air, cleansed by the trees that cover the hills before them. Adventurers revel in the discoveries and explorations of the unknown, pushing the limits and boundaries set by those before them. Mountains have a deep connection in the earth, and perhaps an even deeper one into our souls.

As John Muir said, “The mountains are calling, and I must go.”

To the mountains I go. °