Friday, June 30, 2006

Once You Know You Can Never Go Back


Here is a photographic summary of my week on Grizzly Peak. I hope you enjoy.

I Heard Your Voice Through a Photograph

Another week gone, another post for you, the faithful reader. I had a great week on Grizzly Peak (13,427 ft.) with Central Church of Christ from Amarillo. I guided Central two years ago on Black Cloud and I was glad to have them again this year.

Grizzly is a very interesting mountain in that there is no unifying trail that runs from the trailhead to the summit like many mountains that we climb. Because of this, guiding on Grizzly is always an experience that requires my focus and attention at each moment during the hike towards the peak.

I finished reading Seymour Hersh's Chain of Command this week, which is a fascinating look into U.S. foreign policy since September 11th. Hersh's writing is perhaps the antithesis of Nathaniel Hawthorne's in that Hersh does not waste a word in his telling of events that affect the position of the United States in the global political maneuverings. The most compelling portion of the book is not Hersh's fervent reporting on events such as the Abu Gharib torture scandal and U.S.-Pakistani diplomacy but the vast array of sources that Hersh draws from for his work.

It may seem maddening to some that Hersh maintains the anonymity of his sources for a majority of his reporting but that practice enables him to amass a body of knowledge that would not be available if he demanded that all of his sources release their names along with their information.

The summer is almost halfway finished. There are times when it seems that the summer has flown by but they are accompanied by the thought that I have been here in Colorado longer than I can remember. I am continually thankful for the opportunity to stay connected those of you who read this blog. May God continue to bless each of you as you serve him this summer.

Saturday, June 24, 2006

True Love is Give and Take, True Love is Sacrifice

Congrats to Mr. Patrick Vincent for correctly naming "Fire and Rain" by James Taylor as the Friday Song of the Day.

I activated my Baylor email account yesterday. My new email address is Justin_Scott@baylor.edu. I am not discontinuing my ACU address yet, but I will be sure to notify all of you when I decide to do that.

My days off this summer are interesting combination of relaxation and experimentation. This afternoon we attempted to use Tyler's recently purchased Banshee River Board out on the old Arkansas. I use the word "attempted" because we never actually rode the board, but we did wade into the ice cold current time and time again in an ill-fated attempt to anchor the bungee cord under rocks in the middle of the river.The Banshee is either an abysmal failure or we are missing a very critical piece of the puzzle in setting up the entire enterprise.

It always very odd to come off of trail to see what has occurred in the news during the past week while I have been living in the wilderness. Last week as I was walking to the check-out counter at the local Evil Empire, I happened to glance over at the magazine counter where I saw last week's Time with Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi's face marked out with a giant red X. I must be living in an information vacuum when I learn of the week's most news-worthy story in the Wal-Mart checkout line.

Friday, June 23, 2006

I Walked Out This Morning and I Wrote Down This Song

After making all of you wait a week for pictures, here is a link to pictures from the week that I spent on Mt. Elbert with a group from Cabot, AR.

This week I decided that instead of providing writing a recap of the week when I returned from the trail I would take a short time each day to write down my thoughts so that they could be presented in a more authentic manner.

7:47 p.m. 6/19/06: We sit at devo tonight in a very beautiful setting. As I look to our west I see the sun setting over the Continental Divide. Snow still clings in large patches to the upper peaks. The creek that runs by the low camp on this mountain is at flood stage. As Tyler and I hiked back from moving the vehicles we stood at the base of the cliff where all of the water squeezes though a narrow chute that is choked with Class-5 whitewater. Even as I sit far away from the creek its roar still reaches my ears like the rumble of a distant train. This trip marks my 5th trip towards the top of Mt. Elbert via the Black Cloud trail. As I sit here, I remember trips with my mom and sister in 2000, Otter Creek in 2003, Central from Amarillo and Southern Hills in 2004, and now with Cabot, AR and the guys from Abilene in 2006. I cannot wait to see what the week holds…

7:07 p.m. 6/20/06: The journey to high camp today was an interesting one. This is the first time this summer that I have had a group really work and struggle together in order to make it to High Camp. Part of what makes me love this High Camp so much is the avalanche field that runs just west of camp. The appeal of the avalanche field is two-fold for me: 1. I am able to have tremendous views of La Plata Peak to the south across the valley and 2. I am able to view the growth of the Aspen trees that have sprouted in the field after the avalanche ran its natural course sometime in the mid to late 90’s. Watching these trees grow has become somewhat of a yearly pastime for me as I have climbed this mountain. The view looking out across the avalanche field is one of the mental snapshots that I will take with me long after I leave this ministry.

2:02 p.m. 6/21/06: A common response to complaints about Texas weather is to simply wait 5 minutes because it will change. The same axiom could be applied to weather in Colorado as well. With about 45 minutes left in solo time, we thought we were about to spend an afternoon in the tents as the heavens opened up with a gift of rain and sleet. As quickly as we had called everyone in from solo, the sun broke through the clouds long enough for a quick wash in the stream that runs near camp. Now, as I sit here it has begun to sleet once again…as soon as I head to the tent, put on my jacket and the pants and head down to the crew flies the rain has ceased once again. I’m not sure what to think about how closely God controls the weather, but I’m beginning to think that he has a sense of humor that enjoys seeing how quickly I can change in and out of my foul weather gear.

2:42 p.m. 6/22/06: Summit Day on the Black Cloud trail is always a difficult and challenging day. Today, we were not able to make it all the way to Elbert proper, but stopped short at South Elbert, which is a 14,000 ft. itself. One of the most difficult parts of this job is making calls on Summit Day. Even when I make what I believe is the right decision about whether or not to continue, it is hard to see the disappointment on the kids’ faces. Who knows? Maybe God is preparing me for future parenting through that lesson. Today marks the 1-month mark since I have seen Heather. Sometimes it seems shorter than that, but often it seems much longer. I miss her more each day and I cannot wait to see her at the end of the summer. Tomorrow, we hike down the Black Cloud trail to return to civilization. This week has not been an extraordinary one, but each day in God’s creation is filled with the promise of new discovery. May I never forget that.

Saturday, June 17, 2006

I Read Many Books About Heroes and Crooks and Learned Much From Both of Their Styles

One of my favorite parts about this job is that it is so much more than simply a “job”. For an entire summer, I get paid to backpack around some of the most beautiful country in the entire world (which is fantastic in and of itself), but more importantly I get to spend each week with people who are participating in a once in a lifetime experience.

On many an early summit morning, I have quoted a statistic to my bleary-eyed campers that may or may not be true. I tell them with absolute certainty that if they work themselves out of their stupor they will have the chance to join the 1% of the world that has ever stood on the summit of a mountain. If you asked me to verify that stat with empirical evidence, I would probably not be able to provide you with any definitive data, but the point remains, climbing mountains is a difficult and challenging experience that is not part of the world’s regular activities.

With all of that said, the true joy during my time here in Colorado has nothing to do with standing on the summit of a mountain 13,000-14,000 ft. in the azure blue sky. Instead, I am continually reminded that the secret to finding joy in life often has nothing to do with the destination but is all about how one enjoys the journey with its myriad twists and turns. As I told the group from the Southlake Blvd. Church last night, the most powerful memories that I will take away from our time together are not the 45 minutes that we spent on top of Mt. Ouray (13,971 ft.), but are the moments that I saw them become a living example of what the Christian community can be in its best moments.

Current Reading: Ghost Soldiers: The Forgotten Epic Story of World War II’s Most Dramatic Mission by Hampton Sides

I’m not really sure why I ordered so many books that deal with warfare and extreme environments this summer, but perhaps it has something to do with the fact that I am comforted by reading accounts of individuals who have survived in conditions that are much worse than the ones that I find myself in currently.

I am trying to hold to my current pace of reading at least one book per week while I am out on trail but a quick glance at my bookshelf indicates that I have some thick tomes ahead on the schedule this summer. Nonetheless, I am looking forward to Joe DiMaggio: the Hero’s Life by Richard Ben Cramer and Chain of Command: The Road from 9/11 to Abu Gharib by Seymour Hersh.

Hopefully, I will be able to post pictures from the past week on Mt. Ouray later tonight. To end this post, I would like to send a special message out to Mr. Austin Henley. Austin, you would be glad to know that I took care of young Carson Henley this week and he might be the funniest Henley that I have met so far, with no disrespect intended to yourself.

Sunday, June 11, 2006

So I'll Cruise Along Always Searchin' For Songs


With much thanks to Dr. Glenn Beasley for his photography work throughout the week, here are the photos from my first week on trail for the summer of 2006. Enjoy everyone.

Saturday, June 10, 2006

As a Dreamer of Dreams and a Travelin' Man, I Have Chalked Up Many a Mile

Congratulations to Mr. Joel Weckerly for correctly naming “Jealous Again” by the Black Crowes as a recent song of the day and also to Mr. Patrick Vincent for correctly naming “The General” by Dispatch as the Song of the Day from last Friday.

I had a great first week out on Mt. Shavano (14, 229 ft.) with a group from the East Brainerd Church of Christ in Chattanooga, TN. It is always fun to have a group on trail that has never experienced Wilderness Trek before because their eyes are always opened by things that I often take for granted. Much thanks to Dr. Glenn Beasley for his support on our trip as an adult sponsor from East Brainerd. Dr. Glenn took a great number of pictures during the trip and I hope to be able to post some of them in the coming days for your viewing pleasure.

You might notice in the aforementioned photos and from the title of my previous post that I am declaring this “The Summer of the Beard.” I caught a little bit of the bug during the Drive for Five, but this time the journey will not end in a disturbing mustache, but in two months away from a razor for my face. I will continue to shave my neck to avoid the development of what some might call a neck beard or a “neard.” I’ll try to provide weekly visual updates of my progress. Feel free to send samples of Rogaine to aid me in my quest.

Next week I am going to have a group from the Southlake Church of Christ in Southlake, TX. We will be climbing Mt. Ouray together. The only time that I have previously climbed Mt. Ouray was at the beginning of the 2004 summer but that trip was a memorable one. I had the group from the Impact Church in downtown Houston that featured a young man named Alex Gonzales who had probably watched a little too much “Chappelle Show”.

I say this because Mr. Gonzales constantly referred to himself in the third person as “Rick James.” For instance, he would say something along the lines of “Rick James is never cold,” “Rick James isn’t afraid of any bear”, and my personal favorite, “Rick James can’t get giardia.” I’m not sure how that last one turned out, but I do know that the dreaded “G” has brought a great number of people to their begging knees or at least to their nearest commode.

Quick Thoughts on a Saturday Night:
• There is something inherently enjoyable about reading Black Hawk Down in a Laundromat while listening to the Gladiator soundtrack on your iPod. Some of the people folding their clothes actually looked like members of the barbarian horde.
• I already miss good Mexican food.
• Henry Weinhard might just have made a deal with the devil when he developed his root beer recipe.
• Watermelon always tastes better when you have carried it up to high camp at 10,000 ft. It also tastes a lot better when you don’t have to hold it for 3 hours in an amphitheater.

Friday, June 2, 2006

He Grew a Beard As Soon As He Could To Cover the Scars on His Face

The calm before the storm has arrived. As I sit here in Bongo Billy’s Café in Salida, I am reflecting on the week that was and the summer that will be. I spent the past week with the rest of the Wilderness Trek Staff on Mount Antora and rafting on the Arkansas River. This was my 3rd time to summit Mt. Antora, but the first time that I have arrived at the top from the north approach.

If you want to see pictures from Staff Week you can find them here.

It is always a bit unnerving to step from the busyness that typifies the world that we inhabit into the surreal calm of the wilderness. Out there the only things that matter are the big things: thought, breath, sight, hearing, and belief. It has been my pleasure in the past week to spend ample time focusing on each of these tasks.

I am not sure of when I will receive my first group for the summer. It will either be tomorrow or Sunday, but I know that I am very excited to have been blessed with another summer to spend in this beautiful place that has changed me in such profound ways. I am sure that some of you reading this could probably share similar stories of how an experience at Trek, or the wilderness in general, has had a striking impact on the way that you see yourself and the way that you see God. It is my joy this summer to be in that kind of environment and I cannot wait to see what is coming down the road.

If you would like to write me this summer, my address here in Salida is:

Justin Scott
c/o Wilderness Expeditions
7870 W. Hwy 50
Salida, CO 81201

I would love to here from any of you that would like to write but I understand if you choose to communicate via phones or email.

Current Reading: Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War by Mark Bowden.

I was able to finish Hell or High Water this past week during my time on the trail and I was amazed to read Peter Heller’s account of traveling through some of the most raw and unforgiving wilderness that still exists in our world.

One of the most interesting elements of the story is the unnatural calm that the paddlers possessed in the face of water that would cause the rest of us to give up the ghost. Perhaps that is what makes someone a paragon of their craft: the ability to do the ordinary in extraordinary situations. The Spartans taught boys from a young age to hold rank in the phalanx in the midst of all hell breaking loose and NFL kickers are taught to put a leather ball between a pair of poles with tens of thousands of people screaming for their heads.

The true expert is able to maintain calm in these knee-buckling situations because that is all they know. The process of paddling through walls of water was nothing out of the ordinary for the men on the expedition down the Tsangpo and that is the only reason they were able to survive.