Going Home

The mountains are calling and I must go.  -John Muir

Living in the city makes me ache for my mountain home.  I miss the ambient noise of rustling leaves, chirping crickets, cackling coyotes, and bugling elk that have given way to the honking horns, accelerating engines, and incessant chatter that now fill my ears.  I am lucky though that the mountains are so easily accessible, a privilege I exploit regularly.  However, when I was younger I resented the fact that I lacked the ability to ride my bike or walk down the street to a friend's house.  Now I appreciate the fact that riding a bike meant going down a steep hill decorated with rocks and trees and that walking was in fact a hike through pine forests occupied by squirrels, foxes, and hawks.  

I am sure that growing up in a mountain community supported my developing interest in biology.  It certainly provided me with more outdoor experiences than many children get to enjoy.  For example, Great Sand Dunes National Park is an amazing fusion of so many different landscapes that support an expanse of biodiversity.  Prairie, wetland, forest, sand dune, and mountain meet along this landscape.  The photograph above was taken from the top of the highest sand dune in the park towards the Sangre de Cristo mountain range, one of the two mountain ranges responsible for the formation of the dunes.

Though not a representation of the mountain range I call home, this image accurately depicts the dynamic beauty of Colorado.  It is the greatest state I have experienced yet in the continental United States and I have recently realized that it will probably be my permanent residence for the remainder of my life.  Each time I return to the mountains I can't help but look on the scene in front of me with overwhelming adoration.  These mountains are the bosom of mother earth and I feel that she is wrapping me up into a warm embrace to welcome me home.