Inspirational and Cathartic Hike in the time of Pandemic
Broken Top. A craggy mountain in the Cascades Range. It’s Bob’s favorite place in the whole world, he says. Particularly the spot he calls “the crater". Specifically, it’s the center of the mountain—the spot it erupted, about 100,000 years ago. The Crook Glacier is in there. When he arrives up there, he says it’s like a cathedral, the surrounding crags and pinnacles are natural spires. He says it feels small, even though this rangy, rocky, mountainous area is large. It’s a spiritual place for him.
He’s only been there by himself, and he really wanted me to see it with him. We’ve been up and around Broken Top several times over the 16 years we’ve owned our home in Bend, but I haven’t been in awhile. Yesterday we went on a spectacular hike. 12 miles altogether, about a 2000 foot elevation gain. Started at 6150 ft, and up to around 8000! The thin air definitely effected me— a couple of times I felt light-headed, and I had to be careful standing up too quickly!
Amidst all the turmoil, sickness, death and devastation our whole world is experiencing right now, I am incredibly fortunate. While my mom and her neighbors were evacuated, because of fires, from their homes in Vacaville, California, safely sheltering in a relative’s home in Davis, Bob and I were up in pristine clear Central Oregon air, amazingly spared from smoke and fire—for now. To be out in the “wilderness” luckily only about 40 minutes from our home, was wonderful.
I had an unexpectedly cathartic and inspirational day. Here are photos to share the beauty.
That’s where we’re going! Might look a bit desolate, but it’s gonna be magical to us.
The striations of this mountain up close and personal inspire me. We can see the silhouette of these craggy peaks from our kitchen window!
Resting comfortably at lunchtime. Mt. Bachelor is the peak behind me.
Cool to find lush green moss in this arid area.
Inside the crater. Melting water from the glacier starts here and flows over the precipice, to create the stream we were hiking along.
The Crook Glacier. Much smaller than Bob has found in previous years. The spires that create the cathedral-like feeling Bob gets when he’s here.
Up close and personal! The striations! What a geological wonder. Yeah, I’m a rock nerd, but anyone can agree this is beautiful.
Naturally occurring mosaic composition! These rocks down to little pebbles are artfully placed there each year by flowing, melting snows. At first we thought humans might have intervened to place the little stones on top of the larger ones, but then realized— this was everywhere! Nature in action.
This was my end of the line. At this point I realized it wasn’t wise of me to keep scrambling up the rocks you see behind me. I let Bob go up to the crater while I rested and reflected on what I had accomplished.
