It was the summer of my sophomore year of high school that I discovered one of my favorite places on earth. That place was Mammoth Lakes, California. I came to discover this place through my other great love, running. Every summer my high school cross country team would do a week long running camp in Mammoth and my sophomore year was the first year I went. It didn't take long for the place to etch itself onto my heart.
Running between the peaks of the Eastern Sierras brought out something in me; a certain energy and liveliness that animated my actions for sometime after I left. It quickly became the cure to a condition I call the 'summer slump,' the period in the middle of summer where between the heat, repetitive runs, and solo running, training starts to become a drag and it becomes harder and harder to pick up the pace. Mammoth, and to a lesser extent Tahoe, cure me of that affliction and give me a fresh determination to tackle the season ahead.
I've always had a love for natural spaces; a love I credit to a childhood spent traveling to various national parks across the West. It didn't take much for me to develop a deep-seated affection for the imposing majesty of the granite peaks that make up the Sierras or the emerald expanse of the pine forests and the sapphire sheen of the secluded alpine lakes that enhance them. I can see now very clearly why John Muir fell in love with the mountains and spent his life trying to preserve them and to spread that love to others. In a similar vein, whether hiking or running the trails or just gazing out the window, I've found it hard not to be in awe at the raw power of the geologic and volcanic forces that shaped these mountains. To be confronted with the evidence of such power is a humbling experience and certainly does wonders at helping put your life into perspective.
But it is not just the running or the natural splendor the keeps me coming back year after year. Part of what attracts me to coming back is the sheer number of positive memories I've managed to make here. Whether coming up with my high school or college running teams, or more recently my family, I've always been able to count on having a good time. It doesn't matter if I'm rope swinging with my college team, soaking in a hot spring with my high school team, or taking a scenic hike with my family, I'm always enjoying myself surrounded by the people who matter most in my life.
What started simply as a summer running camp quickly turned into one of the great loves of my life. It's made me a firm believer in the restorative properties of nature on the spirit and given me a way to connect with those closest to me. The Sierra Nevada Mountains have firmly affixed themselves in my heart and I wouldn't have it any other way. So now I must leave you, for I hear the mountains calling me again, and I must go.