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I stood at the observation
point on the balcony at the Visitor Center overlooking the
great Mendenhall Glacier at Juneau, Alaska. Before me was
a beautiful scene. The glacier reflected in the large
lake. Ooh, ahh. Both to the left and right were mountains.
It was a beautiful clear day. I watched the people too,
walking around taking photos, and looking at the scenery
before us and at the displays in the center, just a few
feet away.
A constant roar came from a
tall and full waterfall to the right of the glacier. Once,
the glacier covered the waterfall. No one was aware of its
presence before the glacier receded. I looked closer at
the base of the waterfall. There seemed to be a sandbar
and people walking on it. With my binoculars I traced the
path they must have taken below me. It crossed large
sandbars separated by streams and covered with bushes. I
found the general location of the beginning of the path. A
ranger told me that there was a way to get out there, but
it wasn't official, and that it was a little steep at one
point. I decided that the best way to see such a beautiful
place was up close, so I decided to try it. My mom and my
husband were along with me. I told them I wanted to try
the path, and asked if they wouldn't mind just hanging
around waiting for me since they didn't want to join me.
Into the bushes I went.
Immediately, I had to scramble along steep wet slate under
the cover of brush. After following some wrong trails and
trying again, I found myself in the large bush-covered
sandy area heading towards the waterfall. I jumped little
streams and plotted my course across to my goal. My last
obstacles were climbing a large rock, and then traversing
a 20 ft. wide stream dotted with well-placed stepping
stones.
I walked right up to the
roaring waterfall, and even climbed up along side it a
ways on large rocks. Walking away from the waterfall I
encountered a large cloud of mist that emanated from its
base. I walked out along the sandbar towards the center of
the lake and found a large rock to sit on. I had a snack,
enjoying being present in this amazing location --
surrounded by the lake and flanked by a glacier, a grand
waterfall and mountains. I met people too. Some kids were
climbing up much higher than I had on the rocks. A
gentleman from Germany took my photo, and I took a photo
of two girls out on their own adventure.
After an hour of 'hanging
around,' I turned back. I crossed the creek, climbed the
rock, and then looked for hikers emerging from the bushes
to find the best path back. A couple times I had to stop
and wait for new hikers so I could find the path again.
The sun was setting, the floating icebergs were glimmering
on the lake, and I enjoyed every moment of delay.
My entire trek took about
two hours -- worth every moment. My husband and my mom
were very understanding and said they enjoyed the visitor
center and the scenery (which included me through the
telescope!) I'm glad I had the courage to ask for that
time. It would have been easy just to do the scheduled
tour, and to take no risks. William Shedd once said, 'A
ship in the harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are
built for.' I find that when I go further, it makes all
the difference. It creates treasured memories.
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About
The Author
Paths
began to beckon Theresa when she was 12,
visiting the Bridger Wilderness in
Wyoming. Walking, dancing, and movement
are a part of her, nourished by John
Denver*s musical challenge for her to
*fly.* Join her *walking with women* Life
Discovery Tours.
Learn more
about Theresa Gabriel - Women Summit LLC
http://www.womensummit.com
- Life Discovery Tours, Women*s Retreats |
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