Why mountains?

 I love mountains! To me, mountains evoke both grandness and awe as well as a sense of intimacy and ‘being held’. I love looking up at them and feeling small, and I love looking down from them and gaining new perspectives.

Looking up at the 1,000 steps Kokoda Track Memorial Walk 

Me and mountains go back a long way. I grew up in New Zealand and spent time in the Marlborough Sounds gazing up at a forested hill behind our batch, pock-marked with ferns and often shrouded in mist. I was so small in comparison, but nestled safe in our cottage, warm next to the fire.

Hill behind our batch (a yurt!) in the Marlborough Sounds

Hangin' by the creek near the yurt with my big brother

Another key moment was on a school field trip in about Grade 9 to Mt May, near Brisbane in Queensland. I had taken ownership of a hippie-era, earthy hooded coat from my dad and was discovering the nature loving part of myself. I remember waking early and walking away from my fellow, snoozing teenage campers to sit on a mossy log, alone, looking up at the mountain and ‘making friends with it’.

On this trip, we will visit many places with mountains! Yes, some of them are probably technically hills but same gist. The Japanese Alps, the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail, the Isle of Skye, The Trossachs, Big Bend National Park, Cusco, Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley, Patagonia. I cannot wait! And I am pre-emptively grateful for all the new views and vistas and the deep breaths I will take in their presence.