A Poem
I am just a traveler.
Athletic but not an athlete,
supported by friends and family,
not sponsored,
no following.
I am not the North Face.
Personal exploration to places well traveled,
not discovering.
Expeditions in day hikes and long distance trails.
not the Pacific Crest, not that long.
Not arctic crossings,
not great heights,
no first ascents.
I long for mountains,
I am on the North Face of none.
I long to paddle the inside passage,
I have no partner.
This is not a holiday,
this travel requires a skill set, yes:
navigation, adaptability, observation, intuition.
Problem solving, community building,
trust.
Trust in self, trust in the unknown.
But nothing technical,
no cams or crampons,
not even rope.
I long to promote into the technical,
to bridge into exploration.
Traveler to explorer.
I long to hike the Grand Himalayan trail,
the high altitude traverse.
I have not the skills, yet.
Avalanches scare me.
I find work, more often it finds me,
not a Nat Geo fellow,
no grants.
Self funded.
I am adventurous and I adventure,
and I am an amateur.
Just a traveler, for four years,
for travel sake, to see.