AND Michael's hike notes!
Sweat pouring down from your skin
Furious winds blowing at your face
Causing the sweat to chill your outside
On the inside
Muscles are still pumping
And blood is still bubbling
Your legs become hot and fiery gasping for air
Your throat is hot and parched
When you breathe in the cold air
Cuts your throat like a hot knife in butter.
With every breath a cloud of
Hot smoke is left
Hot like a dragon’s fire
The life of your legs drains out with every step you take
Your feet, once numb from the cold, heat up slowly
As you keep hiking the trail.
Zack
12/16/01
King of nature,
You stand in eternity,
unmoving surrounded by your palace
watching
the tragic self destruction of the human race
from a distance.
Watching them send billowing clouds of poison into the
air they breathe, it is as if they are calling for death.
Even I can see this as I stand with you
looking out over your palace
to the desecrated kingdom that used to belong to you.
I wonder what it used to look like when
you were younger, your plush green kingdom
extending to no limits
without the jagged metallic Grey plague
Infiltrating your domain.
I often wonder how I feel to you
knowing that
I am one of them,
one of the only creatures on earth
Who have brought murder and mayhem upon their very
Creator and sole keeper of life.
I leave a trail of icy sweat, poisoned
by the laziness of mankind.
I struggle to reach your top as the toxins drip from my body
and seep in through your skin
to be purified in your belly, washing over
countless hidden treasures too powerful for humans.
As I stand at your summit
I can feel the harness of energy shooting from your core
I am engulfed in a moment of crystal clear peace.
Max
12/16/01
Harriman State Park
This is my report for the New York Hike on the 15th of December.
We took the train up north to an area called BEAR Mountain. I think it's called that because the group of mountains looks like a bear resting.
We began at the parking lot and began walking to the TRAil after a while we were in total silence, no car noise or trains. Just us breathing and walking and joking around.
We mad pace (we hiked fast). Once we got to the foot of a mountain called Bald Mountain we knew it was a very steep climb, but with the meandering trail it was easy. Along the way up we saw some amazing views of the mountain-side forest.
The day was cool, about 46F. The wind made it feel much colder though.
Near top of the Mountain the wind seriously picked up and it foiled our plans to eat lunch there, because if we stopped for too long, the cold wind would freeze our fingers off (joke).
We then decided to keep going and accompany the Overnighters to their "shelter" on another mountain. On our way over we could see New York City (about 50 miles, 80 km away). I was vry excited because that was the first time could see the city form the Highlands. It was a great view, even if part of the trademark skyline was missng.
At the end of it all we had climbed up and down 3 mountains. The descent to the parking lot was very quick and exhausting. We did not take a break for over 45 minutes ( i think).
My character is one that complains a lot, but that's how I get through things I guess. At the end of it I was very glad to have hiked all te tat i was only pryched-up (Michael, what does this mean?) for about 2/3 of the distance we covered. But it's okay that I pushed my self a little more, it was an acomplishment.
We didn't see any animals, only fungus, from Fairy Rings, to those large things that grow on trees... We saw a group of Warblers (birds) combing the forest canopy for food. and i saw a Raptor of some kind high up in the sky interacting with a group of Ravens.
We were acompanied by Jim (a founder of YC) and Charlie (not sure what he does, but he is very knowledgable on geolology and the forest and hiking) and Charlotte (she made me laugh the entire time).
Also there was Alvaro, Hans, Xiomar and Max with his little Bro' Zack.
It was a great hike can't wait for the next one.
MichaelGonzalez
New York City
YouthCaN