People love to explore and go on adventures to beautiful areas. It is a pastime I share as well being raised to love the outdoors through Boy Scouts as a kid. While there are many of us, there are few that really understand how much we can have an impact on the land around us while hiking, running, camping, etc…
The Bureau of Land Management does a really poor job of explaining why we have lotteries and permit systems. It is unfortunate because this faceless government institution serves an important part of our natural lands, keeping them intact during a popular time to be outside and going on adventures.
As wild as National Parks may be here in the USA it is a common misconception that these are true wilderness. We look at these treasures of our natural lands, seeing them as icons attracting millions of visitors each year. They are really just that though, natural theme parks with iconic locations meant to amuse visitors.
Sunrise. The place, not the time of day, since we actually arrived for a hike in during sunset. Teague was joining me on this photography adventure once again! Leaving the parking lot, the hike took us through a large meadow behind the lodges and up the ridge. It was steep, but it was nowhere near as steep as the hike in Paradise.