This weekend I was lucky enough to have a paid trip to Estes Park, Colorado for a scholarship retreat. It provided lots of opportunities to connect with nature, and shaped up to be a great thing to write a blog post about. Along with learning about leadership, playing hacky sack, and getting to know other college students from around the nation, I also managed to squeeze in some time in the wilderness. It is so hard trying to stay indoors when I am in a place as beautiful as Rocky Mountain National Park. I was itching for a hike and I was glad to hear that there were other scholars interested in the same thing.
With the conference already taking up a significant portion of the sleep schedule, I didn't think I'd be able to convince anyone to wake up with me for the sunrise, so for the first day I stuck close to the cabin and watched the sun rise on my own. There was quite a bit of fog, providing for a unique sunrise experience, with clouds catching many different colors from the sun. I sat on a rock for about an hour just taking it all in. A family of mule deer came up and stopped right in front of me to graze. With elk mating calls in the background, I was fully immersed in the wilderness, loving every second of it. I felt fulfilled and genuinely happy further proving that the mountains are indeed my happy place.
The second day I threw the idea of a morning hike out to the group, and surprisingly, I was not the only one crazy enough to wake up before 6 AM to go on a hike around the campgrounds. Still dark outside, we left the cabin to try a trail I had seen earlier. The stars were out on full display; it seemed like there were too many to be real, as if we were in a planetarium. The hike was steeper than expected, but even the people I had persuaded to accompany me didn't complain. We reached a well placed bench at the top, and watched a gorgeous sunrise. Seeing the sunrise in the mountains makes it hard to believe that it is the same sun that rises here in Texas. I was in awe watching the sun peek up over the ridge of mountains to the east. It is such a simple thing, but it feels magical. I think no matter how many sunrises I see it will never lose its splendor.
Therefore, the next day I did the same thing. This time I recruited more scholars and chose a different trail. We scaled a big boulder and parked at the top to watch the sunrise, which was more rewarding for me. I absolutely adore climbing. It presents a fun challenge with a clear goal: getting to the top. I'm not extremely technically sound, but climbing brings me so much joy. I try to find fun and creative ways to get up, giving a tougher challenge, yet I am wary of my limitations, making sure not to push the ticket too far and put myself in real danger. I tried to go up what I thought was the hardest path, and I soon found out that it was exactly that - I turned around rather than see myself fall. Even though that was frustrating, I still felt accomplished when I reached the top. It's hard to see the views from an elevated position and not feel amazed that you made it all the way from where you started. This was the best sunrise experience yet and I had just watched the same mountain ridge 3 days in a row - it never gets old.
This weekend in Estes Park was nothing short of refreshing. Just breathing the mountain air gave me a newfound sense of purpose. It made me that much more excited to move to Denver after graduation to go hiking as much as I can and watch many more sunrises.
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