Kass Hardy looking down Glacier NP's Belly River Valley
I met Kass Hardy, coordinator of Galcier National Park’s centennial celebration, last year in a whirlwind tour of the park: a crowd of journalists, a guy in a bear suit, a couple of half-naked ballet dancers, and a few blissful backcoutry days that we spent in the Belly River. In addition to the preview that she offered of the centennial celebration festivities that are in full swing at the park right now (and will run through the end of the year) Kass instilled in me a sense of awe and wonder of the park itself. It’s an awe and wonder that she has an abundance of herself. In addition to soaking up every minute of her eight-plus years at the park, she’s committed to spending 1/3 of this year–100 days, to be exact–outside. From the sound of her blog, she’s doing it. It’s inspiring me to think about a commitment I could make to the outdoors. Any ideas?
Kristy,
This is completely doable. I’ve had many “100 days outside” years. 100 days snowboarding on ski patrol, where I lived in my car at the base of the mountain, and slept under the stars and watched as the fog on my window from my breathing added a layer of frost to the inside of my Subaru. 300 days outside as an Ouward Bound instructor in Florida, sealing my tent from the mosquitoes, sleeping on top of my sleeping bag to escape the heat. 100 plus days a year for years as a professional guide. In the backcountry around the Appalachian Trail, along a stream, deep in the rhododendron, using just a tarp, breathing calmly as you just surrender to the feel of fat centipedes and other bugs crawling over you as you sleep, small rivers of water running around your Thermarest as it thunders, counting one-one thousands in your sleep, crouching into lightening drill when the “Booms’ sound too close together. On the banks of the Colorado River, a strangely flooded version of the desert, where scorpions, tarantulas, and bats are suddenly beautiful because they are so rare. The Joshua Tree desert, hiking across the night, guided by Scorpio or Orion, depending on the time of year, where your shadow falls longer at night, under the moon, than during the day.
Sounds great, doesn’t it?
May you spend all the days outside that you dream of..(for me, a “day outside” doesn’t really count unless I’m actually sleeping outside)
KAKI