Well, my Colorado Trail hike ended a bit earlier than I had planned, but I’m really grateful that I was able to hike the first 252 miles. Saw my doctor today about my knee and will be starting physical therapy on Monday, as well as getting an x-ray to look for what is causing the night time pain. (I wake up at night with my knee locked and a stabbing pain).
I appreciate the chance to share the pictures and observations as I hiked. I’ve had a chance to look at the pics I took on my camera and will be uploading several of my favorites (all pics uploaded during the hike were taken on my phone).
I usually limit my blog comments to the actual hike. But all hikes are a chance for me to shed some of the forces that act on all of us daily, and focus more on what is essential. In a slight departure from my past practice, I’d like to share a couple of concerns from this hike.
The Rocky Mountains are beautiful beyond description. I am very grateful for each day that I was able to spend huffing and puffing up and down mountains. Also, there is reason for some concern. While I was on the trail the spill of heavy metals from the mine in Durango occurred. Colorado has thousands of mines that are inactive and full of contaminating heavy metals that have not been safely dealt with. After the profits are dug out of the mine, the mines are mothballed with inadequate protections—much like the sludge ponds of our coal-fired power plants. These are all ticking time bombs. Dams and barriers give way and the toxins and heavy metals affect us all.
In 252 miles, I saw 3 elk and a few bighorn sheep. And hundreds of cows. Even in the national forests I encountered cows. As more and more land and water is dedicated to raising cattle for meat and growing GMO grains/legumes to feed the cattle, there is less and less habitat for everything else. Deforestation, water use, ocean deadzones, desertification, toxic waste ponds are all part of the cattle industry. And it contributes more green house gases than all cars, trucks, buses, trains, ships, and planes combined. I am grateful for the opportunity to walk the mountains, but very concerned that we are willing to trade off our habitat for meat.
I am always pretty sure that I can’t convince anyone that a plant based diet is better for health, the environment, and animal cruelty—mainly because the evidence is already there for all to see. So I usually say very little. But after this hike, I wonder if it might be better to raise the profile a little. The earth is our home and we have nowhere to go once we ruin it, and we are ruining it.
There is a dominant view that the earth is here for us to exploit, and we have been following that path for a long time. Perhaps there is space for us to recognize our reliance on a regenerative earth and find more harmony with our home.
Mando 