Christa

There’s a beauty in nature that seems almost too vast to explain to others. In Southern California we have beaches that are 2 hours away, and Big Bear the same distance. I’ve found that the place with beauty so astounding to me is much farther away, where the air is clean and the beauty is insurmountable. This past summer in the beginning of June, I went camping for the 2nd time in the Sierra Mountains. The drive there was 5 hours of a mostly desolate road full of desert the first half of the trip, and pastures filled with cows and horses the second. The sky was clear, which seemed an almost foreign aspect to behold considering the mountains we see in our backyard everyday seem to be filled with a constant grey haze. As we got closer to our campsite the familiar anticipation I felt all year returned, it was finally the day I have looked forward to since I got home from our last trip. June Lake is a place unlike any other that I’ve been too, its lakes are a dark navy with little white peaks, the mountains jagged with waterfalls sporadically throughout. On the road in, it was nearing dusk when we saw deer on the sides of the road, acting almost like greeters. Passing through the town full of gift shops and coffee shops I realized with the windows rolled down that, it was much colder than last July. Smoky skies and cold winds made white waves roll on the lake's surface disrupting the calm water I was expecting. The prospect of sleeping in tents in such weather made some weary, yet I couldn’t help but be full of excitement. After living in Southern California my whole life, the idea of having any sort of ‘cold’ weather made me brazen enough to gladly stay outside and not move to the Jeep. That first night, much like the rest had an average temperature of º35 with winds rocking the tent back and forth and water clinging to the red material of our tent. Nights were almost completely obscure, save for the occasional light of the moon peeking through the clouds. Animals rustled in the bushes and the ground squirrels ran across the meadow close to our tent. By morning the chill in the air still remained and the wind still blew in steady gusts. We lacked any set plans for the duration of our trip, leaving us free to do what we wished with our days. The boys fished from early dawn till the afternoon, while the rest of us lazed around the campsite reading and occasionally walking around the campgrounds. I can still smell the smoke from the campfire and hear the remnants of the guitar playing softly in the background from our evening dinners. One morning we decided that we would visit Yosemite National Park seeing as my sisters never been. Now if you’ve ever gone to Yosemite through Tioga pass you’ll know that some parts of the road seem like an imminent fall to the ground thousands of feet below. Now add to that, actual snow along the road and the fog that almost completely blocks out any visibility of cars in front of you, it was a bit daunting. After a certain point, we’d passed through the gate and the fog cleared to misty mountains with white peak tops. Then after driving through the road full of tall trees we could see Half Dome, and I remember thinking that this must be what home felt like. The prospect of being around a place that I knew to have so much beauty was poignant. It occurred to me that this anticipation I’ve felt all year, just to come back to this place had much more meaning behind than to just ‘get away’. This trip marks the time I get to spend with family that I don’t get to see as often as I did before. These trips that we have are full of belly aching laughter, with tears roll down our faces as we gasp for breath. Playing games of cards and listening to Bob Marley on repeat, with jokes filling the quiet air. Nothing compares to this experience I have, not even when I’m back in Fontana. Nothing is able to compete against waking up to clear air and the sounds of waterfalls in the distance, waiting to be hiked to. This place I’ve decided to call my second home is where I find inspiration, where I learn new things about myself that are free from the influence of others. Here in these big vast mountains, with the snow caps and the lake, I am free to just be. Which is something I think everyone should experience, whether it be the mountains, the sea, or even a big city. We all deserve to lose ourselves for a while, just so we can put ourselves back together with new memories and new dreams. Surround yourself with the beauty around you, and you’ll find that it’ll begin to shine within you.