This snapshot is a frozen moment, 
             Black & white.

Transformed into a beast of burden
We climb into the sky and clouds
With sixty pounds of clothing,
Tent and food our
Intimate companions.

Snow up to our knees,
Brook trout greet us
At eleven thousand feet.
Stationary in the cold current,
Their fish bodies
Waiting for breakfast
In snow fed arteries
Leading to Duck Lake
Spreading below 
A lone sentinel,
The John Muir trail.

We are alone
In that valley
High above freeways,
Telephone poles;
Graffiti;
Advanced talking buildings
Full of reflective glass,
Invisible memories
Of the brutal world
Left behind.

At midnight
Surrounded by nature's scent
Deer shadow on canvas
A silent spray of stars between
Swaying giant shapes of
Ponderosa and pine
With wind whispering
'You are home"'
Puts a lock on my lungs.