Into the Wild.

In August, I was sitting in a deposition and an attorney from out of state asked if anyone knew of a nice scenic drive he could take that would afford him lovely mountain views. One of the local attorneys suggested that he drive to Silver Lake up Big Cottonwood Canyon. Silver Lake is located at the top of Big Cottonwood Canyon near Brighton. The lake is surrounded by a wooden walkway. The drive up the canyon is, of course, very scenic. The local attorney recommended that the out of state attorney take alot of insect repellant because there would be alot of mosquitoes. As I sat there listening to this recommendation, I couldn't help but wonder, "Why have I never done that?" Couldn't come up with a good reason, so I decided I was going to do it right away. I thought I would do it before the end of August. Didn't happen. Figured I would do it in September when the leaves were changing. Again, didn't happen. October, I thought, I can still do it in October. Again, I just didn't seem to get around to it.

But then yesterday, I saw Into the Wild. And I tell you what: that film moved me to see some nature. So this morning, I decided to head up to Silver Lake. I was fully aware that the area would be covered with snow and that I'd missed my chance to see Autumn colors, but I wasn't bothered because the snow covered mountains would more closely resemble the winter landscape of Alaska featured in the film I saw yesterday.

Wow. It really was a pretty drive up the canyon, and the lake and scenery? For get about it. I can't believe I waited so long to do the trip. And it was so easy! The trip from my flat, to the lake, around the lake, to the lodge for refreshment, and back to my flat took less than three hours. So, I highly recommend it as a quick afternoon adventure for those days when you need a hit of nature, but when Park City or the like isn't nature-y enough.

I documented my brief adventure with my camera phone (I'm so Ansel Adams), so here you go:










On my drive both up and down the canyon, I resolved to embrace winter this year and try to fully appreciate it. To that end, I'm thinking about getting new ski equipment and a season ski pass. After all, it's really the skiers/boarders that know how to appreciate winter in general and snow in particular. (I don't delude myself, however. I know without question that I will be complaining about freezing temperatures, gray skies, and snow three weeks into winter and won't stop until March/April.)

Today's Songs: I listened to Bloc Party's Sunday (trust me: download this!); Tori Amos' Bouncing Off Clouds; Joni Mitchell's Both Sides Now; and the Theme from Terms of Endearment.