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| Photo credz to David Morgan |
For my final blog
post, I want to talk about my experience with the park. Whenever we talk about
conservation in the history of the Adirondacks, we ask ourselves “why”: why do
people want this wilderness preserved, why do people enjoy hiking, why do
people want to spend time on the water? I don’t know how other people would
answer these questions, but the last question is easy for me to answer.
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| Me at my happiest. Thanks Alex Doig |
I am my happiest
when I’m in a canoe (usually on water but also just sitting on grass
somewhere). Floating on water, imagining all of the life underneath me, and all
of the unseen things that aren’t disturbed by humans. I can gain perspective as
a small dot on an expansive lake or a long river, where I never reach its
source or its end. I can also become more mindful of my own body, because canoeing
is a repeated motion, where I use the same muscles for each stroke. I get my
breathing into a rhythm and it recharges me.
Being able to propel my canoe through waves and around rocks with the flick
of my wrist makes me feel powerful and skilled.
I have the
Adirondacks to thank for my knowledge and love of canoeing. I learned
everything I know at Adirondack Camp in Ticonderoga on Lake George, and this
sport, and my nerdiness about it, became “my thing”. When I became a counselor,
I learned how to teach “my thing” to others, and instill a love of the sport in
them. My campers become proficient paddlers, 4-foot tall people able to control
14-foot boats, and I got to take credit for their newfound passion. I met their
growing interest for the sport with new lessons on more difficult strokes, and
was rewarded with their growth in ability and their own pride in their mastery
of the sport. Canoeing has gone from “my thing” to “our thing” over my Adirondack
summers, and I hope that the pristine waterways of the park are preserved forever.
Thanks to Hannah Zucker at the Writing Center for her help.
This reminds me a lot of Zach Dix's environmental studies thesis presentation! He's study was in sociology, so it was a little difficult for me to grasp (I know a LOT more about trees than I do about people), but he spoke to the personal connection that people feel with the environment and how that influences their conservation ethic... The "transcendence" you feel when canoeing combined the exposure to the outdoors drives you to preserve (or hope for the preservation of) the waterways in the park. As a hiker, I feel that same love and desire to protect the forests and alpine ecosystems. This demonstrates the importance of accessibility of parks like the Adirondacks, because without this tangible connection to the environment, we can have no desire to take action.
ReplyDeleteI think this reminds me of how important it is to do the things you love. I went on a sunrise hike this past weekend. We had to wake up at 3am, after most of us had done Hamtrek, and were on the top of Mt. Cascade at 6 am. I am not a morning person but it was the best weekend of this semester for me. I am most happy outside and like you both touched on my personal investment in the outdoors certainly drives my desire to protect it.
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