All aboard. People I very much appreciate:

Friday, May 7, 2021

Enigma Of Elevation

Here is an impressive photo sent recently by my Nevada-dwelling  brother:

It is a dreamy picture of Mount Whitney in mist. The  peak we see peeking  between clouds is 14,500 feet above sea level. It is (don't know for sure) around 150 miles from Bad Water Basin in Death Valley --about 280 feet below sea level.  There is an altitudinal difference of 14,780 feet. In meters, that's only 4,500, which is why American mountains are so much taller than European ones.

Admittedly, my experience with mountains is limited. I did climb Mount Tamalpais with friend Will while visiting the town of Larkspur.  There I learned the town was named after Colonel Larkspur, a close relative of the prominent Delphinium family.

Sometimes we are, in topographic analogy, prescient and lofty or broken in Bad Water Basin. In all, the enigmatic mystery channeled here is distinguished by my rare ability to predict the future. A long time ago, in a lofty moment of psychic inspiration, I predicted I would not become a prophet or fortune teller --and I didn't.


35 comments:

  1. I have trouble climbing into )onto( bed..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear JACKIESUE. ..And I have trouble climbing OUT of bed. Together, we contribute balance to the universe.

      Delete
  2. The elevation near the mountain has a lot to do with the visual effect. The Rockies, several of them near 14K do not appear as 'impressive' as some of the 10-12K Cascades....the base of most of the Rockies is around 5-6K ft, the base of Hood is around 2K, it's height 12K. Denali, in Alaska, is a good example: with a height of 20K it's base near Talkeetna is around 2K feet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Mike, I first went among the Rocky Mt.s as a kid, changed trains in Denver and went south --about 7 or 8 yrs. old. There was another kid, with whom I made friends on the long trip from California. He said, "Hey Geo.,Wake up! We're in Codderado!(sic)". I peeked in awe at the scenery of this planet alien to a boy from a coastal river-valley, and never forgot what I saw. It's a various and beautiful world, Mike --and I've begun to think it rather likes us.

      Delete
  3. You are a wonder! How did you know? Will I become a prophet or fortuneteller? It would be good to know.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, dear Emma. I suspect the good and interesting things that happen to us are fueled by reason and intuition. We predict them by other than psychic means...and the avoidance of accidental misfortune. Entropy is a degree of disorder in a closed system, and beyond vague impression of its threat, I haven't a clue. Don't ignore what happiness tells you. Its report is in practice, imagination and love. But you know that!

      Delete
  4. My gosh! With your prescient talentry, could I please have some winning lottery numbers? If I win, I'll remember you. Not share but I will remember you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Bruce, if this was a legal request for lottery wins, I could only wait until some past number repeated itself --risky as claiming I foresaw a new one. I don't really know if that would be legally actionable. I didn't become a lawyer either. In short, what you share or not is what I treasure. You, remembering me and vice versa, is what I treasure most.

      Delete
  5. That is an impressive photo and mountain. I take approximately 1,000 photos of Mt. Rainier every year; she is very topographically prominent.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mt. Rainier is visually exciting to Earth Students, but I always remind myself that she is a volcano, like St.Helens in 1980, and have not gone near her since the World Fair in Seattle, 1962. You are braver than I am, dear Margaret. Brava!

      Delete
  6. A marvelous photo. I did not care for technical climbing, thinking I lacked either the skill or the desire. I have done a lot of hiking and trailing climbing and some of the best of that was near Whitney in the Sierra. As for your prophecy, you called it right.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Tom, I'll relay your photo compliment to my brother. I too, have enjoyed mountain hikes in this and surrounding states. Didn't age well in my 60s but now, in my 70s, I can remember those adventures vividly. Happily my big brother is still in good shape,

      Delete
  7. I have hiked to the top of both Whitney and Tamalpais and have been to Bad Water several times. In fact, I lived there, but it was on the east coast and before they had city water out to the sound, we drank bad sulfur water...

    In my younger days, I thought it would be neat to hike from Bad Water to Telegraph Peak, on the west side of Death Valley. It may not be as high as Whitney, but is over 12k and a lot closer to Bad Water, so it makes an impressive escarpment.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Jeff, You are one ambitious hiker! I again looked up the distance between Bad Water Basin and Whitney and got 90 to 130 miles. Then tried Bad Water to Telegraph Peak and got 200 miles. When distances change so radically and rapidly in one day there must be huge upheavals, seismographic exaggeration on a cosmic scale. I will stick to Tamalpais. Is that wild horse still up there?

      Delete
    2. ugh, my mistake. Telescope Peak, not Telegraph. I still walk all the time, but haven't done any backpacking in almost a decade. My wilderness travel of late as mainly been via canoe or kayak

      Delete
    3. No need for ughs, Jeff. Your paddling pics are always a delight. We often canoed when the kids were growing up and still have that lovely quiet vessel. We also still have our telescope from those years but it has never responded well to Morse Code.

      Delete
    4. .. .._ _. _.. . ._. ... _ ._ _. _.. :)

      Delete
    5. Understood, and appreciated!

      Delete
  8. I was sure I left a comment here but I must have forgotten the Publish button . . . and now I can't remember what I said . . . in any case, I enjoyed your post :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Jenny, Sorry your comment went astray. Checked my gmail moderation holding page and it wasn't there. However, did notice I'd missed replying to your welcome comment on prior post ("Grampa",4/29) and have corrected that. Glad you enjoyed this post --thanks!

      Delete
  9. Hi, friend Geo ... cat here ... long time no see ... smiles ... Hope, you and your loved ones are still happy and healthy? I can report the same from here. I find myself enjoying retirement as in doing ... nothing ... smiles ... At the same time, I struggle with processing last years covid nursing experiences ... which surprises me because I thought I was stronger than that, stronger than anything, in fact ... smiles ... I have been writing, but still finding myself ... speechless at this time. Sending love from Alberta, Canada. c.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Cat, Welcome! As I may have mentioned before, retirement here happened in 2009. Sometimes I still wake up at dawn thinking "Oh NO, I'm 12 years late to work!!!" Panic would ensue. But after a number of visits to a very good therapist, I can go back to sleep. Your job was doubtless more emotionally demanding than mine, so I can't presume to offer remedies. However, "Sending love..." is something I too can do. Give yourself time --you've earned it. Love, Geo.

      Delete
  10. What a stunning photo! I have to admit I've lived most of my life near the ocean. I've been atop a few mountains in my younger years but I think my hiking boots have cobwebs in them now. Some warm mountains would be nice...a nice, temperate climate...lush landscape. SIGH!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Mildred, I commiserate. From youth until recently I've been capable of walking any satisfying distance, upward or levelward. Now I'm the Mother Goose (snoring) man,"...went to bed, bumped his head and couldn't get up in the morning." This morning was a perfect example. Indeed, SIGH.

      Delete
  11. Living so close to the Atlantic Ocean (1/4 mile) I can't imagine living anywhere else. But on the rare occasions when I do get out west, I am truly in awe of the beauty of the mountains. We've done our share of hiking in our part of the Appalachians, but it's just not the same as the ones out West.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Juli, I share your amazement of mountains, and feel lucky to live in a world of such astonishing beauty. I've had mountain-dwelling friends who warned this visitor not to fall out of their yards because neighboring elevations are so incredibly various.

      Delete
  12. Geo:

    Sorry I have been away for a spell..... my phone went temporarily belly up for a couple of days, and when it was resuscitated all of my blogger links were gone and I have been piecemealing them back into my phone’s Google.

    The cobbler’s last..... utterly beautiful! I so very much appreciate the beauty of old tools.... especially ones not commonly seen in current times!!! I am glad you have that from your grandfather! The photograph of you and him is also wonderful!!!!

    PipeTobacco

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Prof, So glad you got phone problems solved. It's good to hear from you. Strangely, I got messages from several parts of the continent that Google and other networks had gone widely haywire. This sort of general unplugging serves to renew my fear that the conversational record of our time is written in disappearing ink.

      Re: Grampa's LAST: Not many people have heard the word defined as a cobbler's anvil anymore. My Grampa actually used his last and let me watch. Then there was that song my 1st grade teacher had the class sing --"Susie Susie" something-- 65 years ago:

      "The cobbler has leather,
      But no last to use,
      So our little goslings
      Must go without shoes."

      She made sure we all knew what a last was.

      Delete
  13. What a wondrous photo. My hat is off to all mountain climbers:)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Sandra, My brother certainly did a wondrous job on this enchanting photo. I will tell him you said so.

      Delete
    2. Thank you for passing the word on. The colors are warm and mystical aren't they?
      Take special care.

      Delete
  14. Hi Geo,
    Wow-that is an amazing picture. And I always wondered about those puny European mountain ranges so thank you for clearing that up. I hear all the time that math is the answer but not being fluent, I never really believed it until now

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Chicken, I too have to be careful with Geography and Math. I can do both, just not at the same time. This is why Mountain Topography and Arithmetic are taught in different classrooms at different times.

      Delete
  15. I have only ventured onto european mountains, they seemed tall enough for me. I am not a fan of heights but in the mountains the beauty outweighs the fear, I become somehow braver.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Lisa, "...beauty outweighs the fear, I become somehow braver" describes mountain adventure very well. I believe you have defined exhilaration and majesty.

      Delete

Please comment! Stats are just numbers and don't really represent you. I need to read what you think and thank you.