Our world is created by perception. To the naked eye, a valley is just a valley; the sage is just sage; a person is a stranger. In this light, ignorance is not bliss, it is blinding. I try to see, to understand why, because what I don’t see I don’t believe. Maybe it is a fault. Maybe this lack of faith will one day drive me towards cynicism, but in a world created by perception I trust only my eyes. I trust the height of the cliff and the strength of the wind, and I trust that what I am told is the truth, so instead of questioning, I choose to understand. 

Our third day was much longer than the two previous days, partially because the site was much further than the previous ones, and partially because our adventurous spirits took over and ended up getting us lost. In terms of the experience, though, nothing was lost at all, and we held onto a long, deep conversation as we wandered the landscape. Our slightly misdirected trek around the valley from atop the bluffs was reminiscent of some post-apocalyptic movie, an adventure that opened our eyes to the seemingly desolate area. It is not until you venture throughout Dry Falls, viewing the entire area from above and craning your neck from below, that you realize how beautiful the area is and can try to comprehend the events that made it so.