Group Project: Team astronaut
Team Members: Randolph Kraus, Erin Sherrer, Sequoia Meyer, and me
We were each drawn to different themes during this field trip to Rainier. Although they varied they were very intertwined. Geological process, natural life, and humans are large contributors to this place, and all places in our natural world. I mostly focused on people: their involvement with the environments, their contribution towards it’s present state, and the general feeling I experienced within these places.
Cougar Rock Campground:
a seemingly deserted place
A Bit of Irony:
Thoughts:
Abandonment, empty, purposeless/purpose in waiting, lack of vegetation/ lack of people, proof of people, the further into the forest, the more abundance of life. Nature fighting for survival. Everything felt stale, lack of noise/ lack of quiet – everything blended together too much, it was too constant, not noticeable. Moment trapped in time, why am I here? Who belongs here? Purpose – to camp, to steal the wild or witness/be in the wild? Carving the earth, forcing our existence. But why? In that moment, a very long moment, it felt meaningless. Useless without people, proof that it is not wild. Wild in the sense of nonhuman involvement.
Beyond the emptiness lies a striving ecosystem:
Twin Firs:
a path to get lost in
Thoughts:
A trail, carved out. Us forced in, nature fighting back… Getting lost, but on a path, lost without being lost, alone without being alone. The trees are huge, everything lives together. Some of the same plants from twin firs here in a greater abundance. More noise, more breathing. A stronger sense of wild, a place felt lived in, but not by us. Few people. Its purpose, to take a walk. Let us be in nature, stay on the path, so as not to kill anything. Not to kill what we already have.
Along the path lies a thriving ecosystem:
Upper Nisqually River:
a chaotic river in a u-shaped valley
Steep Cliff Side:
Thoughts:
The least amount of human resistance, a place created by itself. The most active, the less people. Fresh air. A journey, ever changing, moving, collapsing. A place for adventure, not comfortable, not safe, why should it be? Who comes here? Us. No humans, too wild.
Found Among the Rocks:
Paradise 1:
Tourist Attraction:
Thoughts:
Casual. Feels like Christmas. Unprepared, me included. Take a picture, the mountain is not as big as I thought it would be. Function? I haven’t figured it out yet. Tourists, learn about nature, show off, and see the beauty in person… Get wet, get dirty. Close your eyes, be terrified of airplanes. Hear the birds, tourists, silence, it feels vast, I can tell I am up high. Remember the day. Nature – travel? Is that how we protect it? We must see it to want to protect it? It’s not important until it’s ours? How is it wild? The smaller I feel, the more comfortable I am, to know something powerful exists, to know what power is, to feel powerless, it is freeing. The mountain feels free, just not here.
What is Noticed Above the Snow:
Paradise 2:
The End of the Road:
Thoughts:
People come here with a purpose: jog, ski, and snowshoe. People in all forms of dress. Animals – used to us. Calm, hear the waterfalls, can barely see the streams under the snow. Valley, danger, false sense of safety. But I still did not feel afraid, not until you put yourself in that situation. I felt small here. The powerlessness was powerful. The sun was hot, the snow was cold, it will melt. This road is closed, but unlike cougar rock, it was more than just a moment in time
The Nature:
Narada Falls:
Take a Picture:
Thoughts:
A place to feed the animals, to feel part of their lives? Of some help? Tribute??? A dangerous adventure. A castle. Take a picture of the waterfall. Eat lunch. It is beautiful. It is spiritual. Don’t domesticate the animals. Don’t domesticate the land. We gave this to you, don’t take too much. Compromise? This beauty is yours, it should be enough, is it enough? Were your travels disappointing? Don’t bring the pet (bring the pet, everybody likes dogs). Snow melt – less snow – less beautiful waterfalls, do you care about climate change now? Is this pseudo wild enough? Do we care yet?
What I Noticed:
Final Thoughts:
Each place was seemingly different from each other, but there were striking commonalities between each one; some due to human involvement and some not. There were certain plants I noticed at many of the sites, such as vanilla leaf, but more abundant in some places, i.e. the ones least affected by humans. The elevation also had an effect on the plant life, the further up, the more snow, the less visible plants. There were warnings of danger in each area: avalanches, mass wasting, bears, the powerful river, falling through the snow, etc. But I did not feel in danger at any area, this was most likely because of how casual I noticed everyone to be. It makes me a bit worried that climate change is thought of in a casual way, a minor inconvenience not stopping anyone from going about their lives as normal. Not until something bad happens do people notice the danger they are in; by then it is too late. What gives me hope is the nature I was surrounded by; every place I went there was evidence of a new beginning, a fight for survival: new growth, pollen, cones, etc. The ecosystem will work with each other, nutrients are not wasted, as evident by nurse logs. Mount Rainier is an active environment, it is not easy for organisms to survive, but they work together. Let’s hope we can work better, for us and them.