Why do we choose to an active life
M&L have been active in the outdoors from their youth, M hiked to the top of Mount Fuji at the age of 7 with his father and brothers. L was raised hiking the mountains of the Wasatch front. Both were backpackers in their teenage years. We honeymooned in Bryce and Zion National Parks and we fell in love with Zion’s Narrows during our honeymoon. Our first backpacking trip as a couple was down Zion’s Narrows in November, in wetsuits with ice on the edge of the river. Try putting on a frozen wetsuit in freezing temperatures, it’s an exhilarating experience and we absolutely loved the entire experience (wetsuits aside). It wasn’t easy, but we were so happy to have done it. The experience, was indescribable, amazing, full of wondrous exploration and facing the unknown. We have been doing similar things ever since.
So why do we do it? As a climber once stated; “If you have to ask the questions, you will probably never understand the answer”. But here goes: there is a beauty and tranquility to nature that is inexpressible. Nature’s grandeur can’t be captured by words, photos, or even all of one’s senses. The more removed from man’s influence, the greater the wonder of nature. There is a purity in being miles and miles from civilization with all the necessities of life boiled down to the 40 pounds of gear on your back and knowing that you have carried those items every step of the way. We do it because we love the beauty, the adventure, facing our fears, discovering for ourselves something for the first time, the sense of self sufficiency and the sense of accomplishment to name a few. If I was to boil it down to the ultimate why, I think it is because these experiences are as essential to our souls as food and water are to our bodies. It is a need.
We hope over the course of this website to talk about each of these topics more thoroughly and many, many more.