Why Backpacking and Hiking are Good

Backpacking and hiking are such good hobbies because by their nature they slow us down, cause us to pay attention to what the day is like. I see that as a fine thing, because then we notice things that have been taken for granted, or perhaps have not seen before. A case in point was one August when I backpacked up to a lake basin on the west side of the Tetons. A rainstorm moved in just as I reached a small lake. I quickly set up the tent and lied down in it with my border collies, thinking I would take a nap before cooking dinner. It had been a gruelling steep hike. A half hour later the tent lightened. I went outside to find the sun had just come out, and had made a perfect rainbow over the lake, only a few hundred yards away.

I like this quote, which is another way of saying what I am trying to:

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away"

- Author Unknown

Here is a photo I took of the rainbow over the lake, as it lifted away: