So Much Beauty, Part II — One Million Women Walking

Two of my core beliefs are:

Women belong outside AND There is beauty waiting for us, outside, every day!

This is the second in a series of posts supporting these beliefs. In today’s post, I’ll be sharing more beauty from my trip to Colorado in September where I camped, hiked, sat in wonder and reveled in the beauty, every day!

One of my favorite things about Rocky Mountain National Park is the wildlife. On this trip I saw bighorn sheep, mule deer, moose, marmots, raptors, wild turkeys, a multitude of songbirds and of course, elk. I heard coyotes and owls at night, elk bugling too. The Park is alive with wildlife and it’s a joy and privilege to see them, hear them, have them mosey into camp.

I took the top left photo in the area known as Sheep Lakes. It was so fun to watch this bighorn taking his time grazing and posing for the paparazzi. The mule deer and wild turkeys in the next two photos were camp visitors. They came calling in the morning and made themselves at home while I was drinking my coffee and enjoying the sunrise. It was lovely to share some time with them. The bottom row of photos was taken in Moraine Park. The elk were coming down from the high country and mating season was in full swing. The big bull elk in the center photo had a substantial herd of cows and was very serious about protecting them.

I stood at a very respectful distance, with other onlookers, in a consistent light rain, for well over an hour just watching. There’s a sense of timelessness that comes over me when I watch wildlife. The past/present/future all meld into the cycles these animals represent. Cycles that women are particularly attuned to because we are highly cyclical ourselves. I love this parallel, this common experience.

The next time you’re out walking and happen upon some wildlife—your neighborhood squirrels for instance—pause and witness them for a moment. They’ll most likely scold you, and scamper up a tree. Or perhaps ignore you entirely and keep right on with storing nuts for winter or guarding their nests. Squirrels have been at it for eons, being squirrels, living with the seasons and weather and cycles. We have too but we’ve spent too much time indoors, away from Nature, away from fresh air, rain, snow, wind, sun. We’ve forgotten our connection to the outside world and we’ve forgotten that Nature refuels us because we are Nature.

My hope is that my work with One Million Women Walking inspires more and more women to get outside, become Walking Women, and transform their lives by refueling in Nature, reconnecting to Self, to our Community and to the Earth.

In my next blog post I’ll share some ridiculously gorgeous landscapes from my Colorado trip. I know you’re going to love them. Til then, get outside and go for a walk. Tell the squirrels hello for me!