Storytime: I bagged my second Munro a few weeks ago, called Tom a’ Choinich. [A Munro is a Scottish mountain that’s over 3,000 feet high.] The photo above is the view I had from about halfway up the Munro, which was absolutely stunning. Also:…
87 flights. 75 domestic and 12 international. 87,814 miles. 212 hours. That’s how much I’ve flown in the past 7+ months – which amounts to about 8.8 days flying, or going around the earth 3.5 times. Those 87 flights have taken me to over…
![“I don't like either the word [hike] or the thing. People ought to saunter in the mountains - not 'hike!' Do you know the origin of that word saunter? It's a beautiful word. Away back in the middle ages people used to go on pilgrimages to the Holy Land, and when people in the villages through which they passed asked where they were going they would reply, 'A la sainte terre', 'To the Holy Land.' And so they became known as sainte-terre-ers or saunterers. Now these mountains are our Holy Land, and we ought to saunter through them reverently, not 'hike' through them.”
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- John Muir
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I love what Muir says about the mountains. This is probably my favourite mountain (Buachaille Etive Mòr) in my favourite place (Glencoe) in my favourite country (Scotland) - it is a holy place. I’ve made many pilgrimages to this mountain, and plan to make many more. I love the idea of sauntering in the mountains, really taking the time to enjoy the beauty and majesty and glory of them. The Scots call it “hill walking” instead of “hiking” - we don’t hike with God, we walk with God. The best part is that while I’m sauntering through the mountains, I can lift my eyes up to see beyond the circumstances around me and am able to fix my eyes on something so much bigger and more glorious than myself. I often think of my spirituality as a journey up a mountain, going “further up and further in” - sometimes having to backtrack and find a different trail, sometimes going off trail, sometimes meeting fellow walkers and saunterers. Jesus often went up atop a mountain to pray, could we not learn from him and perhaps even meet him there as well?
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Photo credit: @davidlobban .
#buachailleetivemor #glencoe #icouldlivehere #johnmuir #hillwalking](http://scontent-ort2-2.cdninstagram.com/vp/8fe0c9ee3dcf9530ccfe9f65c2f5c56d/5C51FBCD/t51.2885-15/sh0.08/e35/c180.0.720.720/s640x640/42579293_2291596581063363_6787878858025906168_n.jpg "“I don't like either the word [hike] or the thing. People ought to saunter in the mountains - not 'hike!' Do you know the origin of that word saunter? It's a beautiful word. Away back in the middle ages people used to go on pilgrimages to the Holy Land, and when people in the villages through which they passed asked where they were going they would reply, 'A la sainte terre', 'To the Holy Land.' And so they became known as sainte-terre-ers or saunterers. Now these mountains are our Holy Land, and we ought to saunter through them reverently, not 'hike' through them.”
.
- John Muir
.
——
.
I love what Muir says about the mountains. This is probably my favourite mountain (Buachaille Etive Mòr) in my favourite place (Glencoe) in my favourite country (Scotland) - it is a holy place. I’ve made many pilgrimages to this mountain, and plan to make many more. I love the idea of sauntering in the mountains, really taking the time to enjoy the beauty and majesty and glory of them. The Scots call it “hill walking” instead of “hiking” - we don’t hike with God, we walk with God. The best part is that while I’m sauntering through the mountains, I can lift my eyes up to see beyond the circumstances around me and am able to fix my eyes on something so much bigger and more glorious than myself. I often think of my spirituality as a journey up a mountain, going “further up and further in” - sometimes having to backtrack and find a different trail, sometimes going off trail, sometimes meeting fellow walkers and saunterers. Jesus often went up atop a mountain to pray, could we not learn from him and perhaps even meet him there as well?
.
Photo credit: @davidlobban .
#buachailleetivemor #glencoe #icouldlivehere #johnmuir #hillwalking")
