added 20 of Rob's pictures to the end of my Denali album (click on "full size" links - Rob's pics are pretty good)
http://community.webshots.com/user/armtrips
more random thoughts ...
going away on trips can help "flush away" the routine of everyday life, like pressing a reset button that refreshes your spirit and lends a temporary fresh outlook on life (the way life should be)
when you return home, you might encounter some random hassle, where people get mad at the world for no apparent reason, and just shake your head and wonder what makes people get so uptight about things that really don't matter ...
that feeling of "freedom" can last a day, a week, maybe forever ...
Mike Holt and i were talking about this before the Denali trip ... he was heading to Iceland for a few weeks ... we agreed that we should hold onto this refreshing frame of mind as long as possible ...
it took months to feel like i had "returned to the unreal world" ... longer than any trip i've ever been on ... maybe a combination of finally reaching Alaska, the experience of climbing Denali with a great team of friends, the prospect of jamming with the Bluffs at Bearly Live ... life has been pretty good lately
if you've got something on your wish list, go for it ... you might find your self saying "woulda coulda shoulda" someday
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reading "The Snow Lepoard" while we climbed Denali was very cool ... Mattiessen's account of their spiritual quest through high mountain passes of the Himalayas drew several parallels to our journey, and added to the overall "good feeling" of spending a few weeks in one of the most beautiful places on Earth
