[pct-l] Addictions

[CMountainDave at aol.com (CMountainDave@aol.com)]

While others are anticipating starting their PCT journey, I am looking 
forward to my 14th trip to the Grand Canyon this April. I never seem to tire of the 
place or the look on newbies faces when they first comprehend the vast 
intricacy of the place. I remember one woman who sat staring mesmerized from the edge 
of a cliff, near our camp half way down, just repeating over and over in 
disbelief, "I'm in the most beautiful place in the world."
 Then there was a CBS show on the G.C. where a reporter asked a woman 
crossing the suspension bridge over the Colorado River what she thought of the place. 
She did a panoramic glance upward, shook her head, threw out her arms in an 
all encompassing gesture, and as tears came to her eyes she exclaimed, "I never 
expected this, I never expected -- THIS!!"
 On the same show a reporter interviewed people finishing a 3 week rafting 
trip through the Grand Canyon. He came upon an 8 year old boy quietly sobbing as 
his grandfather tried to console him. "What's wrong?" asked the reporter. 
"Why is he crying? Didn't he enjoy the trip?" "Quite the opposite" said the 
grandfather, his voice cracking. "He enjoyed it too much. He doesn't want it to 
end."
   That pretty much sums up the place. So magical. The Twilight Zone isn't a 
figment of Rod Serling's imagination. It really does exist. We may never get 
to hike on Mars, but oh well, this place will do