The Peak

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Approaching the Rokstokhutte below SefinenfurggeBarred from the top by the weatherman’s no-entry sign
Lenses misting into tears that roll down cheeks
To become unsalted rivers swollen by the melt-down
Passing Elysian fields of gentians touched by dew
Silently trumpeting victory over the seemingly impossible
As one disappears into the clouds of the final barrier
With none but his own ashes scattered like snow flakes
Beyond the line and into the highest altitudes
Before descent into another shadowed valley
Leaving memories created by today’s encounter
Cultivating hope in the brilliance of eternal snows
As disheartened climbers retreat back to the plains
With the unconquered peak magnified in minds exploring
The challenge and exhilaration of future triumphs.

Below the snow line on the path to SefinenfurggeOn being barred from crossing Switzerland’s Sefinenfurgge Pass
for the second time.

For a series of pictures on the hike that inspired ‘The Peak’
click here: Around Murren

June 2008 
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