By Jeri Lewis Edwards
How could you have known we would
become utterly, inexplicably lost
without that misplaced map?
And that razor cut trail cloaked in dust,
talus, edged felsite, gneissic-banded rubble.
We witnessed those tumbled stones—
they weren’t cairns from your past,
no markers to guide us.
We couldn’t help but notice your narrow game
swaths, up boulder jutted cliffs—too exposed.
We witnessed attempts on your ghost treks,
your offshoots to nowhere—none of them
had tread before us.
We risked your insignificant
drainages as catclaw groped our clothes,
tore our flesh, while burrs jumbled our socks,
and your gnats made relief
maps of our scalps.
We walked reverently through a heavily
populated rattlesnake den, witnessed
them coiled on your car-sized ledges,
countless restful in the darkened hollows,
sizable ones slithered from us through your
grassy corridor.
We searched for your hidden springs
as if they were our unclaimed inheritance.
You heard our arguments over
which coordinate to take—we
had tried them all it seemed—yet, not once
did we give up on you, your granite
hardened silence, and we were, we confessed,
consumed by all this severe beauty...
But, oh, that one solitary Gila Monster we
saw in the dry wash, its chunky body painted
like ancient pottery, its lumbering legs, determined
singularities...Somehow it emboldened us in
its direction, down your unbidden contour,
down your dry falls,
your entangled detritus,
your decayed deadfall,
down your free fall drop-offs,
down
down
down
to where, finally, we found our way.
Editor's notes:
“Wilderness Experienced” is our shared stories and musings about recent experiences in our nation's Wildernesses. Stories focus on the virtues of Wilderness and/or challenges facing the National Wilderness Preservation System. We want to hear your story! Learn more and submit a story.
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Comments 28
How many times have I gotten lost! Such a good read. Nice to be there with you. Wonderful visuals.
Thank you!
America is running out of spiritual and Native American holy lands. We must take permanent protective actions right now!
Great poem, Jeri, enjoyed the journey. Felt like I was there. I'd love to see a gila monster some day. My mom is a published poet, writer and poetry teacher as well. Thank you for this, Wilderness Watch!
I am sickened that our wild places are not cared for enough.
I just took a moment to slow down, be curious, and read the wonderful poem by Jeri Lewis Edwards, as I was methodically going through my hundreds of environmental and social justice emails.
Thank you for including this! How often does an email like this include a heartfelt and descriptive poem about one's experience in nature?
Please do this again!
: )
Beautiful
Your description of this wilderness makes me NOT want to go there. I'll look at photos instead. You are brave souls. Me, not so much!
This poem put me back in the desert that I have missed for so many years and will probably never get back to, given I am now 89. Your words are so well chosen that you capture the feelings I recall from years ago.
Thank you.
Sally
Thank you for sharing this heartfelt postcard on such a unique area!
Your writing is ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL ! It made me feel I was there with you. THANK YOU for a BEAUTIFUL experience !
Jeri,
A masterful recollection of hiking in true wilderness; r-snakes and a lost map. I've had my share of both, and am not sure which is worse. Thanks for your advocacy and your adventurous spirit.
Cheers!
Mike
Whar a beautiful poem! Sounds like a dangerous but scenic place to explore. You would have to be an experienced hiker to enjoy this place without a guide.
LOVE the poem!! Been there, done that, love & respect the desert. I’m born & raised, still live in New Mexico. You’re so lucky to have seen a gila monster! I’ve only seen one (in the wild) in my life.
Lovely!!!
I have been there (many years ago...)! You captured the atmosphere of this amazing and beautiful area so perfectly!!
Love this! Glad you made it out.
So lovely! And so like my short walks behind my home in So. Arizpna. It's been 10 years since I saw the gilaa monster, but I keep looking.
Beautiful poem. Thank you for sharing your experience in such a lovely manner. I truly felt I was there.