Walk away quietly in any direction and taste the freedom of the mountaineer. Camp out among the grasses and gentians of glacial meadows, in craggy garden nooks full of nature’s darlings. Climb the mountains and get their good tidings, Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves. As age comes on, one source of enjoyment after another is closed, but nature’s sources never fail. (Muir, John. Our National Parks. 1901. Page 56.)

First published in 1901, “Our National Parks” is still relevant in 2022 as a fantastic guide to the wild mountain forest reservations and national parks of the United States, exploring their beauty and usefulness. John Muir (1838-1914) John Muir was an influential Scottish-American  naturalist, environmental philosopher, botanist, zoologist, author, and glaciologist who famously fought to preserve wilderness in the United States of America.

Picture of our camper, Delilah, taken July 2021, Roan Mountain State Park, Tennessee.