"Keep close to Nature's heart... and break clear away, once in a while, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean." ~ John Muir
A little over two years ago I was blessed with the opportunity to spend a quick 24 hours in a hobbit house outside of Chelan, Washington. I had just begun my journey to self-discovery and this magical place reflected the chapter I was in perfectly. Secluded, full of whimsy, underground looking out over miraculous landscapes illuminated by the setting sun...
So when the owner of the property I found myself once again pining for contacted me about her new rental, I was beyond intrigued, because it, too, was something that mirrored my current place in life. This place jutted out from the land below, reaching toward the crisp, clear skies. Magic found in every corner and reminders of my childhood. A fire lookout, not surprisingly relocated from the very place I grew up in North Eastern Washington, now situated on a mountain in North Idaho. I can still remember the way my Dad's workboots and fire jacket smelled when he'd come home from a long summer day (or sometimes weeks) in the woods. I remember doodling pictures with sharpened pencils on maps in the tiny building he worked in on the reservation. The smell of fresh coffee permeating from his old mug.
The Crystal Peak Lookout brought me right back. Every detail igniting something deep inside me. Pencils in a metal pencil case waiting to be sharpened by the pencil sharpener screwed to the wall of the lookout. Weather logs just waiting to be filled out on a table covered by a map of the area. Fresh coffee beans waiting to be ground by an antique grinder. Vintage flashlight hung by the door with binoculars waiting to create more curiosity close by.
Outside the views were substantial. Huckleberry bushes creating a green carpet below and views into the Fernwood valley beyond the dense forest surrounding the lookout. The air was clean and the moon was full. A winding dirt trail leads visitors down to an old shed now painted red to match the lookout, converted into a sauna. The smell of cedar overcomes the senses and two cozy Adirondack chairs surround a fire-pit perfect for roasting smores or reading that neglected book.
To stay here one must be open to Mother Nature's caring hands. To be quiet and to be calm. To open the senses and see the world around you as a child would. Let the sounds of the breeze sing you to sleep, all while awakening something deep inside the depths of your spirit.
The Crystal Peak Lookout is a place you go to find yourself. To disconnect and rejuvenate. And it's available for your future adventure now.
As I've said many times before, don't think...just go. You'll never regret time spent among the trees. You'll never regret remembering what it feels like to LIVE.
xoxo,
SJ
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