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Show 72, It extended the physical senses until they approached the infinite. There was nothing soft-headed or sentimental about this. Muir did not think of himself as airy or effusive during this period of his life. He wrote to one friend, in 1872, "You'll find me rough as the rocks and about the same color - granite." TRAVELLING THE GLACIAL PATHWAY As Muir sought a way to tell people about his method of study, he gave up trying to explain the dialectical relationship between soul life and limb life. It was implicit in his activity and could be dramatized through narrative essays. When he wrote a letter to Jeanne Carr and she sent it on to Overland, where it was published as "A Geologist's Winter Walk," Muir's development as a writer had turned a corner. The essay tells a good deal about the man who needed to get into shape and who was capable of thinking seriously about the purely athletic side of his explorations. He could dramatize the way soul life was built upon sturdy limb life. He began to follow the pathway of the Tenaya Glacier, climbing out of the Valley from Mirror Lake toward Tenaya Lake. Tenaya Canyon is still trailless through most of its length, and even today the Park Service tries to discourage casual hikers from traversing it. But a competent rockclimber may make the journey during the season of low water in several hours. And if it is a difficult canyon it is also a rewarding |
