It's really difficult for me to decide on the most enchanting or thrilling experience I've had with the non-human world because my family have always been really into camping and hiking and other outdoorsy things. We used to go on one big trip every other year so that my brothers and I would eventually make it to all 50 US states and every national park in the country. After debating for a while, I have narrowed it down to two experiences which are completely opposite but equally thrilling.
The first experience was hiking the Grand Canyon in Utah when I was in middle school. I'd hiked lots of mountains but the Bright Angel Trail was my first experience where the downhill came before the uphill. The wildlife was so different from anything in the northeast because it has adapted to over 100 degree weather during the day and below 40 degree weather at night. Mostly there were lizards and small rodents and other creatures of that sort though we did see the occasional mule carring loads of supplies to campers at the Colorado River. The more impressive part of the Canyon to me was the geology. I was never that into rocks and dirt until that hike but seeing the wide range of colorful stone and the effect that the erosion had on it was absolutely stunning. The Canyon isn't just a big hole; there are plateaus and crevaces and alien-looking rock formations that span beyond how far the naked eye can see. The landscape was like nothing I could have ever imagined and the pictures I'd seen before the trip certainly did not do it justice. The color palette alone was wonderous. The desert was not just beige and neutral colored. Within the rocks, there were yellows, oranges, deep reds, magnificent pinks, royal purples, silver quartz, all shades of brown, pale greens, and even streaks of dark blue. Overall, the experience of hiking into the Canyon was overwhelming and despite the intense heat, nature provided a cool place to swim (the Colorado River) at the bottom of the hike. Hiking back up was just as magnificent in scenery but I remember being too tired to take much notice towards the end. I would definitely recomment a Grand Canyon trip to anyone who loves geology and anyone who's looking for a mountain hike in reverse.
The second experience was biking down the volcano Haleakala in Hawaii when I was 14. We woke up at 2 am to get to the top of the dormant volcano so that we could see the sunrise. It was rumored to be one of the best sunrises in the world and from what I saw the rumors are true. It was above the clouds and we had to have mini oxygen tanks when we got high enough up along with tons of extra clothes because the temperature dropped to about 10 degrees at the top. The real beauty came on the ride back down though because we could just coast on our bikes and enjoy the scenery. The mountain was bursting with life from the elusive silver sword cactus to large mountain deer and goats. It wasn't what someone would expect to see in Hawaii because it was about as different from laying on a beach with a maitai as you can imagine. But there are beaches everywhere. Hawaii shouldn't be relegated to a beach vacation because the camping and hiking experiences cannot be found elsewhere in the world. On the way down the volcano, we watched the life change from small cold weather plants, cacti, and animals to large, green, leafy Taro and thinly fur-coated creatures. When we reached the little town at the base of the volcano it was almost surreal to see cars and people and buildings so close to the secluded natural world of upper Haleakala. The sunrise and biking experience was nothing short of glorious.
So with that said, I think it's pretty obvious that I feel like "saving nature" is something we should be concerned with. In fact, I don't think it's even a matter of debate. As humans, we have no right to destroy the natural beauty that surrounds us because we are not the only living things on this planet. We should appreciate the God given glory around us work to preserve it. Not only will it be better for the planet and the environment in the long run but it is good for humans to experience nature for our own peace of mind. We are blessed to have such a lively and vibrant natural world that contains such a huge variety of plants and animals. In my experience, spending time in nature is relaxing, rejuvinating, and essential to living a complete life. If one has not experienced some of the marvels of nature, he is missing out on one of the most rewarding opportunities that life on Earth provides. Rather than saving nature, we should be thinking of it as saving ourselves because no life is full without the discovery of at least one new place. We don't need to discover some place no one has ever been before, but we should all go places that we have never been before and discover them for ourselves. Overall, nature is a blessing to humanity and we have a duty and a responsibility to make sure that future generations have that same blessing. So yes, saving nature should be a main concern of ours or we risk our health, happiness, and sanity.
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