The knees and I finally made peace. My trekking poles are already lashed to the suitcase so we don't forget them next time.
More about the Springs hike. Glen Eyrie is a gorgeous property that backs up to the Garden of the Gods, has a resident herd of wild bighorn sheep, visiting wild deer and wild turkeys in the midst of terraced gardens, red rock formations, sweeping hillsides and miles of good hiking trails. And a castle built by one of the Colorado Springs pioneers as a gift for his wife. You really have to see it to believe it.
With a few hours of down time our first afternoon there, I decided to hike a couple of trails to get a view of Garden of the Gods. If this place doesn't make you fall in love with geology, nothing will. From the pink Precambrian granite to red Cambrian Quartz, to Upper and Lower Cretaceous shale and sandstone, walking any of the trails is a rainbow of history and beauty.
The first trail took me through all of it, around the side of a small mountain and finally through fields carpeting geologically recent deposits of sand and clay, right up to the northern boundary of GoG. Which, to my chuckles, was marked with a barbed-wire fence with a hole neatly cut through the bottom two strands. Plant life is as varied as the rocks. Not a dull moment!
But you're wondering, "What is the word from my Creator?"
The second trail I tried was a loop that began on the fire road behind the castle. Now, the visible fire road is an inviting trail - a wide, flat dirt trail wide enough for a large four-wheeler to easily speed along for about a quarter-mile, then it curves out of sight. It isn't until you turn that corner that you see how steep it becomes for the rest of the ascent. I decided to take it in 50-pace segments, stopping to check out the ever-changing view and catch my breath frequently.
at the top of the fire trail, the path switches back sharply to the left, to a much more narrow trail, and continues up, although with less climb.
A short walk up that trail I saw the prize: Garden of the Gods, from an overlook as close as you can get, with great views of the major formations. It was so close I almost thought I could jump and land on top of them.
Fortunately, I passed on that idea and instead sat down to savor the view of over 180 degrees of Colorado skyline, including Pike's Peak and GoG, as the sun was setting. I sat there for almost 20 minutes, feeling the coldness of the evening as the sun faded, wanting to squeeze every last second out of the experience before I had to start back to get there by dark.
Then, God spoke.
"All this is nothing except that I made it."
Really? That's it, God? You're bragging now?
But as it sank in, I was humbled to realize that I had been worshipping the beauty and almost forgot who made it. And don't we see this in so much of life; people with all the beauty and luxury and splendor money can buy but without peace and joy in their lives? Am I not that person from time to time, wanting something and getting it, only to realize it brings me no joy?
"All this is nothing except that I made it."
Yes, the greatest geological wonders in the world are nothing except that they were made by God. I like to think they are his personal gifts to us to enjoy. The sunset, the horizon and all it holds, they are all worthless by themselves. Fancy paperweights. But because they were born of the work of God, they are priceless.
And as I started down the trail (this is where my knees got cross with me), I thought about my life and the lives of kids I know and don't know...what value do any of us have on our own? But what great worth is available to each of us as children of Creator God, who showcases his geology in Garden of the Gods and Glen Eyrie, who made the sun that sets over Pike's Peak and the moon that rises in the east, who knows my name and your name and hears our every word?
Yes, this is my great worth - that God made me. And I am nothing without Him.
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