Personal Culture Paper

Daniel Greenawalt

WIFYS

Dr. Shannon Mortimore-Smith

9/22/17

A Boy in the Mountains

            Did you ever go so high up a mountain that you’re lost phone signal at the very top?  Me neither, but I have been up to the top of Hawk Mountain, one of the tallest points in Pennsylvania where I live. I am able to watch the sunset from this magnificent point.  Sitting at an elevation of 1,500 feet you truly feel like you’re on top of the world floating in the clouds around you.  A place where no one can ruin the moment of the perfect setting sun in the background.  I’m from a place where leaves changing color is a lot more exciting than being at home in the family room watching football on Sundays.  On those lazy Sunday’s I will be at the highest point of the mountain watching the sunset.

            Walking up the last fifty yards of the worn path, from previous hikers for this is the most beautiful spot to watch the sunset.  Looking down at the rocky path for caution of the slippery green mushy moss that covers those rocks and causes many people to roll an ankle.  The brown little chipmunks scurry across the path as your feet crunch on the red, yellow, and orange leaves that lie in your way.  The blue bird chirps a melody like no other from the pine tree at the very top of the peak of the mountain.  The dense parallel forest that surrounds you one either side going up the path. Having a pal at your side that always goes with you because they enjoy this peaceful place just as much as you do, and talk about life with zero social media. Except for the sunset picture there is no need for social media but that’s later in the hike.

            Breaking the crest of the mountain and getting the first “aw” reaction to the blue sky above you slowly fading across into a deep orange to a faded orange-yellow, and then the shine of the sun’s rays beating on you.  The shine of that big ball of fire in the sky we call the sun hits you with the heat waves it produces, like you are walking into a sauna just without all the sweaty stickiness.  Then taking in that 180 degree view, breathless in the sight I walk my way over to the benches that lie in a field of massive boulders. These enormous rock are always fun to climb on and jump off.  I remember the time my school took us up here, every time I come up I think back to the day we would jump all over these rocks and not injure ourselves.

At the benches, I sit there and admire the colorful trees that surround where I sit.  The mountain range splits the two valleys straight down the middle so you can see both valley equally on each side.  An old coal mining railroad track lies on the right side, and sometimes if you’re lucky a train will come through, and blows its whistle.  The colorful trees make up all kinds of green, red, and yellow leaves that cover the mountain like a blanket covering a person. You only see certain parts of the person’s body, and you can only see certain spots of the mountain.  One spot that can be seen from the point is the river of rocks in the valley which is made up of 4.09 miles of big boulders and wild flowers.  The Appalachian Trail then extends out through the rest of the mountains; trees painted white to lead hikers in the right path either north or south.  Looking north, I can see an old coal mine that would take an hour to get to by car.  They also have wind turbines that are visible from this spot.

The time to get the sunset picture has come, when the cirrus clouds are in the sky or the thin stretched wavy clouds add a new texture and brightens up when it is mixed with the colors of the sunset.  Geese soar through the sky right before dark, and the “V” they form in the sky fades away as they land in the field to the west side of the mountain.  As the sun’s light fades down on you in wait for dusk to turn to dark, the stars light up the night sky.  Between the stars and a full moon lighting the whole earth up, it doesn’t feel like it’s that dark out.  Where I’m from the closest city is thirty miles away so the stars seem even larger, plus there is zero noise coming from any type of human.  The peaceful time on top of the mountain is an amazing experience to see unless there is some place like this around where you live. 

The place where I’m from is Hawk Mountain, a sanctuary of peaceful times and lots of great memories.  The whole adventure is great for seeing the animals that roam the forest, to the trees and their bright colors, and the sun everyone truly goes to see.  The earth lit up by the moon instead of the sun is quickly upon you.  This place can be found in many other locations you just have to find it.