The Kaibab Plateau

         Staring out over the immense chasm of the Grand Canyon, I am aware of our infinitesimal nature. We feel so big in this world most the time, because our world is everything we know, our perception is all that really exists. But when we realize that this world around us has been forming and changing, rivers flowing, fires breathing, for billions of years, the realization of how diminutive we are as individuals is overwhelming. As a whole, the human race, our role on earth right now is just as influential as the wind or rain really, but this is the time and place of our reign. On a universal scale we are just an insignificant speck, we know the elements will never cease, where as we may be obliterated. This perception of mine will be gone, most definitely, in the blink of an eye.What am I here for, why am I standing on the edge of the earth musing about my place in the world? Am I here as an audience, an observer? Sometimes that's all I feel like, sometimes that's the only position I feel comfortable in. The grand Canyon draws an audience from all over the world, a mighty wonder, demanding recognition. But if we (people) weren't here to awe over it, if that moment of perception didn't exist, would it really be that mighty?
         
           In the forest of the Kaibab Plateau with it's lush meadows, Ponderosa pines, Aspens, and Blue Spruce it feels like a different world than the harsh canyons below. Their is a less noticed wonder at work here, the mycelium that hides under the duff, a living mass probably as large as the Grand Canyon itself. The fruiting bodies were everywhere at the time of our stay, popping up on the stage of the great Kaibab plateau, showing off their brilliance. Although less popular than the canyon, they too have their audience. Mushroom hunters from all over the world made sure to stop by for the show on their way to witness the immensity of the Grand Canyon. Aspen Scaber Stalks were the main event, but Fly Agarics, Shaggy Manes and Delicious Milk Caps were there as well. We didn't expect to witness the fungi in such abundance in these parts. When I think of Arizona, I think of desert, dry and parched. The Kaibab is like a lush island floating above the desert, full of life. It rained and thundered continuously while we were there. We didn't mind at all though, because we know what the rain has to offer and with our awesome rain shelter that Ty constructed, we didn't really suffer at all. After the rain, we would go out with our bucket and fill it with delectable mushrooms that we would dine on nightly. This was by far the largest yields we had ever experienced of wild edible mushrooms.

       Before we came to the Grand Canyon we had stopped in Vegas for a night of debauchery, so we left the City of Sin to be humbled by the Kaibab forest and the north rim of the grand canyon, quite a stark contrast. The experience of extremes  side by side, the extremes of humanity and the extremes of nature. Another epic chapter of our Soul Journey completed, leaving us thirsty for more, we left Arizona, heading closer to home and the end of the road.

“All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream.” 
― Edgar Allan Poe