In a way, I think it’s cheating 
to take pictures of mountains 
from inside an airplane.
through an instant frame
you can still the noise of every
drumlin, cirque, & ridge line

Thereon gain a sense of its 
interconnection & scale 
but further into what feels weather below, 
there’s a truer perception of
what you never knew was
there to be known 

Idling above 
could never meet the formidable roads
around the cul-de-sacs, 
or greet the in’s + out’s colliding 
somewhere in between
the summit & the base.

You may never fully know a place 
there isn’t always time for that
sometimes one frame is all you get,
sometimes right now is all there is
but if you can come back 
see what the mountain decides. 

If not this time
maybe next time 
always with a compromise, 
always returning 
in search of the
fullest adventure.