I looked out on to a frozen Squam Lake still breathing heavily from the steep incline of the Cotton Mountain trail and took in the vast landscape below me with unbridled amazement. That March morning, I along with a few friends had decided to volunteer with an SLA trail crew. I had no expectations whatsoever, which made this scene that more special. I reached the mountain peak and could not avert my gaze from the beauty below.
I believe a person’s relationship with nature is private, even intimate. The moments of pure unadulterated bliss and resoluteness experienced between a person and the world around them is theirs alone. Though we may share the space with our friends, families, or loved ones, we all experience those feelings separately and within.
Yet, I think there is something profoundly special in sharing these spaces with others.
Leaving Miami was a difficult decision to make. I was leaving my home, my family, my partner, my dog, and the warmth, for a sleepy lakeside town in New England; but I knew that the experience of living and working on Squam would be unparalleled. So, at the end of October, I loaded up my car with all my belongings and started the trek north.
With my partner in the passenger seat, we divided the nearly 24-hour route over the course of a week stopping along the way to refresh and refuel. Knowing that at the end of our journey we would have to part ways for some time, we made the best of a long and taxing road trip. With masks adorned and hand sanitizer at the ready, we took in the east coast lounging on beaches, hiking through parks, ordering take-out, and driving around cities we would plan to visit and explore in a post-pandemic world.
When we finally arrived in New Hampshire, there was a bittersweet feeling to it. I was returning to this beautiful and hidden corner of the country, but I also had to say goodbye to someone I love and care about. Before I would let him leave though, I needed him to experience Squam.
We set out with my new fellow LRCC members on the Percival Mountain trail. Now, while we had spent the summer walking and biking miles each day, we were by no means ready for the steep hike that we had imparted on. Miami is, after all, completely flat. I grew worried that I was completely turning him off to the whole idea of New Hampshire in this one misadventure, but we persevered all the same. As we summited the peak, all 2212 feet below our feet, we turned to the lake behind us and stared out into the wide expanse.
I cannot be certain of what he experienced in that moment, but looking at him, it felt as though I were seeing Squam for the first time again. The look of disbelief and amazement in his eyes said it all. There is something truly special about this lake.
Mikey is a full-time member serving at the Squam Lakes Association. He graduated from Florida State University, where he studied Biology. You can learn more about Mikey here!