“And so you begin to shift into hiking time, it’s altered state of consciousness. Sierra time. In that morning light, at the start of a trip, I sometimes laugh out loud.” – Chapter 1
Kim Stanley Robinson, The High Sierra, 2022
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Before this year’s hiking season, I discovered Kim Stanley Robinson’s wonderful memoir which intersperses geology, history, hiking routes, and mountain lore with his own stories that demonstrate his lifelong love of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
I began with his audio book, which he reads himself, listening to it while falling asleep so I could dream of mountains. The book was so good that I purchased the print version, which was worth it for the wonderful maps and artwork.
More than anything, Robinson book is a beautiful overlook from which to plunge into aspects of the High Sierras than I had previously had little interest. I’ve found myself exceedingly curious to learn more about how this four hundred mile, fourteen thousand foot high range was formed five million years ago. I’m looking up “Nevadan orogeny,” “fault block escarpments,” and “batholith” like a boy memorizing dinosaur names.
I’m most thankful to Robinson for helping me see the High Sierras as one continuous feature, rather than an unconnected collection of separate destinations. This has helped me have a whole new appreciation for the range as a whole, expressing itself in different ways as it travels south. Tahoe, Yosemite, Sequoia, and Mount Whitney are all different vantage points of the same place, as Haight-Ashbury, the Embarcadero, the Financial District, and Chinatown are all part of San Francisco.
Looking forward to seeing more of the wonders described in this book.