At the base of the mountain, new signs point to the way up. And I had the urge to take one of the old signs still lying there. Something about this area is sacred, and you want to take a piece of it. But the wooden sign posts will be recycled naturally, like the rest of this area. We didn’t stop, hiking through the lush shrubs of nature’s gardens, wading through clear mountain streams.
The next elevation had rocks to climb. Over the ages, people have arranged the rocks for us (and the countless others) to follow in these footsteps. These were greatly appreciated. We climbed up and up until we crossed a sloping snowy edge, seeing nothing but sky up ahead.
Finally, we made it to the glacial lake, Laguna Cerro Castillo. Enough people are here to form a raucous crowd, appreciating one of the world’s most beautiful sights. We would not reach the summit. Sometimes, in mountains like these, the view from below is more beautiful than the view from above.