“gave my knees to the long descent…”

Thank you, Leath Tonino, for putting us onto the long trail that asks for–and takes–our all. We are better for it!

When At Last I Reached Camp
by Leath Tonino

gave my knees
to the long descent
gave my eyes
to the sun and wind
gave my sweat
to the air
gave my heart
to the stone
gave my all
to step after step

when at last
i reached camp
there was none of me left
to snuggle up
in the down bag
to sip the whiskey
to count the shooting stars and
drifting off
drifting in
lose count

Leath’s poem is one of fifty works featured in the new issue of Deep Wild: Writing from the Backcountry. To learn more, visit www.deepwildjournal.com