The Desert Light
- February 2008
- Uncategorized
In Moab, winter is coming to an end….or rather, opening into spring. Suddenly the days are much longer, and the air has an edge of warmth rather than the bite of cold. The sun is everything here in the desert. I have learned to shape my life to it.
Desert dwellers are almost reptilian in our habits. In the winter, it’s only possible to climb in full sun, and we plan our days around the short noontime hours, usually climbing in the boulders or quick trips to wind-sheltered cliffs. For several months, we are all seeking the sun, our lives revolving around it.
This is a special time for Moab locals, because for the majority of the year, being in this desert means shadow chasing, to a degree that visitors find almost eccentric. But when you live here, you quickly learn that in the long warm months, you will survive the best and feel the most energetic the more you stay out of direct sun. In just another month or two, I will be hiding from the light again, climbing only in the shade, planning my days around the movement of the sun as I dodge its path.
Moab winter means a quiet time, when tourism has lulled almost to a stop. The Moab community is close and connected, and the air is cold and full of energy. The sun takes a flatter path across the sky, shortening its arc from morning to dusk. The quality of the winter light is achingly sharp and glowing, even more beautiful than the other seasons. The colors are more intense, the reds and oranges more flaming, the blues more piercing, and in combination they create a contrast so glorious that this desert is almost another world of pure, ecstatic beauty.
In the crisp, fresh air, there is no feeling of lethargy or sun-fear that can crush even the brightest of motivation in the hot months. The winter desert is its own world entirely, a paradise of energy, dazzling color, and freedom.
