On a recent trip to Banff, Alberta I realized a few things. One is that the perks to city life are limited and the other is that the commodification of nature's beauty to tourists is a pity, but understandable. In the great out doors I feel liberated and humbled by nature's power. Seeing the rocky mountains is awe inspiring and it reassures me that nature's power overrides the abuses of human impact. That the crashing together of plates can expose the innards of the earth is astounding and almost abject. And, although the oil spill in the golf is wreaking havoc on the earth's eco-system, the existence of the Rockies almost assures me that earth will conquer the devastations of man's presence.
Banff is a lovely town in the heart of the Rocky mountains and I've often dreamed of living there. Harnessing power from the geological wonders around me and living in a tranquil and pure state of being. These reveries are soon stifled, however, when I see the tourism that so often flanks nature's wonders. The laissez-faire lifestyle that Banff epitomizes is so consciously packaged and marketed, that it attracts travelers from over the globe and, though I can understand that the beauty of this place is to be shared with other world citizens, I can't help but bereave the loss of authenticity that tourism brings to Alberta's national parks.
Although I lament the loss of a wilderness experience to tourism, I am comforted by the sheer strength behind nature; the force behind streams etching out their course into limestone beds, and the way a glacier's minerals can colour it's runoff and make an entire lake a fantastical sight. Though I mourn trees deadened by pine beetles, I celebrate the hundred year old spruces who mark their territory and anchor the soil. I marvel the ravens who keep watch over arbourous terrains, making man shudder as they swoop overhead. And though I grieve over fallen-grain eating black bears hit by trains on CN tracks, I smile at the fear for the wild that makes people respect nature, carry bells, and leave no trace.
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