Poetic Encounters in the Wild: A Collection of Poems for the Outdoor Adventurer

Spending twenty-two summers teaching in the wilderness of Wyoming at an environmental leadership school afforded firsthand experience with the diversified ecosystems of both Wyoming as well as Montana and Idaho. The numerous field trips into the Yellowstone National Park, and the Snake River floats extended my basic knowledge of the natural resources of Wyoming and other western states.

I have been a poet for many years. My love of poetry does not go back to my youth. Rather it began when I first set foot on a natural, untrammeled, unspoiled piece of landscape. Poetry should seek contemplation and time and involves continual acts of discovery. Discovery is the key word in creative poetry writing. The natural areas of open space and mountains provide many opportunities for discovery.

Poetry was my umbilical cord to give my emotions a way to venture beyond just my thoughts. Wilderness in the mind needs to find an outlet for the many encounters presented in this book. By having encounters with the diversified resources of a wild landscape one establishes a base for putting the emotions in a format that makes them available to others.

There is a sense of adventure inherent in the poems presented in this book. They are from the poet’s own experience as an environmental educator and outdoor leader. The poems are so created as to have an inherent message regarding environmental stewardship and responsibility. By sharing these poetic encounters with the reader, it is anticipated that the reader will want to have firsthand experiences with encounters in the wild.