Audio
David Begun
Transcript
My name is David began, and I've been a frequent visitor to the park for over 20 years now. There are a lot of reasons why I keep coming back to the islands. There's so many fun things to do, like hiking, kayaking and diving, but it's the definitive isolation of the islands that makes them so alluring, even compared to other wild places I've been. It starts with the journey across the channel. Which is a transition from civilization and all that comes with it to a simpler place where things like keys and wallets that are so important on the mainland are meaningless. What matters here is not material, but more sensory the sights, sounds and smells, as well as the wonderment of being able to step back in time and take a break from the pressures and cares of the world. Yet all this is obtainable just an hours boat ride from the mainland. This feeling is most noticeable to me in the evening when I walked down to the Cove. And look across the sea to the lights of the mainland. I sit and think of all the activity and business over there, and yet here on Santa Cruz, I'm fulfilled by the smell of the ocean, the sound of the waves lapping against the shore and the sky above me, full of stars. As I sit, I think of those who have come here before me over thousands of years, whose experiences would have been so much the same. And I'm content. When I journey back across the channel and transition to my daily routine, I bring these feelings and experiences back with me. The perspective I gain from the simplicity of my island time helps me deal better with the complexity of life on the mainland, and that's why I keep coming back to the Channel Islands.
Description
Duration
1 minute, 31 seconds
Credit
NPS
Date Created
06/04/2016
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