A Letter to the Stateline Lakes
Anne Iliff, Lolo Trail Steward
Clearing Heart Lake Trail with Superior/Plains Trail Crew, Lolo NF 06/03
Your glittering waters held gently,
like diamonds in two cupped hands.
Your shores lined with driftwood,
holding fast to memories of old forests.
Your meadows ripple like the ocean,
French Lake, after a Day Clearing with Ninemile Trail Crew, Lolo NF 06/17
waves breaking over topography,
lupine, paintbrush, and beargrass currents.
Your boulders speak stories,
to keen listening ears,
of the granite walls that encapsulate you.
Hazel Lake on a Ranger Hitch, Lolo NF 06/24
Your sounds are those of angels.
Wind ebbing over firs,
whispering.
Creeks dancing over rocks,
bubbling.
Hub Lake from above, on a Ranger Hitch, Lolo NF 06/25
Birds singing of the new day,
rejoicing,
Voices carrying over still water,
connecting.
You hold our awe, our daring,
our families and our stories
in your hands.
Bonanza Lakes Restoration Trip, Lolo NF 06/27
You give us a place to be still,
to ache, to question, to breathe
deeply.
To sleep under your sky,
and to hold our loved ones
close.
Hoodoo Lake after Clearing with Superior/Plains Trail Crew, Lolo NF 07/02
You give without end,
your grandeur, beauty, peace
and wild.
Your love pouring over each of us
who sits on your sunny shores.
Pearl Lake on Ranger Day Hitch, Lolo NF 07/09
We come to you with hope and leave,
filled with respect and gratitude,
dusty skin kissed by the sun,
and a desire to protect you,
stories to tell our children one day.
Dalton Lake on Ranger Day Hitch, Lolo NF 07/09
So from the place in my heart
that overflows,
with the love, beauty and wildness,
That you pour into each one of us,
Thank you.