As I put the Echoes to bed today I watched a young man who went to school near here gain the attention of most of the country as he hit his 61^st homerun in one season. Mark McGuire reached the summit today and stood alone there along with Roger Maris filled with emotion. What a feeling it must be to have the whole country if not the better part of the world rooting for you to make it to the top.

For most of us though we have to reach our summits on our own. We may have a few friends and family to help push us on but the majority of our successes are the results of our own personal commitments and desires to succeed.

When I "enter the forest" as Nyerges so aptly titles his new book, I enter into a world of constant changing wonderment that I long to understand and know to my fullest. For me, each day existing in the forest is a new day at bat and being there I rarely strike out. Reaching the summit of Mt. Lowe, or Mt. Disappointment or one of the many other peaks in the area is the home run of the day and I stand there feeling as good as Mark McGuire in that tiny moment.

Please take the time this fall to enjoy our trails and forests in the San Gabriel Mountains.

Next issue we visit the Observatory on Echo Mountain.