Mountains rise up, reach a peak height, and then gradually crumble. The rate at which this cycle of forming and fading occurs is difficult to grasp. Except for volcanoes, which can rise up before our eyes, most of the worlds mountain ranges required hundreds of thousands of years to form. To walk upon them, to hike along their faces, to gaze up at their immense height or look down from their crowns, is to experience our vulnerability while simultaneously absorbing a sense of wonder and awe at what they have seen come and go in their vast lifetimes.