Mitchell Creek Meltwater

WILD BY NATURE PODCAST | EPISODE 2 — Experience the churning and sploshing of Mitchell Creek up close, as its snowmelt-swollen waters cascade down from Mitchell Lake towards Brainard Lake.

Recorded on the evening of July 2, 2022, near the Arickaree Picnic Area at Brainard Lake in Indian Peaks Wilderness. Elevation 10,350 feet.

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My recording gear, in place at the edge of Mitchell Creek where it captures the soundscape of freshwater pouring down the glacial valley.

INDIAN PEAKS WILDERNESS, COLORADO — July is here, and that means the trails above 10,000 feet are finally emerging from beneath a deep blanket of snow. So I drive up to Brainard Lake for a short evening hike and to record the second episode of my podcast, Wild By Nature.

There are still patches of snow lingering in shady spots, and the creek churns with the abundant meltwater that rushes down from alpine peaks above. I find a small clearing next to Mitchell Creek, not far from the Arickaree Picnic Area at Brainard Lake. There, I set up my recording rig and sit back for a few minutes as I capture the roar of water. But it’s not long before the mosquitos locate me and attack. I endure their assault as long as I can, which turns out to be exactly 7 minutes and 22 seconds—the length of this recording.

As with Episode 1 of this podcast, there’s no talking in this clip. Instead, it’s a solid wall-of-water sound, perhaps not as soothing as the gentle creek I recorded last time, but no less remarkable. This is the voice of one small creek, one summer evening, in a verdant glacial valley, nestled in the shadow of the Indian Peaks Range. It is beautiful, fleeting, and precious.

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