I dreamed I climbed Olympus Mons
(Not just on a whim, I’m not daft; I packed
Some sandwiches, a flask and a Mars Bar).
The stars were still out when I set off from the Hab and drove
To the volcano’s base, turning my face to the sky
And the summit, so ridiculously high above me
It was almost in space, and after a deep breath
Began my quest to reach the top.
Scaling the escarpment was the hardest part;
Climbing those ancient, lava-lapped cliffs,
Four El Capitans high, but after that it was just a
Heart-pumping hike to the caldera
(Someone once biked it! Crazy!), past Pangboche
To Clayborne’s Castle and the last stroll
To the centre of the Venn diagram of overlapping craters
At the summit, to sit silently on the dusty ground
And listen to the sound of the wind whistling through
The cliffs surrounding me, a choir of ghosts
Singing the songs of ancient Mars…
© Stuart Atkinson 2018
