Riverfront Park near Windsor California has become my familiar walk. I have walked it in many seasons, many weathers. I have posted about it before. So why am I doing yet another post on it now.
One of my biggest impediment (a word that literally translates to shackling the feet) is my self starter doesn't work well. The roughest step is the first one. There are many reasons for this problem, but the reasons are not important. How to get past the first step is important. That is the first and most important object of this blog is that by sharing what helps that first step for me may help other people in their taking the first step.
Doing something over and over is not my best talent. Been there, done that, and don't even bother with the tee shirt. Coming to this particular walk seems to be more like comfort food. And yet I still have a need to keeping it fresh. In this episode I will discuss a little of what keeps it fresh for me.
Sharing
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| Please stay on the trail. Going off trail damages the ecosystem. |
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| The trail at the top of the loop is closed. |
Posting trail conditions. I am on a local hiking group on fBorg. We gift to each other information on trail closures, and reopening. Trail conditions and special problems. And we encourage each other, especially those timid or with hiking limitations.
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| The loop is usually mostly wheelchair friendly. At this time of the year, the drains across the roadway may not allow as much access as usual. |
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| While the trail is mostly unmuddy there are still parts that will get your shoes damp. |
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| This is your annual poison oak awareness public reminder |
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| The crews do try to keep it off the path but you need to not brush up against it. |
You all know what a shy, quiet person I am. (where is irony font when I need it?) I tell people that the trail is closed ahead. And I show stuff to new hikers and kids.
Observing
When one walks the same path over time, certain features become familiar. Watching their maturing and/or decaying, new plants in old places, signs that other people find this place precious.
Counting
Today the park was very loud. There were hundreds of birds trying to get the attention of potential mates. I do not know the names of the birds, but by counting the different songs, I could feel the diversity. Richard Feynman said about walking with his father: I learned very early the difference between knowing the name of something and knowing something.
I count flower species. And I take photos. Hey, photos are a great excuse to take a break from the walking. Sometimes I use it as a reward for the return trip, the slower travel when one stops to photo.
Don't worry about those great panoramas of the super blooms. Yeah, you may get to see one, buy you can see just as much beauty in a flower that will fit on a pencil eraser.
One of the things I learned from our expedition photography leader Jeffrey Garriock on the Antarctic trip was about how to make photos better by looking for the story. Where does the eye travel? Who is sharing in the moment? Where does the light warm something in you?
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| Photograph something from a dozen different views. |
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| Don't look at the pictures while you are on the trail, wait till you get them on the bigger screen and the same thing will give you a dozen different stories |
Please share with me, with us, what it is that gets you out on the trail.
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