Tag: hike

About a mile or so from where I live is some truly beautiful country, set aside by the city where I live as open land.  Deer, raptors, bunnies, snakes, raccoon, plants, oaks, thistle, cactus, sage all hang out together.  So do the suburbanites.  Other open spaces are found throughout, and the vary in size from small local parks, such as mine, which has a creek running through it, to areas of several hundred acres.

This morning I just had to get out, so off I went, and took a trail I had not taken before.  Moving along at a snail’s pace, there was a lot to see.  And be passed up by!  Cross-country runners, dog walkers, and just people out for a stroll.  Having a camera slung over one’s shoulder gives one a bit of grace – I’m not just another geriatric plodding along, but I have an excuse to dodder, as I have my camera.

Ok, given that, the fact is I don’t trust my ankles not to give way, and in areas where one is wandering alone, caution prevails.  This, though, doesn’t mean I don’t challenge myself, but it does mean I am careful, and in being careful, take the time to simply look.  And think . . . about composition, about exposure, about depth of field.  I also heard the birds, the rushing of the stream, and the plash of water over rocks.  Lizards scurried away, and butterflies flitted about.

A dreamy way to pass a morning on the first day of October.