Colleen Drake

Walking ln the Woods

My advice to you is not to inquire why or whither, but just enjoy your ice cream while it’s on your plate. Thornton Wilder I was born in western Washington, as were both of my parents and two of my four grandparents. Whenever one’s roots go that deeply into the soggy soil of the northwest,Continue reading “Walking ln the Woods”

Heaven Tickles

I think the dying pray at the end not please but thank you, as a grateful guest thanks his host at the door. Annie Dillard No one would ever call me religious. Even as a young child I found Sunday school boring and could never figure out why gluing alphabet noodles onto a paper plateContinue reading “Heaven Tickles”

Going It Alone

Yesterday I was clever. that is why I wanted to Change the world. . Today I am wise. That is why I am Changing myself. Sri Chinmay I started hiking alone when I was in my early twenties for purely practical reasons. I was working as a Registered Nurse in a hospital, which meant daysContinue reading “Going It Alone”

A Stick in the Mud

Learn the alchemy that human beings know the moment you accept what troubles you’ve been given the door will open, Welcome the difficulty as a familiar comrade. Rumi Many years ago, back when I was a working woman, I had a three day weekend ahead of me. You know what a precious thing that is.Continue reading “A Stick in the Mud”

Following the Trail Home

We shall not cease from exploration And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first time. T.S. Eliot In 1977 when my twin daughters were just a few months old, I read with interest an article in Signpost magazine about the formation ofContinue reading “Following the Trail Home”

Is This the One?

The journey is my home. Muriel Rukeyser It has happened to every hiker and therefore most likely to you, since I know most of my readers are themselves hikers. We get injured on the trail. Fortunately most of them are minor. . .scrapes, lacerations, sprains, burns, bruises, blisters. It is just not possible to scrambleContinue reading “Is This the One?”

Notes from the Desert

In the point of rest at the center of our being we encounter a world where all things are at rest in the same way. Dag Hammarskhold My last post was published from the Painted Desert, where I sat at a wooden table with my lap top. I had gone into town the preceding dayContinue reading “Notes from the Desert”

Confessions of a Wanderer

The surest way to make God laugh is to tell her your plans. Anne Lamott The summer before I graduated from college my friend Patty and I decided to hike the Washington section of the Pacific Crest Trail. The trail was fairly new then, having been authorized by Congress just three years earlier. I hadContinue reading “Confessions of a Wanderer”

Remembering Dana’s Shelter

You don’t choose what to write—it chooses you. Thor Hanson In 1985, while in my mid-thirties, I set out to do a ten day trek on the Pacific Crest Trail, joining it south of White Pass, and ending on the south side of Mt. Adams. These days such a journey would be called a sectionContinue reading “Remembering Dana’s Shelter”

Impossible Conditions

Whatever you’re meant to do, do it now. The conditions are always impossible. Doris Lessing Everyone’s had a trip like this. If you haven’t been hiking for long and still believe that everyday on the trail is just another day in the sunshine, let me assure you they won’t all be like that. And I’mContinue reading “Impossible Conditions”