In the photo above I am happy and smiling. It had rained hard the previous day, and my Camelback had leaked and completely soaked my sleeping bag at the bottom of my pack. The rain had continued into the night, and I had slept wet and cold. Still I found something to smile about theContinue reading “Rules for Living”
Tag Archives: hiking
Pause and Rest
For all the desert’s dreamlike beauty, to travel here…was not just to pitch yourself into oblivion; it was to grind away at yourself until nothing was left. It was to aspire to the condition of sand. William Atkins in The Immeasurable World When I planned a trip to Nevada earlier this month I never imaginedContinue reading “Pause and Rest”
Hiking with Rubies
It is good to walk. Even if you have somewhere to go. Richard Paul Evans in The Walk I began my road trip early this month, hoping to find some degree of peace and relaxation after a difficult spring and summer due to a major transition in my life. I always seem to seek thisContinue reading “Hiking with Rubies”
Something Worth Writing
Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. Benjamin Franklin When I started this blog about a year-and-a-half ago I never in my wildest dreams imagined that I would be posting weekly. I thought if I managed once a month I would be doing well. I was certain that I would run outContinue reading “Something Worth Writing”
The Evening’s Entertainment
Learn the alchemy 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 Before there were Ur Sacks and canisters there were still hungry bears in the woods, and the only option available to hikers who wanted to keep their foodContinue reading “The Evening’s Entertainment”
The Grouse and I
But ask now the beasts, And they shall teach thee, And the fouls of the air, And they shall teach thee; Or speak to the earth And it shall teach thee And the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee. Job 12:7-8, KJV Most hikers who have spent any time at all on theContinue reading “The Grouse and I”
That Which We Have Walked
You’re walking. And you don’t always realize it But you’re always falling With each step, you fall forward slightly And then catch yourself from falling. Laurie Anderson in Walking and Falling Like most infants my twin daughters were about a year old when they started to walk. I remember those moments well, for they remainContinue reading “That Which We Have Walked”
A Prayer for Summer
In the summer, the song sings itself. William Carlos Williams Now that Memorial Day weekend has passed, we are advised by marketers that summer has “officially” begun, and we should all be grilling burgers outdoors and eating potato salad. That is not a bad idea any time of year, but the whole “official” thing isContinue reading “A Prayer for Summer”
Getting to the Tops of Things
On Climbing the Sierra Matterhorn after Thirty-One Years Range after range of mountains Year after year after year. I am still in love. Gary Snyder The summer between my junior and senior year of college I took a mountaineering class. I needed one more physical education credit to graduate the following spring, and climbing mountainsContinue reading “Getting to the Tops of Things”
One Step at a Time, One Stitch at a Time
That’s it, I guess. Just go on living, whether you feel like it or not. Anton Chekhov My readers will not be surprised to learn that I have a life apart from hiking, though my hiking life will always be the axis around which everything else revolves. Still, the winters are long where I live.Continue reading “One Step at a Time, One Stitch at a Time”
The Solitude Trail 