Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Notes from a cynical hiker

The idyllic pictures below will not show the truth: At my heart, I hate hiking. I hate the insecurity, the not knowing where the hell you are or where you're going or how long it's going to get there, the chance that there may be a mountain lion or an unleashed, snarling dog or worst of all, a chatty fellow hiker around the corner.

I chose to hike the Deer Park Trailhead today, my 35th birthday. I chose to do so because I thought it would give me time to wander through nature and ruminate.

Um, yeah.

Fact is, I don't much ruminate when I'm hiking. I'm too busy picking my way down rocky slopes, wondering what the hell is that chirping or brushing the dirt off my ass after a fall.

It's adversity amongst beauty. It's not pure pleasure. That's why I chose this for my birthday -- to remember that I can do it, and hopefully never to forget.

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