MT Repetitions

Yesterday my wife and I drove out the valley and hiked at Los Padres dam… It was cold and foggy at home and we were getting bummed!!! At the dam it was hot and sunny. Perfect.

We saw a ton of butterflies
fuzzy ants
red dragonflies
blooming yuccas
strange floating solar devices in the lake
and very few people

Halfway into the hike we came to the stream. It was cool and shady, a fine relief after the heat of the sun on the southern facing trail slope. We doused our hats and shirts and then managed to cross on some rock stepping stones. But then we came to main branch of the river. No stepping stones here. So we went for it. The cold water washed the dirt, grime and heat from our legs. On the other side we followed what we figured to be the trail and it crossed the river again…. since we were already all wet we went again… and then again… and then again. We managed to stay below knee high, keeping our pants dry – and the flow was never so strong we were in danger. And it was fun.. and I felt like a kid.
I also discovered that we have stinging nettles around here. I wasn’t really aware of that… my shins sure found out.

And it reminded me (both the wading and the nettles) of high school training for cross country. One of the last summer runs, before school started was an 8 miler that started at the high school and ran to the Deschutes river. The Deschutes is fed by the cascades – by the end of the summer it’s not too hard to cross, with water not usually above the hips.. We would run down the river for about 2 miles.. in any fashion we could. Mostly this meant tromping down the river itself.. in calf to thigh deep, glacier fed water. In the heat of summer – we’d normally go on a 85+ degree day, it sure was welcome – and fun. I don’t know that we could get away with it today with all the new developments and no trespassing signs that have popped up in the last 20 years.

The hike back yesterday – all wet and cool, was a bit nicer. The sun had moved closer to the ridge, there were a few clouds and the sun seemed a little less opressive. Fairy lanterns and creamsicle colored sticky monkey flower lined our way… as well as marvelously green poison oak. As nasty as poison oak is, it sure would be brown out there without it.

Today. I ran under gray skies along the coast. It seems summer here has already started. We’ll have to do some more trips inland to find the sun.

Today I am tired.

The sun briefly poked out it’s sleepy head
only to hide it away again behind the incoming cloud layer
high fog….

My mind is in high fog.

Rather than sleep I sought the sun
drove and then went for a run

My legs didn’t want to move
the soft sand was frustrating
grass stickers stuck in my socks and poked my feet
and I was tired.
I wanted to walk.

I took off my shirt to absorb more sun
Even startling a very large vulture into flight
didn’t wake me… pull me from my fog.

Then 35 minutes in… my heart raced
to the buzzing sound of a swarm of insects
the sound jerked my head to attention
Did I disturb yellow jackets? My adrenalin kicks in, just a bit…
And off to the left, up an incline and through the manzanita
I see a cloud of dark dots moving through and above the bush
they move as one… a deep buzz in the background
honeybees… and they are gone, dispersed into the trees.
I wonder where they are going and slog off on my path…
I dream of the day I was caught within a swarm
and ran along with it for 20 yards
seemingly a part of their little adventure.
I dream of the first time I saw a swarm
as they came over a ridge top in Carmel Valley, 2000′ up
and they make me smile.

My legs suddenly move faster
and I climb the next hill with ease
I bounce through the soft sand
and finish off my next 25 minutes with a smile on my face…

The smile lingers to the drive home
and while I sit at a stop light
and gaze into the fog that I will once again encounter
a fellow rides his bike in front of me
He sits upright
Right hand on the handlebars
Left hand in front of him… holding something
a stick?
No, it moves. It reaches forward.
It’s a small snake. Front half of it’s body extended forward from his hand
he seems to be enjoying the breeze,
like a dog with her head out the window,
and he stretches forward
faster, he calls.
And the fellow just bikes along
across the crosswalk, no concern on his face.
I look at the neighboring cars and no one seems to have even noticed
Just another normal day.

The light goes green and I’m on my way into the fog. I had a few moments of sunshine.