Tag Archives: walking

Grubs for Lunch–from And Now This

My friend Luigi asks, “Do you think prehistoric people were happier than we are?” We’re standing in line at an airport food vendor called the Dogpatch Bakehouse. Our flight is on time, but my stress level is high. I took a few wrong turns driving from the hotel to the airport, then left my phone…More

More Than Enough–on walking at 5:00 a.m.

I’ve been thinking about topophilia of late. “One’s mental, emotional, and cognitive ties to a place,” as University of Wisconsin geographer Yi-Fu Tuan, who coined the term, defines it. Where I’ve had this feeling, of being tied to and restored by a place, is just outside my door.  This morning I can’t see much of…More

Hang Up–taking my tech for a walk

There’s a guy coming down the hill on Sodon Lake Road. Tizi and I are walking up the hill, twenty minutes into our morning route. He’s wearing hiking shorts and walking shoes. So: we’re on the same page, out walking for our own good. He takes the opposite shoulder of the road and we pass…More

Toothpicks–walking, Uncle Buck, an old song

“Did you bring a flashlight?” Tizi asks. We’re setting out on our morning walk. It’s January, cold and dark. The snow that fell a few days ago has all melted, leaving puddles in the depressions in the asphalt pavement. She’s wearing her bright yellow Flectson vest over her many layers. A passing car will light…More

But It’s Butte–and snakes and bear and moose

There are days you don’t really feel like it. But this is Butte. So we go. They should call this the Pile of Rocks trail, not the Blacktail trail. It’s a four-mile loop. Less than a mile in, we start seeing colossal piles of rock. It’s not our first encounter with rocks, but these are…More

To See a Glacier

“Climb up on that rock,” Tizi will say, in the most offhand way. We’re on the trail, any trail, and the viewing is spectacular. She would like me to take a picture, an enhanced picture, improved by my higher elevation, by my closer proximity to the subject. The subject: waterfall, rushing stream, ravine, ridge, meadow,…More

Don’t Just Run–where there are bear

I’ve got a whistle. I bought it just before we left on this trip, planning to use it, if necessary, to scare away bears. Actually, I bought two. They’re like referee whistles, stainless steel, on a black string.  I bought two just before we left, one for me and one for Tizi. It was foolish.…More

Taking in the Dark–and good people with lights

I’ve been taking early morning walks around the block in our subdivision. Around 4:00 a.m., just out of bed, I pull on whatever clothes I took off the night before, slip into a pair of flipflops, unlock the back door and step outside. I want to be out in the summer night. When I was…More

Hills Above the Adriatic–a walk, a view, then lunch

All roads lead to lunch.  We are on a trail in San Bartolo, in what they call a “natural park.” It’s an area of rolling hills and stunning views along the sea above Pesaro. You drive up into it on a road called “the panoramica.” The term is apt. Our plan today, like most days,…More