Just Say Yes

The Long TrailVermontAugust  1996 My backpacking buddy, Alecia, and I are hanging out at the intersection of Kelley Stand Road and the Trail, where we parked our car.  This road has some history.  In 1840, the great orator and senator Daniel Webster delivered the Kelley Stand Speech in this very spot.  Fifteen thousand and two… Continue reading Just Say Yes

Hot Rock

Death Valley National ParkCaliforniaJune  2009 A number of rules tell us what not to do on land overseen by the U S National Park Service.  Here are some of the rules.  Do not… . remove rocks, plants, fossils or antlers. pan for gold. gather wood, nuts, berries or fruit. feed wild animals. climb, walk on… Continue reading Hot Rock

New England Seasons

VermontAugust  2013 Our weather today is pleasant, comfortable, delightful even.  We have wispy clouds, reasonably warm temperatures.  It’s August, it’s summer, one of New England’s seasons.  Summer is followed by autumn, of course, and then by stick season.  When Earth is on the other side of the sun, spring for most, New England experiences mud… Continue reading New England Seasons

How Much Wood?

Wheeler PeakNew MexicoJuly  2013 Halfway down from the highest high point we’ve climbed so far (13 161 feet,) in the nearby rocks, is a marmot. Before we see him, we hear his whistling.  Or maybe its his chirp, or yip, trill, cluck, bark or chuck.  We call his call by a lot of call names. … Continue reading How Much Wood?

The Devil’s Wife

Mount GreylockMassachusettsMay  2014 It rains on our hike to the summit, but lightly enough that we don’t even put on our jackets.  There’s an odd sky. Which puts me in mind… Let me take you back to the days before cable television, or whatever we have now, even before Saturday Night Live.  On a few… Continue reading The Devil’s Wife

Black Widow

Driskill MountainLouisianaJune  2012 Returning to the summit from exploring the dead end of a nearby trail, I log another first.  Perched up there, in the shadow of the eave of the signboard marking the summit of Driskill Mountain in Louisiana, is a black spider with a red mark on the back of its abdomen.  Hmm,… Continue reading Black Widow

B G

Mingo Creek County ParkFinleyvillePennsylvaniaJune  2015 Later on our loop hike, coming back closer to trailhead, we descend a hill with an expansive field to one side.  To the other, at a break in the sycamore, hemlock, dogwood, oak and maple, we can see a house with an outdoor swimming pool.  This summer day, walking past… Continue reading B G

Horse and Rider

WyomingJuly  2013 Chugwater [https://www.asiwentwalking.com/2024/01/19/buffalo-jump/] is about more than dead bison.  You’ve seen the famous Bucking Horse and Rider symbol, almost always in silhouette.  It’s the trademark of the state of Wyoming.  It’s on their license plates. Clayton Danks, the cowboy, and Steamboat, the horse, were the two models for this emblem.  Our tie-in is that… Continue reading Horse and Rider

Stop on a Dime

Mount MitchellNorth CarolinaJune  2015 I have come upon many obstacles in the tens of thousands of miles I’ve hiked.  I’ve stumbled over downed trees, shimmied over boulders, fallen down gullies, dropped down steep inclines, nearly had my boots sucked off my feet by mud and slid down hills on my arse.  I’ve faced bear, wild… Continue reading Stop on a Dime