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
Author: asiwentwalking
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
Straight On
Mingo Creek County ParkPennsylvaniaFebruary 2015 Hiking occurs in the non-linear world. These bridges define the linear world.
Nothing
NothingArizonaJune 2018 What would you call a town that was a town, then it was a ghost town, and now it’s not even that? You’d call it “Nothing,” right? This town that couldn’t make it as a ghost town once had a sign on the outskirts of town, wherever that might be. You would see… Continue reading Nothing
Pennsylvania Series I — Penn’s Woods
Pennsylvania(There are 27 columns in my Pennsylvania Series. We have visited all of these marvels on the way to, or from, various hikes.) Pennsylvania. Sylva refers to the woods, the forest, the places where we frequently hike and camp. Penn means “Penn”, as in William Penn. William Penn? Who dat? William Penn was the father… Continue reading Pennsylvania Series I — Penn’s Woods
The Raëlians
VolcanoHawaiiJuly 2016 In 1946 Vichy, France, a baby was born. He was named Claude Vorilhon. Claude grew up to become a singer/songwriter, a sports writer, a race car driver and the leader of a good-intentioned, semi-wacko cult group. As a musician, he sounded a little like Antonio Carlos Jobim, but not too much. His music… Continue reading The Raëlians
Bald Faced Hornets
Driskill MountainLouisianaJune 2012 Back to our summit hike, here on the formerly French land of Louisiana. To the right of our hiking path halfway to the top of the state is a beautifully formed, 30-inch high baldfaced hornet hive. The baldfaced hornet, like the bald eagle, is not bald. Its face has a pattern of… Continue reading Bald Faced Hornets