The hiking was great. The trail was wide and just rough enough, the terrain was rolling, the woods bare of leaves, pulling the eye deep, revealing its secrets. It wasn’t long before the trail I was on joined up with the Ice Age Trail, a long distance trail that crosses Wisconsin in a wandering manner, tracing the edges of where the glaciers pushed to in the last ice age.
My notebook describes what happened next.
These woods seem monotonous: rolling land of aspen, birch, balsam and the occasional stand of towering pine that were for some reason spared the saw. But, they somehow promise mystery over every ridge, around every hill. They seemed to have a covenant with my feet, a pact to pull me ever further in, and I marched without pause past every point where I meant to turn around. “That pine. That hill. That bend.” I just watch myself walk past them. In fact, it is only the desire to describe this on paper that finally brought me to a stop.
It is strange. If I weren’t out here alone I probably wouldn’t have noticed it at all. But I can’t deny that every step forward does something to my heart.
Yet, it is only forward I look.
And indeed, even as I sat on the ground, drinking some water and taking a breather, having finally brought myself to a halt, ready to head back, I kept turning my head to look down the trail ahead. I really did want to see what was around that next bend. I got up, left my jacket and backpack on the ground like collateral, and walked down to that next bend. Of course, what was around the next bend was more bends, more hills, more woods that wanted me in. I walked back to my stuff and picked it up off the ground.
It was time to head back. I knew it was. I had walked a good couple miles and was starkly aware that every step forward that I took was another I would have to drag myself out if I broke both my legs.
I appreciate your ability to clearly contrast the emotional experience of being in the city vs. the woods. Thanks for sharing the journey with us.
RSS
I love the photo of the interior of the cabin, how the sunbeams are suspended in mid air. I have the evil twin set to that stainless steel table and the aquamarine vinyl chairs. I’ve held on to that set for years with the purpose of someday having a cabin of my own to put it in. I’ll bet that your family has played a lot of card games around that table and told many tales while sitting there after the plates have been cleared.
As always thanks for sharing your experience with us.
PS – I’m probably crazy, based on the standards you listed. I answer my own questions and laugh at the jokes that I tell myself. The key to happiness is to never go to bed angry with yourself.