It was hot yesterday. It's been hot for a few days. We did not have many May-Gray or June-Gloom (yet) days. I hope we get some cooler days before Summer officially settles in. If not, we'll adjust, as one always does.
Anyway, we went someplace new yesterday.
This trail runs along the railroad tracks opposite of the camping area at Hart Park. I did lots of research about this locale and its history. The old families of days gone by and how they earned a living, how the land was broken up and owned back then and so on. I've informally decided to not bother placing the research and its links here. The photos tell enough of a story for me these days.
I was remembering when I used to take the many "locks" photos in years gone by. A lot of years have gone by. This one made me smile with the "open space" logo on it. Open Space, locked up. huh.
My small goal was to try and get to the tunnel. I'd read about it and thought it'd be cool to see. Plus, you can go up the trail and onto the tunnel. I almost got there, but not quite.
The tunnel is 7,000 feet long and is used by the Metrolink line.
The grasses and small brush is yellowed and dried up, while the thickness of the green trees feels so lush...like two tracks running along side one another. Life can be like that.
Small and broken, dried at the end of its season...shining green in the strong heat...the tiny piece of a bird's eggshell, spent thistle and lone cacti have their own stories to tell.
Today, a different kind of day - no interesting walk and errands that struck frustration, like the match against the box as I tried to light the white candle. sigh.
It's lit now, along with the green one, so I'll go look at those for a bit.
An interesting way of looking at today's outing. My pandemic pants fit, not super comfortable, but they fit. But, they're mostly jeans (except for 2 "weekend" pairs) and they're HOT to wear these days of triple digits. So, with the thought of how difficult it is to find pants that work on my shape and I may need to dress to leave the house more days than not. Eventually. I thought I'd start looking early. 2 stores = No luck. I also wanted thinner socks. The heating up our planet does not work for me and my feet! I'm just always hot (temperature) these days and I wouldn't mind being a bit more comfortable. So off I went. This would normal, pre-pandemic not be worth the time to type it, but these days, I don't do even the tiny bit of shopping I used to do, not even when I need something. But, there I stood, thinking of how crazy my Nana used to drive my mom at her requests of 100% thin cotton socks, roll down cuff. I wish I had hers now! I came home pants-less and sock-less and wondering what happened to the good old days of clothing I liked and cooler temps?
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On the way home I stopped to plant a few CMB, 3 to be exact.
I went back to 'bridge' trail head we were at on Sunday. I've often given in to my strong curiosity about weather the bags have been picked up. I guess I like to know. I've made a choice to not plant a bag in the exact same spot. I will return to the same trail heads as they often fit in with my other criteria (not on camera, no one around to see me planting...).
When I got there, a man was under the covering, in the shade, stretching. Only one car was in the lot. I was a bit wary being alone. I'm usually home or out with J. these days. It's funny how what we do/don't do shapes us. The past years, especially the past pandemic time, has made me less trusting (with good reason I think). These reactions are so odd to me as I used to be far more independent in those ways. Anyway, I told myself that this path is frequented by bike riders and runners, so all would be well, but still I went in on a dirt path nearby.
I walked to the bridge and across it, looking for bags all the way. Of the bags planted Sunday, one was left. It's funny that the one left was the one which seemed the most easily seen, in my opinion. At the end of the bridge, I sat on a boulder and watched two hawks circling in the smokey sky. On the way back, I stopped to look in a few spots. As I stood there, the stretching man came by. We said hellos & asked the typical 'how are you?' from across the paths. He responded with words and tone that said he's just 'hanging in there'. He said, "Ya know, just putting one foot in front of the other". Instantly my heart became soft, less wary. I hung back to see if he'd find the bag across the bridge, but it was too far to see. So, I planted one across from me, next to the walking part of this trail. I picked one out that maybe had a message to lift him if he found it. I did the same thing as I headed out...on a post nearby his stretching spot. At my car, I wondered about this plant that we've seen in more and more places recently. Then I was off again, for one more stop.
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The next stop was over at the trail where the horse lives. This called for a different kind of courage. It is empty over there. There are snakes possible. There are mammals possible. this is not my usual hiking alone kid of spot, but I was driven by the desire to know if the last bags planted there had been found and the desire to not completely give in to these days. The bags left here were on a side trail. I wondered if they'd been noticed. I started out, taking the walking stick he leaves in the car. A little protection couldn't hurt, right? I planted this bag (with another trail rock inside) just a bit up that same side trail. The other two were gone. Out of the 31 one planted, I have only seen one still on the trail, but there may be others that I haven't checked on. That's a lot of good (?) vibes out there. It was, of course, so darn dry out there and the air, so poor that I couldn't see the mountains across the valley. However, my breathing did just fine and my spirits rose. I did not see any snakes or large mammals, but I drug or pounded my walking stick along with me, just in case. ☺ I did see a lot of fresh horse droppings, which was a comfort and some other kind of scat, which was not. Heehee Almost back to the gate, I saw a flurry of wings as many birds landed right in front of me. By the time I got the camera back out, most of these tiny creatures had flown away again.
Just a moment in time.
As I wrote this post, I listen to J. practice and record an ancient song of his titled "Big Hair"...while also watching Benise on KCET's Strings of Hope.
No this was not confusing ;) Anyway, he is quite the show man and musician, every move coreographed. This one got stuck in my head (and may have Marti dancing!)
