This week Deb and I met Sof and Rob at their house around 8:30 am, like we usually do, and headed off in Rob's Volvo. Deb and I would like to thank Rob again for driving. It is so nice to be able to spend the day together in the same car so that everyone is able enjoy each other's company throughout the day.
It was a very warm and sunny day, and we took in as much of that as we could during our adventures this past Sunday. Most of the trail was covered in shade because of all of the tree cover, but it was still very warm and humid from the rain the day before.
The first mile or so included 2 fairly long and very steep, rocky hills that took the wind out of our lungs right away. Once we were at the top, we turned to our right and followed the trail along the hilltop until it started declining again, a few miles away. In the middle of our descent, we noticed a waterfall which we used as our backdrop for our weekly group shots.
We did our loop-d-loop at the waterfall, hiked back to the car, stripped off our wet shirts and hiking boots, and headed off to lunch. We hiked about 6 miles in all.
Lunch was at a biker bar called the Winchester Cafe in Portland, and it was very good. And our usual Starbuck's latte was in Colchester. We then bought some rib-eye steaks that were on sale close by, and headed home. Another successful hike was had by all.
Here's a hiking poem I found online...
THE PATH THAT LEADS NOWHERE
THERE'S a path that leads to Nowhere
In a meadow that I know,
Where an inland island rises
And the stream is still and slow;
There it wanders under willows,
And beneath the silver green
Of the birches' silent shadows
Where the early violets lean.
Other pathways lead to Somewhere,
But the one I love so well
Has no end and no beginning—
Just the beauty of the dell,
Just the wind-flowers and the lilies
Yellow-striped as adder's tongue,
Seem to satisfy my pathway
As it winds their scents among.
There I go to meet the Springtime,
When the meadow is aglow,
Marigolds amid the marshes,—
And the stream is still and slow.
There I find my fair oasis,
And with care-free feet I tread
For the pathway leads to Nowhere,
And the blue is overhead!
All the ways that lead to Somewhere
Echo with the hurrying feet
Of the Struggling and the Striving,
But the way I find so sweet
Bids me dream and bids me linger,
Joy and Beauty are its goal,—
On the path that leads to Nowhere
I have sometimes found my soul!
A Path the Leads to Nowhere
by Corrine Roosevelt Robinson (1861-1933).
See everyone next week,
Joe
