Trail Talk – September 2019

Ah…September. Summer begins to loosen its grip on our surrounding hills and we anticipate cooler nights, crisper mornings, and the trails stretching out before us. Fall will soon be here with its colorful palette. We yearn for the return of the gurgle of water in the streams of our watershed, hoping against all odds for an early wet autumn to bring relief to the parched soils of the neighboring mountain slopes.

The coming months as we near the end of another trip around the Sun are our months for contemplation of all that’s passed into recent memory. Where better to ponder and remember than on a walk-about in our woodland areas, one foot in front of the other, as the First Peoples so often remind us, ‘going there, going there…’ With the hottest days behind us, we can enter the wilds with an exploring mind, searching for new places and new adventure.

The cooling days bring renewed interest in stretching ourselves a bit further, adding another mile or two to our routine. New vistas to enjoy, new canyons to explore, these are the gifts we give ourselves as days grow a bit shorter and the intensity of mid-day lessens.

The trails seem to have taken on a different life. The dust from a dry summer pools like water in low areas, puffing up in a wave to cover our shoes if we carelessly step into said low spot. Trailside vegetation seems tired, less vibrant: a sorry cousin to the bright welcome colors of a spring season that seems so long ago now. Seeds in the form of burrs and prickles stick to our socks and shoes. Poison oak leaves lose their green summer gloss and turn bright red with flares of firelight leaping up from the parched hillsides. Oaks begin to add their dead leaves to the carpet of madrone leaves on the slopes: leaves sacrificed to the dry days of late summer.

Woodland birdsong seems more muted now, the singers pre-occupied with gathering strength from the dwindling bounty of the forest, preparing for migrations to more promising climates. The little ones are adults now, and flocks begin to form. Finches frolic in the open areas, feeding on those same ornery seeds that bedeck one’s socks. Blackbirds in droves roam the hillsides, chattering while hunting the last abundance of bugs.

September is a time of transition. Those carefree days of summer are slipping into the past, the dark days of winter loom on the horizon, and without a focus on the one’s immediate environment, it’s too easy to miss the changes around us. It’s a grand time to take to the trails. Soon the rains will come and the snow may fly. The holiday season will bring responsibilities that pull us away from our wild areas. An excursion now, while the trails are in fine shape, just after many folks have resumed schooling and employment, is a promise of quieter times, time to relax, unwind, and contemplate the change of season. Enjoy the equilibrium of the equinox.