Woodland Wanderings

I took this picture perched atop a giant rock along a woodland trail in nearby Mt. Gretna this weekend. While the colorful leaves and bare trees tell the story of autumn, our hike did not feature the crisp breezes typical for November in Pennsylvania. Dressed in short sleeves, and actually sweating a bit, this trail brought me back to my youth.

When I was 11 years old, I took my first trip into the wilderness. The middle school I attended was built on a tract of land that included many acres of forest. Twice a year, students throughout the school would spend a day at The Outdoor Center - a wing of the school dedicated to wildlife education. The main event of the day was a hike through the woods with our classmates and an adult guide. I don't remember the name of my first guide, but I remember what he taught us. He showed us how to walk sideways down steep hills so that most of the tread on our shoes was in contact with the ground. He taught us about a variety of birds and helped us spot animal tracks. And he warned that even in the dead of winter, it was still possible to get poison ivy by touching the vines that snaked up the trees.

I remember being in awe as I looked around at so many trees in one place. I grew up in the city. Sure I'd seen trees. Even driven through wooded areas on car rides with my parents or visited public parks to have picnics on hot summer days. But being in the forest was a different experience. It was so quiet that every sound we made seemed amplified. The crunching of leaves under our feet. The sound of boots on the dirt. The whistle of the wind and the scraping sound of tree branches. It was all so magical.

On one winter trip to The Outdoor Center, I remember "skating" on a pond in my winter boots, fascinated by the frozen water beneath my feet as well as a small stream frozen in time.

These early experiences taught me a reverence for nature that I may never have learned otherwise. The hikes sparked my imagination and made me want to know more about the creatures who lived in the forest.

Perhaps that's why I still find joy in the forest. Why I long to capture the creatures who live there in pen and in paint.

I hope wherever you are this week, that you're enjoying a piece of nature's beauty.