On Saturday night, when my friend texted to say it looks like the rain will hold off, I reluctantly agreed to go hiking. My weather app showed possible rain all day. which was one reason for my reluctance. In addition to that, I didn’t feel like being up early and giving up my day. As almost always happens, once I’m out in the woods, I admit to myself that the hike, and getting out of the city / out of the neighborhood was a good idea.
I still didn’t feel like being a functioning and mobile human being when I picked my friend up by the more-than-usually crowded visitor’s center at the Golden Gate Bridge, but I eased into the idea as we headed to our usual hiking area on Mt. Tam. As we drove the winding, switchback road up the mountain, a coyote ran across the street and in to the woods, then turned and watched us drive by. Coyotes are plentiful out here and would normally be unremarkable except for the fact that, until today, I had yet to see one. A few of my friends find it hard to believe that I haven’t seen a Coyote – especially given how much time I spend walking around the city. They also can’t believe I haven’t been to Tahoe or eaten an In n Out burger yet. My friend on the hike teased me about finally checking off seeing a coyote from my list.
There’s a different kind of peace one experiences when hiking on cool and misty day. The woods feel richer and more earthy. The moss on the trees and the pine needles underfoot are softer. The sounds are muted like the gray sky. On this particular hike, in addition to the Coyote, we saw a few deer, lots of mushrooms, and a group of newts (an armada of newts).
For my friend, I think he needed to get out as an escape from a crappy week: family stuff, work stuff, all the stuff. For me, it was a welcome change of pace from wandering around the city or sitting by the water or just running errands. Today I went for a rainy day hike and am better off because of it.