Come along my trail

[gurdonark]

I find it comforting to have a walking trail I think of as "my trail". It's not a matter of property ownership--it's a public trail--or of any vast store of insider knowledge I have about this trail. I just like to have one trail that is my "usual" trail. In this area, my trail is called the Trinity Trail.




The Trinity Trail runs nine miles along Lake Lavon, from Lucas, Texas to just outside St. Paul, Texas. It's a "horse and hike" trail, meaning that sometimes horse riders ride by. But it's not a heavily used trail, even in the most optimum weather. It runs through a mix of scrub trees and open fields, with prominent views of the heron-popular lake. It has cedar trees, and flying hawks, and more than a few butterflies. Parts of the trail are vistas of open field like this:



I usually walk for an hour or an hour and a half at a time. The trail is mostly flat, but it winds a bit, so that it's not like looking down some vast prairie, but more a mix of fields and trees. Sometimes I see carpets of flowers.



There are a few curious things along the trail. This time of year, the last of the Osage Oranges are on the ground. These are the fruit of the bois d'arc tree (in Arkansan, this is pronounced "BO DARK"). Squirrels love to eat them as if they were fast food:


When I come to the lake, I stop and watch herons and killdeer (local terns) and seagulls. Sometimes a fish will be popping the top of the water. Here's the lake vista that I see:



When I am walking, I think of all the things that fill my day but which go unremembered during the ordinary day. I make plans for the future, reflect on what has happened in the past, and I think about the day. I watch giant spiders making their webs between cedar trees. I stop by the shore to pick up freshwater mussel shares, or look for ammonite fossils in the limestone outcroppings. Sometimes I carry a cheap camera, bought at a dollar store, and I snap things of no particular interest, because they particularly interest me.

I am glad I have an outdoor place I call home. I know sometimes my heart is on the Trinity Trail.

Comments

[ranunculus.livejournal.com]

Thank you for sharing! It is always nice to see where others live.

[gurdonark.livejournal.com]

Thanks for commenting! I like to show what things really look like from time to time.

[daisydumont.livejournal.com]

that's a kind of walking meditation, isn't it? people like wordsworth took their long country walks very seriously! i oughta do that too, but i'm a long way from countryside, alas.

[gurdonark.livejournal.com]

There's always some equivalent of countryside, almost no matter where you are. I always like that idea of nature as meditation and escape!

Thanks for commenting.

[wildgarden.livejournal.com]

Nice walk. I like your trail very much.

[gurdonark.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I've come to be quite fond of this little walk.

[sun-set-bravely.livejournal.com]

Thank you for sharing these pictures. My soul longs to have a near-empty piece of outdoors as close to me as this trail is to you. For now, I'll enjoy your walks vicariously.

[gurdonark.livejournal.com]

I remember once, when I was into deep sea fishing, asking the folks in the internet ether whether I could take a subway or a train from NYC to an inexpensive party fishing boat. To my surprise, somebody
came up with detailed and easy directions for a reasonable ride.

In your situation, you have that state botanic garden in, what, the Bronx? I'd look into that as a potential home retreat.

[sun-set-bravely.livejournal.com]

I've never been to the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx, but IU adore the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. I haven't been in a while, though; I could use a trip there soon.

[laruth.livejournal.com]

Beautiful. The bois d'arc tree fruit is interesting! Looks like a cross between an orange and a custard apple.

[gurdonark.livejournal.com]

I am not sure what a custard apple is, but the osage orange is cool. It's huge, and numerous fruit fall in one space, like so many bocce balls waiting for play.