All’s Well

All’s Well
            I treasure the time my older son, who lives and works in London, spends with us at the holidays. He looks forward to longer, sunnier days in California as a contrast to the short dark winter days of England.
            This visit, three quarters of the way through his vacation, most days had been rainy or overcast. Some special hikes and day trips I had planned required better weather, and our time was waning. The four or five big outings I’d hoped for were impossible in the time we had left.
            A photo shoot on Mt. Tam had been burning in my head, my one do-or-die hope for this holiday visit. I’ve hiked the Dipsea-Steep Ravine trail loop several times, and posted about the Dipsea Trail in the past, but was long overdue to write up the Steep Ravine section of the hike. Those trailheads are packed on weekends. The darkness of the deep forest trail meant that my prior hike photos were blurry or dark.
            One week remaining, and the sun finally came out. My husband covered for my usual weekday afternoon caregiving duties for our younger son, giving me a few extra hours of freedom to take my older son on a mountain hike.
            We hit the trail on a weekday morning, free from the weekend warrior crowds. We soaked up Mt. Tam’s magic, with its mixture of ferns and moss, redwoods and oak trees, light and shadow. We made our way down and up stone stairs, wood stairs, and trails made more interesting by jutting roots and the occasional fallen tree. We stopped to look at countless unnamed falls as the water rushed down the ravine. It was the hike I’d hoped for.
            I’ll post the Steep Ravine Hike Notes soon, but this week’s Hike Notes from the archives is the Dipsea Trail from Pantoll, a trail famous for the footrace of the same name, featuring wide open views of the ocean, lovely mysterious forest paths, and what seem like endless wooden stairs down to the bottom of the ravine.
            Darker days all feel brighter in retrospect when the sun shines at the end. Keep putting one foot forward!
            Check the Home page for the broader background story. Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. Browse hikes on the main Hikes page or on the Hike Search by Area page, and scroll to the bottom of each hike page to see full photo galleries.
            If you’d like to support HikingAutism, check out the Support/Shop page! Check out selected articles and interviews under Media. Click World Walks to see or share favorite family-friendly walks! Stay in touch with Lisa Louis and HikingAutism via Contact. The Links page lists a loose collection of helpful information links. Feel free to share and follow on Facebook at HikingAutism, Twitter at @HikingAutism, Instagram at lisalouis777, and Bluesky @hikingautism.bsky.social
 
This week’s hike from the archives:
Hike Notes 122: Dipsea Trail from Pantoll