Shifting Winds
            Special needs parents like us—working to pay the bills plus caring for a family member requiring almost constant care—means working the equivalent of two full time jobs. The pandemic shutdown means our severely autistic son has been home 24/7 for going on six months now. Caregivers of loved ones with any type of exceptional challenge face similar stresses, without a moment to let our guard down.
            Our plan for a temporary reprieve? A two night stay at a remote lighthouse up the coast, a quiet place with no cell phone or internet connection, planned many months ahead. A weekend away is a rare treat for our family, filled with challenges but also a much-needed change of pace. Nature is our sanity saver.
            As we prepared for our long awaited road trip, California wildfires broke out. Not just scattered wildfires, but fires covering the whole state in toxic smoke, with part of our travel route along an evacuation zone. Not safe, and not fair to take up fire crew road space, we canceled.
            Crushing disappointment? Of course. A rare break in our grueling routine is like a watering hole in the desert. But like everyone else, we have to adjust to shifting winds. The harsher winds at the moment are those fueling the fires burning away homes, businesses and even lives. Or the wind and rain pummeling hurricane territory. Or the ongoing pandemic. We are fortunate to have a safe place to hunker down and look forward to future stress-busting opportunities.
            Something unexpected can waylay our best laid plans even in the best of times, much less our current era of the pandemic, political and social turmoil, and natural calamities. The ability to adapt to unexpected change is a hard-earned but vital survival tool.
            May we all find moments of tranquility regardless of our surroundings, even if it’s right in our own homes with the windows closed to keep out the smoke.
            This week’s Hike Notes are from the archives, Mussel Rock and Paragliders, a hidden gem featuring stunning ocean views, where graceful gliders sometimes dot the sky.
            The long list of Hikes can be found on the Quick View Hike List and on the main Hikes page. All past Insights posts can also be viewed in the Insights/Hike Update News archives.
            Check the Home page for the broader background story. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photo galleries at the bottom of each hike page! Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. Please feel free to share.
This week’s Hike Notes from the Archives:
(Original Hike Notes 16): Mussel Rock and Paragliders

Hidden Oasis
            When we think of a literal “oasis,” images of a desert watering hole surrounded by palm trees come to mind. The figurative version of an oasis can be anything that gives a sense of refuge and relief. A favorite corner in a quiet coffee shop, the view from a favorite hill, a hidden cove of a beach. An oasis can also be a safe space we create in our own minds.
            We all need an occasional escape to our personal oasis, even during the best of times. If relatively minor stresses deserve brief retreats to our mental refuge spots, what on earth do people do during really challenging times?
            Pummeled by a worldwide pandemic, political and social turmoil, and an ongoing flurry of hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, flooding, and drought, one wonders how any of us survive emotionally.
            Everyone has a little oasis somewhere, perhaps without consciously realizing it. A quiet soak in the tub, a short walk in the neighborhood, time sitting with a favorite pet.
            Why not think about it consciously? If we could all find our own mental safe spot more easily, the world’s cumulative stress level might go down a notch.
            My never-fail oasis since childhood has been time in nature, whether a several mile walk through snowy fields and forests, or three minutes by my back window looking at the sunset. May everyone find their easy-access oasis in these difficult times.
            This week’s Hike Notes introduce readers to Mount Davidson, a forty acre park with trails leading to the highest point in San Francisco, offering broad city views, as well as mysterious stone stairs and misty forested paths.
            The long list of Hikes can be found on the Quick View Hike List and on the main Hikes page. All past Insights posts can also be viewed in the Insights/Hike Update News archives.
            Check the Home page for the broader background story. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photo galleries at the bottom of each hike page! Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. Please feel free to share.
New this week:
Hike Notes 114: Mount Davidson

Around the Corner
            It is slightly unnerving, in both good and bad ways, to be walking along a trail with a shaded, tree-covered turn up ahead. What is around that next corner? Not likely to be a coyote or mountain lion, but it could be. A widening of the trail into a lovely meadow or field? Could be that, too. Or it might be just more shadowy curves in the path.
            Most of us who live long enough realize that life’s twists and turns are predictably unpredictable. Sometimes we’ll find unexpected good fortune and happiness. Then there are the unpleasant surprises—whether on a personal scale or broader social level—of things we didn’t anticipate and don’t wish to endure. But we do, because we have to.
            When your trail seems to be getting darker and scarier, yet you have no choice but to move forward, remember that a bright spot invariably appears at some point down the line, when we least expect it. We are in this world together, for good and for bad. Tell family and friends you love them. Reach out to help others who may be more anxious than you. Keep putting one foot forward.
            This week’s Hike Notes are from the archives, Glen Canyon Park from Below, a place where the lower trails offer atmospheric twists and turns through shaded tree tunnels.
            The long list of Hikes can be found on the Quick View Hike List and on the main Hikes page. All past Insights posts can also be viewed in the Insights/Hike Update News archives.
            Check the Home page for the broader background story. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photo galleries at the bottom of each hike page! Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. Please feel free to share.
This week’s Hike Notes from the Archives:
(Original Hike Notes 61): Glen Canyon Park from Below

Aiming High
            Words of inspiration adorn a weathered gray pillar on my old college campus back east: “Climb high, climb far, your goal the sky, your aim the star.”
            This message of motivation to students launching themselves toward adulthood can apply to anyone.
            But let’s stop for a moment. Messages like “Aim for the sky,” or “Set your goals high”—if overeagerly embraced—can lead to discouragement when things don’t go as planned. We also need to remember the idea of “two steps forward, one step back.” Making true progress means learning from setbacks along the way.
            For those of us with family members who require extraordinary support, whether due to developmental or cognitive differences, dementia, physical disabilities, or other exceptional challenges, it’s tough to gauge what level to aspire to.
           Some of us may aim for our our family member to achieve the simplest of language skills. Others may hope a loved one can independently feed himself. Another may work to help a loved one gain the strength and coordination to walk unaided. Countless things can be set as targets to aim for.
            Goals exist on a sliding scale. My severely autistic son can scoot up a steep trail like a mountain goat, but things like speaking clearly and controlling his impulses feel impossible. Another friend is an advanced thinker, but it’s difficult to see that at a glance, because she is trapped in a body that makes it physically difficult to get language out.
            Whatever your life status at the moment, aim high enough to feel you’re moving forward, but don’t set impossible goals that will immobilize you in a sense of failure. In really difficult times, getting up, moving through the day, and maybe claiming some self care time outdoors or offering love and care to others is aiming high enough.
            This week’s Hike Notes, Goldsworthy Spire to National Cemetery Overlook, features the inspiring, sky-piercing work Spire by environmental artist Andy Goldsworthy, as well as a sublime view of the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco Bay from the National Cemetery Overlook.
            The long list of Hikes can be found on the Quick View Hike List and on the main Hikes page. All past Insights posts can also be viewed in the Insights/Hike Update News archives.
            Check the Home page for the broader background story. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photo galleries at the bottom of each hike page! Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. Please feel free to share.
New this week:
Hike Notes 113: Goldsworthy Spire to National Cemetery Overlook

Still Standing
            This ongoing pandemic situation sometimes feels like swimming in slow motion through a thick, transparent goo. We see terrible things happening left and right, yet are unable to reach through the gelatinous trap to help.
            We fumblingly attempt to take care of those immediately within reach: selves, loved ones, pets. When something goes awry with those, our sense of helplessness and frustration explodes.
            Seeing favorite restaurants, stores, fitness studios, museums, sports venues, performing arts institutions, and countless other places fall by the wayside knocks away our sense of foundation.
            Worse than the business and institutional closings is the people-related losses. Livelihoods. Homes. Health. Lives.
            Those harsh realities can’t be brushed aside, nor should they be. But to survive tough stretches like this, we have to find some sense of hope and optimism. I look out and remember the special places that are still here, the treasured people who are still here, the spirit of goodness that is still here among many.
            There’s no way to dodge the devastating reality brought on by the pandemic, but we can appreciate what is here today, and know that there will still be people, places and the essence of things we care about in existence going forward.
            Remember to tell people you love them. If you have a little money to spare, support a local business you love, or donate to an organization you value.
            Most of all, stop and take deep breaths. Look out and see that many of the things we love and rely on to sustain us are still standing. Even the worst pendulum swings eventually swing back in a good direction.
            This week’s Hike Notes are from the archives, Fort Mason Stairs to Hyde Street Pier, a walk that offers classic views of Alcatraz, the historic ships at Hyde Street Pier, and more.
            The long list of Hikes can be found on the Quick View Hike List and on the main Hikes page. All past Insights posts can also be viewed in the Insights/Hike Update News archives.
            Check the Home page for the broader background story. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photo galleries at the bottom of each hike page! Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. Please feel free to share.
This week’s Hike Notes from the Archives:

1. (Original Hike Notes 58): Fort Mason Stairs to Hyde Street Pier