Just for Fun
            Each week when I look through photos from that week’s featured hike to choose one for the accompanying Insights post, I almost always find one image that reverberates with poignant meaning. Almost always. On rare occasions, a photo of an outing reflects nothing but fun.
            This week’s Insights photo shows a sea serpent sculpture—originally created for Burning Man—which has recently risen its head and twisted body up from the waters below Rainbow Falls in Golden Gate Park.
            Not only does the sea serpent sculpture add a dramatic surprise to those who happen to walk along this stretch of the JFK Promenade, but it also sometimes blows bubbles.
            Poignant? No. Loved by purists who prefer simple trees and water? Perhaps not.
            But it was fun to see, and that is sometimes all we need.
            This week’s Hike Notes, Rainbow Falls and Prayer Book Cross-Golden Gate Park, takes visitors to one of the many special feature spots in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park.
            Go ahead and do something just for the fun of it. Each moment of happiness we experience is a treasure. 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

New this week:
Hike Notes 224: Rainbow Falls and Prayer Book Cross-Golden Gate Park
 

Fences, Leaves and Shadows
            Light and shadows flickering on the path ahead. The curve of a trail hugged by a weatherworn wooden fence. Scattered leaves creating a multicolored mosaic on a trail underfoot. These are a few of my favorite things.
            I’ve soaked up the magic of these nature highlights on trails in all the places I’ve lived: the Adirondacks, Western Massachusetts, Japan, and in California on trails ranging from Mt. Tam in Marin to forests in Mendocino.
            It is a comfort that these aesthetically inspiring features can be found in many places, yet exciting to know they are unique in each region and appear in infinite combinations. 
            What nature elements spark a happy glow for you? The sparkle of a lake? The breeze blowing on your face? Stop for a moment and soak up that good vibe. You can close your eyes and tap into that feeling again later.
            Keep putting one foot forward!
            This week’s Hike Notes from the archives, Bay Tree Trail-Huddart Park, a park in Woodside, California that features many miles of wooded trails.
            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 148: Bay Tree Trail-Huddart Park

Summer Daze
            I grew up in a region that lived up to the Currier and Ives promise of four distinct seasons: Bright green leaves and flower buds emerging in spring, hot, humid summers with lush greens and the sound of cicadas, autumns marked by stunning orange and red leaves, sometimes edged with frost, and cold, snowy winters where playing with friends meant sleds and hot chocolate. Those Adirondack Foothills seasons live on in my heart.
            People who live in desert regions or jungle areas know and love a different type of terrain and seasonal changes. Some changes are subtle, and some are stark in contrast.
            Now I live a few blocks from the Pacific Ocean in San Francisco. Having highs in the low 60s and lows in the low 50s, often with plenty of fog to blanket us, is weather we see near the beach year-round.
            San Francisco’s reputation for foggy summers held up this July and August, with barely a sky in the cloud. Locals held their breath for sunshine to arrive in September, and the sun and blue skies did not disappoint.
            People hang out at sidewalk cafes in tank tops with an excitement in the air that says, “Look! We have summer sometimes, too!”
            Beach parking has been packed on sunny September days. People who wear shorts once a year if they’re lucky have dug out their summer gear for the chance to bare their legs. It’s our area’s chance to make the most of visits to the beach.
            Take advantage of good weather wherever you live, no matter what time of year it shows up. Keep putting one foot forward!
            This week’s Hike Notes from the archives, Black Sands Beach, takes readers to a beach in the Marin Headlands that features black sand, and gorgeous views of the Marin Headlands shoreline and San Francisco.
            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 31: Black Sands Beach
 

Sitting Still
            Last weekend my younger son and I walked along Lands End at the far western edge of San Francisco, a nearby walk that feels like our own backyard. It was Labor Day weekend, and late summer visitors speaking languages from many countries filled the trail.
            My son is autistic and easily overwhelmed by too much noise and too many people, but years of hard work helped him become more acclimated to multiple sensory inputs, making it easier to tolerate crowds.
            I noticed an odd shape on a branch of a sculptural tree along a particularly busy part of the trail. I squeezed my son’s hand to stop. A long stare revealed the silhouette of a large hawk.
            People were making lively conversation as they walked past us, just we and one other woman stopping to look at the hawk.
            Who was this Zen master bird of prey, sitting like a statue despite the bustle of people?
            Later in the week, our son had his six-month dental cleaning. For an autistic person, doctor and dentist visits can feel like a sensory horror show. From toddler age, our son kicked and screamed and bit, anything to keep from going into a doctor or dentist office, including trying to run into the street to escape. Yet we had to find a way to take him for health care visits.
            Years of focused work incrementally acclimatizing to dentist visits gradually reduced the panic and struggle, though it is still challenging for him in his late twenties.
            The dental office staff has supported our son from the days when he resisted entering an exam room, and once inside, sat on a footstool for his teeth cleaning instead of the dental chair. He was exerting control so no one could trap him in the big scary chair.
            This week, we proudly realized how far our son has come. He willingly got in and out of the car knowing we were going to the dentist, walked into the office with only minor detours, and then walked into the exam room. He sat on the dental chair, and was remarkably calm as the hygienist and dentist brushed, checked and scraped his teeth.
            Other than one flinch at the polishing machine, I didn’t have to hold his hands to keep him from pushing dental tools away. His transformation to sitting still for a teeth cleaning took forever, but persistent effort was worth making his and our lives better.
            I was impressed with the hawk, and proud of my son, both sitting still in challenging environments. Take pride in the personal challenges you have worked hard to overcome, or have helped another person through. Keep putting one foot forward!
            This week’s Hike Notes from the archives, Lands End Lookout to Mile Rock Beach, takes readers along the Coastal Trail at Lands End to dramatic Mile Rock Beach.
            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 3: Lands End Lookout to Mile Rock Beach