Comforting Favorites
            Having our older son home for the holidays offered a good opportunity to take a long scenic drive for a special family Christmas hike. With luck, we’d have good weather, and I’d shoot photos for a new Hikes post.
            I’d been to the East Peak of Mt. Tam before, but hadn’t covered it on the HikingAutism site. Christmas Day was open for us to go on a long outing, and on Christmas Eve, I pictured the drive to the East Peak in my head. Doing a special hike this holiday was a mini obsession.
            As I got into bed on Christmas Eve, I checked the weather. The forecast didn’t look promising. I lay awake in a mixture of disappointment and determination. We would save the East Peak hike for another day, but I was determined to do something out of our regular walk routine.
            We could drive an hour to Lagunitas Creek for the treat of seeing salmon swimming to spawn. I’d already covered that for HikingAutism, so I wouldn’t get a new post out of it, but if recent reports were correct, we might see a significant number of salmon.
            As dawn approached, I pictured waking my family of late sleepers to drive to the salmon viewing area, take a walk, and get back to open Christmas gifts in late afternoon. The thought of making them tired made me tired. 
            I still wanted our Christmas Day hike to be out of the ordinary. The previous year we visited a small nearby beach in Marin for a memorial event for a family member. Revisiting that place could transform the easy drive and walk into something meaningful.
            The guys slept late, and we left the house at noon. The drive across the Golden Gate Bridge to the Marin Headlands—following windy roads to the trailhead for the South Rodeo Beach Trail—is an old familiar favorite. We’re used to chilly, overcast days in the Marin Headlands, so the gray ambiance of our Christmas Day felt like home.
            We found an unnamed side trail down to the beach for a dash of adventure. Going on a long drive to a big-name hiking destination was not so important. The comfort of visiting beloved familiar turf and paying our respects to a lost loved one gave our Christmas Day hike a warm glow.
            May we all find something magical in our everyday comforts! 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, follow on Twitter at @HikingAutism and Instagram at lisalouis777
This week’s Hike Notes from the Archives:
Hike Notes 145: South Rodeo Beach Trail

The People We Meet
            Years ago, making friends and forming meaningful professional connections was something that primarily happened face to face. We became friends with kids who lived nearby. We found new business associates through introductions at the office or conferences.
            The opportunity for people to get together in the same physical space decreases each year as we connect to the world by an ever-larger percentage through the internet, whether on social media, texting or some other cyberspace connection.
            Much as I worry about people—especially younger generations—coping with escalating levels of loneliness as in-person interactions decrease, the modern phenomenon of connecting electronically also has many positives. 
            Modern technology allows us to communicate with people anywhere in the world. The constraints of the pandemic catapulted online meeting technology that allows group interactions at a level previously impossible due to time and space constraints. We might cultivate deep friendships and important professional relationships online without ever meeting the other person face to face.
            I am grateful for the many interesting, creative people I have met through my work creating HikingAutism.com. That is the theme in a guest essay just published on The Renaissance Garden Guy, a web site featuring an eclectic range of topics, created by John Stamos, one of the positive, uplifting connections I’ve made through the online world. Please check out “The Paths We Cross” featured on The Renaissance Garden Guy to read my first guest feature for the site. Check out the wide range of other topics and information on John’s site while you’re there!
            The highlight photo of me giving a supportive hug to Sean as he tries to overcome sensory blocks to start hiking was taken at the site of this week’s featured hike, Mussel Rock and Paragliders, a hike that features ocean views, a cool keyhole rock structure, and the chance to see paragliders on a lucky day.
 
            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, follow on Twitter at @HikingAutism and Instagram at lisalouis777
New this week:
Hike Notes 16: Mussel Rock and Paragliders

A Gift from the Rain
            Northern Californians were surprised by an alarming tsunami alert recently. My phone range a short while later. My autistic son’s program facility is in the tsunami zone, and his director called. They had to evacuate to higher ground, and Sean was refusing to leave. 
            “Hold hands and go together, Seanie! You have to go!” He got moving, and more fortunately, the tsunami never came.
            This weekend we were jolted awake by an early morning tornado emergency alert. That’s something we don’t expect here in earthquake country. It was hard to sleep as we listened to the wind and noticed the power temporarily go out, but we dodged a major hit again. 
            There was already a severe weather warning in place for an incoming “atmospheric river.” I had to cancel a group hike for the local autism community. Much as I hate to miss the opportunity for these uplifting hikes due to stormy weather, the clouds do have a silver lining.
            For many of the years I’ve been taking my autistic son out hiking, we have had drought conditions. In the last couple of years, heavier rain brought to life waterfalls in the region. Hiking to a waterfall site has always been a magical highlight for me, and every year I hope to get to one of the great waterfall sites in Marin County when the water is really flowing.
            For the moment, I’ll put my rainboots on to clear out the storm drain, but soon I’ll be choosing which waterfall to visit. In the meantime, I’ll think back on one of my favorite hikes, Cataract Trail to Cataract Falls, a trail that includes many of my favorite Mt. Tam hike features in a relatively short distance.
            Stay safe in the storms, and get ready for the next chance to hit the trail!
            This week the featured hike from the archives is Cataract Trail to Cataract Falls, a hike featuring the iconic best traits of Marin hiking.
 
            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, follow on Twitter at @HikingAutism and Instagram at lisalouis777
This week’s Hike Notes from the Archives:
Hike Notes 100: Cataract Trail to Cataract Falls

Iconic Forms
            In the early days of getting my autistic son out in nature to walk, a hiking buddy took us on a wild, windy, rainy walk up a steep hill in Pacifica, just north of Devil’s Slide. Our outings were on a set schedule as therapy for my son, and our helper was as game to go out in bad weather as we were.
            We laughed as we worked to get to the top of the steep trail, leaning forward against the wind so as not to get blown away. We didn’t stay long at the top of the crest, but during that short time, I was captivated by the sight of a zigzag rock formation just offshore. The rocks jutted out in striped layers, triangles pointing up in parallel, like an abstract model of the back of a dinosaur, or a shark fin. I’ve never seen another rock formation quite like it.
            Once that shape was captured in my mind, I noticed it in the distance from locations north and south along the coast.
            Though it is fifteen miles away, I can see the signature zigzag triangle form of Pedro Point from near my house in San Francisco. This sculpture created by nature has an iconic form I’d recognize from anywhere.
            The trail to reach the bluff right above Pedro Point is steep, and the winds can be overwhelming there. We don’t make it a regular hiking destination, but it feels like an old familiar friend every time I see it.
            Is there an iconic structure that feels like a grounding guidepost for you? Keep finding comfort in the world around you!
            This week’s Hike Notes, Pacifica Pier, take readers to an easy stroll fishing pier in Pacifica, that offers views of Pedro Point to the south and a view of Mount Tam in Marin to the north.
            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, follow on Twitter at @HikingAutism and Instagram at lisalouis777
New this week:
Hike Notes 213: Pacifica Pier

A Taste of Home
            The smell of pumpkin pie, a roasting turkey, and the distinct poultry seasoning aroma of bread stuffing—these traditional American holiday dinner smells bring waves of nostalgia for me. One whiff of pumpkin transports me to childhood holidays.
            My Japanese husband says a similar feeling happens in Japan with the distinctive smell of grilled sweetened soy sauce that wafts out from street vendors selling ikayaki (grilled squid) and takoyaki (octopus cooked in dough) during festivals in Japan.
            Visual cues also carry me to other times and places. Show me a wooden barn worn down by harsh weather, and I am back in Upstate New York looking at the simple, rustic aesthetic of the barn across the road from my house.
            On one of our Northern California hikes, we hiked a mile along a scenic trail of low hills and eucalyptus trees, which felt very Californian. We reached a historic ranch site where an old barn still stands though is out of use. The weatherworn wood and rusty farm equipment carried my senses back to childhood in dairy country.
            What senses bring you a sense of nostalgia? Tap into your sensory memories for a ride to another time and place. Keep putting one foot forward!
            The featured hike from the archives this week is Burleigh Murray Ranch Trail, a hike that features historic old ranch structures, including a unique barn, but also its own vine-covered outbuilding that adds a special charm to a lovely walk in Half Moon Bay.
 
            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, follow on Twitter at @HikingAutism and Instagram at lisalouis777
New this week:
Hike Notes 128: Burleigh Murray Ranch Trail