Into the Aether

Into the Aether
            This morning I opened the front door to a vibrant blue sky with the autumn sun shining, but there was something stirring in the air.
            A couple of hours later, I stepped onto the porch to a face full of heavy San Francisco fog. It was a joy.
            As a kid growing up in one of the snowiest parts of Upstate New York, I took pride in our extreme snowy winters. Years without a record-breaking blizzard were disappointing. I feel homesick when looking at images of deep snow.
            Having raised my two sons in San Francisco near Ocean Beach, we take pride in the thick dense fog that brings visibility down to a few yards. My older son waxes nostalgic at times saying, “San Francisco doesn’t seem as foggy as it was when I was little.”
            He may be right. There have been more years featuring numerous clear days, as opposed to years when he was little when it felt like we only saw the sun in our neighborhood three days out of 365.
            Fog gives San Francisco a moody ambiance and mystique. Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge to Marin County can be a daredevil adventure. We strain to see the car bumper ahead in the thick fog that makes the dark orange towers of the bridge invisible, and Alcatraz a phantom across the water, not even registering a silhouette.
            Hikes on foggy days can be as enjoyable as on clear ones. The fog can be so thick ahead it feels like we’re about to step off the edge of the world. (We’re careful about actual cliff edges!) 
            Thanks to nature for keeping our surroundings ever-changing and fascinating. Do you have a favorite weather phenomenon? Keep putting one foot forward!
            This week’s Hike Notes from the archives, Hill 88 from Rodeo Beach, introduces readers to a head-clearing hike whether in a mist that limits visibility to ten feet or clear skies that open the view to landmarks fifty miles away.
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This week’s hike from the archives:
Hike Notes 55: Hill 88 from Rodeo Beach
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