Long Steep Stairs

Long Steep Stairs
            Some people like stairs, some people hate them. If I have a choice between stairs and an escalator, I’ll take the stairs. It helps burn up excess energy. When I go to my 21st floor dentist office in downtown San Francisco, I sometimes see how fast I can scoot down the stairs from the 21st floor to the lobby. You’d be surprised how fast twenty-one floors pass by when you’re heading downward.
            But climbing up. That’s a different story. In one public transit station that mysteriously offers an escalator down but only stairs going up, my thigh muscles cry for mercy by the time I get to the third story level.
            Sometimes we don’t have a choice. A hard uphill climb may loom before us. No way backwards. Can’t stay where you are. Steep stairs in front. You just have to pick up one foot, place it on the next step. Raise yourself up, and plant the other foot on the next step. You can go slowly. You can take breaks. But you have to keep climbing and move forward.
            Lots of things in life feel like that. Getting through school. Learning what you need to know for a job. Raising kids. Helping a family member with special needs. Getting through an illness. Working through grief. Getting through any tough stretch of life. We somehow keep climbing those stairs.
            If we stop, turn around, and look where we’ve been, we see that our hard work reaching the next plateau has been worth it.
            This week’s hike is like that. There are lots of stairs. It starts out going downhill. That sounds easy but also involves challenges. Avoid twisting an ankle. Take care of those knee joints.
            The apparent goal of this hike is to reach a scenic beach after a long stairway and trail descent.
            Then you have to climb back up. Steep stairs, steep trails. Every time you turn back and look at where you’ve been, though, you realize that the view from the hill above is as satisfying as the break on the beach.
            This week’s Hike Notes lead us to Marshall’s Beach from Immigrant Point. Starting at the northwest area of the Presidio in San Francisco, the beach destination offers close up views of the Golden Gate Bridge.
            Please feel free to share. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photos!
            The list of hikes is getting long! Please check the Quick View Hike List or scroll down the main Hikes page to see the current list of hike notes.
New this week:
Hike Notes 18: Marshall’s Beach from Immigrant Point