Sneaker Waves
When our first son was about two, we took him and a little plastic bucket and shovel down to Ocean Beach, a few blocks from our house. I grew up near lakes and creeks but not the ocean, and my husband grew up in Osaka, rarely venturing away from a Japanese urban environment. How cool for us to be able to take our toddler to play in the Pacific. We walked to where the sand met the water in a shallow, gentle roll. We all squatted down to put some water in the blue bucket. We knew the “never turn your back on the ocean” concept, had lived near the ocean for a few years, and figured we were reasonably vigilant. In the blink of an eye, a larger wave than any of the previous ones whooshed up, knocked our toddler down, and pulled the toy bucket away from shore. We picked our son up and carried him further from the water, and I managed to grab the bucket with the next incoming wave. We learned a visceral lesson in how suddenly and powerfully wave behavior can change. Fast forward twenty years. By then we figured we were much savvier about safety when visiting beaches, which were frequent hike destinations for our family now including two sons. Our younger son used hiking poles as a support in light of some posture and motor planning issues related to his autism. One beautiful autumn day, we took the valley hike to Tennessee Beach in Marin. We knew the beach from several visits in the past. We sat on low rocks a fair distance from the water line for a snack break. Son Sean leaned his hiking poles on the rocks as we sat. With no telltale sound or warning, a wave swept across the considerable distance we’d left open from the waterline. The wave not only struck us, but also carried my son’s hiking poles out to sea. There was no quick retrieval by a fast-footed mom as there had been with the plastic bucket years earlier. The poles were there one second and lost to the sea the next. That was the true embodiment of a sneaker wave, though a fairly mild one considering how many people are knocked down and pulled out to sea along our stretch of Northern California coast. We don’t need to live in fear when we visit beaches, but we do need to keep our eyes on what’s happening with the waves. Life has a way of throwing life-event sneaker waves at us, whether it’s in the form of an accident, an unexpected illness, a sudden job loss or a breakup. We can’t be vigilant all the time, but we can keep our eyes open to not be totally swept away when unexpected waves do strike. The Hike Notes from the archives this week takes readers to Tennessee Valley—a lovely place to hike to, but also a beach where visitors need to be especially aware of rogue waves. May our beach visits and life journeys include surprises as well as lessons in how to stand up again despite powerful waves. 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 7: Tennessee Valley
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Lisa LouisSharing insights and hiking highlights (Hikes, Hike Search by Area) from the special needs caregiver front in San Francisco. Archives
February 2025
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