What comes after Thanksgiving? A hike, of course. If I’m thankful for anything is the chance to be out in a forest on a trail. And today was a perfect day for it.
This is early with some overcast. No one on the trail this morning, except me.
I’m always on the lookout for poison oak and I never fail to find it. This little guy looks so sweet, but does it ever cause me suffering and itches galore if I touch it.
My shadowy selfie.
Rattlesnake grass. On a windy day, it gives you plenty of warning.
A bit sunnier as I head toward the coast.
A new pine sunning itself.
Dandelion looking up.
“The unquiet spirit of a flower
That hath too brief an hour.” Ellen Mackay Hutchinson Cortizzoz
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This is my last post about Gadget Girl and my November Featured Follower. It has been wonderful to share this author and her work with you. I hope you enjoyed meeting Suzanne and I hope you’ll read and enjoy her books. Check out her AUTHOR’S PAGE
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Quote of the Week: “Trails are like that: you’re floating along in a Shakespearean Arden paradise and expect to see nymphs and flute boys, then suddenly you’re struggling in a hot broiling sun of hell in dust and nettles and poison oak…just like life.”
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Nicola says
WOW!! I'm thrilled to bits to have won a copy of Gadget Girl! Thank you.
That looks like my kind of hike, Lee – wandering through the woodlands and photographing the natural surroundings (and anything that looks supernatural :)). Glad you enjoyed a happy Thanksgiving. Wishing you a wonderful December.
Nasreen says
Gorgeous photos. I loved going through this post!
DMS says
Beautiful pictures! I love hiking in the woods and your photos took me right on the journey with you. 🙂
~Jess
Crystal Collier says
Oh goodness… I need to get out hiking. It's been FOREVER. (Well, about 1.5 months. That's forever, right?)
Karen Lange says
Thanks for sharing your walk with us! I'm always up for a walk in the woods, and Thanksgiving is the perfect time to do so. Plus, I burn extra calories. Need I say more?
Cathrina Constantine says
I love wandering in the woods. Your pictures are beautiful I wish I was walking with you.
Annalisa Crawford says
Beautiful photos!
Juneta Key says
Wonderful pictures. Enjoyed taking a walk with you.
Juneta @ Writer's Gambit
Mich says
Beautiful photos!
J Lenni Dorner says
Those are fantastic pictures! It looks a lot like where I spent a few days after Thanksgiving. Thanks for sharing your hike.
Tyrean Martinson says
Hey, I'm not sure my comments are showing up on anyone's blogs, but if this one does – just going to say again, I love your photos and it looks like your hike was wonderful!
C. Lee McKenzie says
I see your comment, Tyrean! Sorry you're having so much trouble.
Lexa Cain says
With all those needles on the ground, I'm guessing there are a ton of evergreens where you live. Great trail and pics!
C. Lee McKenzie says
This is the Monterrey peninsula and in this area the forest is mostly Monterrey Pines. They don't live long, but they sprout and grow like mad.
Shady Del Knight says
Hi, Cheryl Lee!
I really enjoyed this post. Thank you for taking us along on your stroll through the forest. It looks like a lovely, tranquil spot. Your words and pictures brought back happy memories of going on weekend hikes with my dad when I was a boy. It also brought back not so happy memories of getting bad cases of poison ivy. I remember one time I was downwind from a brush fire and was exposed to the smoke for a brief time. Some type of poisonous leaves were burning because the next day I found myself covered with red, itchy patches, even around my eyes. It was the worst ever.
Thanks again, dear friend C-Lee, and enjoy the rest of your week!
C. Lee McKenzie says
We don't have the "ivy" here. That's one good thing. And you were so lucky not to have issues with your lungs after inhaling that smoke. That can really cause so many serious problems. Anyway, thanks again for the wonderful visit!
Sherry Ellis says
Looks like you had a lovely hike. I did something similar and climbed a mountain. It was so pretty with all the colorful leaves.
Nice shadowy selfy. It looks like something that can spark an idea for a mystery story.
C. Lee McKenzie says
Glad you got your hike in, Sherry. Love the idea of a mystery shadow selfie. Have to tuck that away for later.
Barbara Fisher says
Walking (and reading) are two of my favourite pastimes and your walk looks amazing. I would love to meander along that forest path. Thank you for sharing the photographs.
Congrats to Nicola. Can you believe it is almost the end of the year? The months are just racing past. We will soon be wishing everyone a Happy New Year!
C. Lee McKenzie says
I remember vividly when Jan. 2016 swooshed in. I thought, "This is going to be a great year." It was. It was just too short.
nashvillecats2 says
Loved the photo's Lee, hope your hike was enjoyable.
Yvonne.
C. Lee McKenzie says
It was, Yvonne. Thanks.
Susan Gourley/Kelley says
I wish I had somewhere off-road to hike. My walks have to be either along dangerous country roads or the sidewalks of town. Hope your Thanksgiving was happy.
C. Lee McKenzie says
Good trails have always been a prerequisite for where I choose to live. I tried living in San Francisco when I was out of college, but that worked about one summer.
Liz A. says
What a perfect conclusion to a holiday weekend. Get out in nature. Lovely.
C. Lee McKenzie says
It does shake off the lethargy from all that eating.
Shooting Stars Mag says
Beautiful photos – I'm glad you had a nice hike. Seeing this makes me think of wandering in the woods, reading Wordsworth. hah!
-Lauren
C. Lee McKenzie says
I should take a book along one of these days and find a place to stop along the way.
Jacqui Murray says
My visiting kids persuaded me to take long walks with them. 2.6 miles at the longest. I know–that doesn't sound so long, but I usually quit at under a mile!
C. Lee McKenzie says
Yay for your kids. They'll keep you young even if you resist!
Beverly Stowe McClure says
I like your quote. And what a lovely trail to walk. Nature is fantastic. There's always something beautiful to see.
C. Lee McKenzie says
A good hike clears my head like nothing else.
Patricia Lynne says
Lucky! It's cold, wet, and ugly out here. It keeps snowing then melting.
C. Lee McKenzie says
Hope you get a snow for Christmas. I always wanted that when I was a kid. Never happened!
Lynda R Young says
I love that new pine pic in particular. Your hike looks awesome. I want to find a nice trail somewhere around Brisbane…on a cool day.
C. Lee McKenzie says
I'll bet you have some beautiful spots to hike, Lynda.
Jemi Fraser says
Love that Kerouac quote – so true!
Great photos. We had about 6 inches of snow the other day with fabulous snow people, but today's rain wiped it all out.
C. Lee McKenzie says
I love his style. He says things the way I want to.
Elephant's Child says
Time outside is a gift isn't it? Loved wandering with you.
No poison oak over here – for which I am thankful.
C. Lee McKenzie says
We're surrounded by the stuff. Maybe I should become your neighbor. 🙂
Mark Noce says
Looks like a lovely hike:) Minus the Poison Oak, of course;) Happy Thanksgiving, Lee!
C. Lee McKenzie says
Yes. Must beware that stuff! Hope your holiday was great.
Chrys Fey says
I would love to hike that trail. 🙂
C. Lee McKenzie says
This is kind of a regular one for me. I do it when I only have an hour, but need to be outside and moving.
DEZMOND says
We do love sylvan landscapes!
C. Lee McKenzie says
Indeed we do!
Christine Rains says
Fantastic pictures! We took a hike over the Thanksgiving break too.
C. Lee McKenzie says
Breaks are absolutely necessary! Filling them with activities like hikes, perfect.
Natalie Aguirre says
What a great idea to take a hike on Thanksgiving. I got a walk in too, but it was just in my neighborhood.
C. Lee McKenzie says
Neighborhood walks are wonderful.
Yvonne Ventresca says
Love the selfie!
C. Lee McKenzie says
It made me look quite large, didn't it?
Julie Flanders says
I'm right there with you! I went for a long walk on the nearby trails after Thanksgiving dinner and it made me feel so great. Nothing relaxes me like a quiet walk in nature.
C. Lee McKenzie says
Absolutely. I sleep so much better a night after a good hike.
M.J. Fifield says
Boy, I just sat around and watched football after Thanksgiving dinner. Should've gone hiking.
I'm always on the lookout for poison oak on a hike, too. It doesn't bother me at all, but it does my significant other. Once, he got it from our dogs after they had been in the woods. It wasn't pretty.
C. Lee McKenzie says
I used to handle our laundry with rubber gloves because we always came home with poison oak oils on our clothes. Not a happy two weeks, I can tell you.
sage says
Nice hike. I did a long walk around the neighborhood and down to the south marina (about 3 miles) on Thanksgiving. I like the Dharma Bums quote–it's been decades since I read that book, but I still remember his description the Atlantic Coastline train when he was visiting his mother in North Carolina. This morning I posted a review of "Sliding on the Edge"
C. Lee McKenzie says
I need to reread Dharma Bums. I remember it as a book that I couldn't forget, but now I have. . .at least a lot of it.
Thanks so much for the review. Writers can never have enough of those!
Here's to more great hikes.
Pat Hatt says
Sure looks like a nice place to go for a stroll. Avoiding the poison oak is sure a good goal.
Alex J. Cavanaugh says
Nice place for a hike. Definitely needed after the Thanksgiving feast.