Walking in Awe

Sometimes I wonder if it will be any fun going back to the same place for a hike. Will there be anything new and interesting? Other times, like this morning, I wondered at the fun of heading out in -13°C weather. I should know by now that every time you head out, new beauty will be presented to you.

This morning's hike was hosted by the owner of Oak Hills Farm - Prairie and Arboretum. John has planted 1000's of native trees on this property in the past 15 years and restored a part of the land to a native tall grass prairie.

New hikers to the club were given a short history of the farm before we headed out.

Last Wednesday's snowfall was still laying around in all of its fluffiness.

Our hike covered farmland, woods, and everything in between.

The in between part is below. Sometimes we were bushwhacking our way through the fence bottoms.

Isn't it wonderful when hikers wear red in the winter?

We left our footprints all over John's land, sometimes in flatter areas....

.... and others going up steep slopes.

At the very top we were rewarded with a place to sit down and enjoy our snacks & water.

John and his wife allow anyone to walk on their property with a few requests like packing out your litter. Dogs are allowed. We passed a local dog owner along the way.

There was time for good conversations.

And, art. Art on the hike. You never know where you'll find great Canadian art!

Today's hike is sponsored by the sound of snow falling on high voltage wires. Yes, it had started to snow! Just for us! And, we could hear it.

I love this image. It looks like a bunch of Junior Kindergarteners. All huddled together, looking in amazement at the beauty around them. They haven't lost their sense of awe.

The snowflakes bundled together to make an impression on us as they fell. Can you see them?

In the cornfield are two test holes for monitoring water quality from a nearby garbage dump.

The snow continued to fall as we made our way through John's plantation of native trees. He pointed out the various types that they'd planted.

I don't think that anyone wanted this hike to end. Why would you want to leave this beauty? It was a gift of a morning.

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious.

It is the source of all true art and all science.

He to whom this emotion is a stranger,

who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe,

is as good as dead:

his eyes are closed.”

Albert Einstein