There’s one important feature about an unbroken streak: one is loathe to break it. So, despite my aching back (and bruised ego) left over from last week’s hike, I was determined to get out this weekend for my 16th consecutive weekend hike. The weather was promising for sunrise – cloudy, with periods of sun – so I headed back to Primrose Hill to see what I might find.
When I arrived, a bit after sunrise, the sun was hidden behind thick clouds – just as it had when I was last standing on this spot, on solstice. Today, unlike then, patience paid off… and the sun emerged, spilling “god rays” among London landmarks like The Shard.
I walked down the hill and past London Zoo into Regent Park – with a brief glance at Regent Canal as I crossed over the path of one of my December hikes. Along the pathway I joined a crowd of parents and children heading for the football pitches. Although the ground was frosted and the sun was struggling to eke its way through the clouds, the children were buzzing with excitement as they warmed up for Saturday matches.
At the heart of Regent’s Park is Queen Mary’s garden, enclosed by a perfectly circular roadway. A quite street with almost no traffic on this Saturday morning, the “inner circle” road was spinning with lycra-clad bicyclists. As I walked round this circle, I recognized the same group of speedy cyclists zipping past me every few minutes, as they lapped the circle again and again. I took the opportunity to practice panning shots, that is, panning my camera sideways to photograph a fast-moving subject so the subject is clear and sharp and the background is blurred. Much harder than it looks! I need more practice.
I walked a few more miles through the streets of London until I reached a favorite café, where I joined some computer-science colleagues over a chai and a croissant.
Hike stats:
Distance: about 7.5 miles total
I didn’t track the whole hike with GaiaGPS, so the map is incomplete. The distance estimate is from the Health app on my iPhone.
David Kotz 