Posts primarily about a hike – usually in New England. Hikes in far-away locations are often under the ‘Travel’ category.
21st consecutive weekend of hiking!
It has rained nearly every day for two weeks, here in London. So when this morning broke sunny and clear, it was time to go hiking! I headed for Epping Forest, an extensive area of forests and meadows on the northeastern edge of London. The sunny (though chilly) weather inspired many other people to get outdoors – walking their dogs, riding their horses, strolling with friends, or jogging the muddy trails. Two weeks of rain + heavy foot traffic = muddy trails!
Five miles across west London.
It has rained nearly every day for the past week, and the forecast today appeared to promise on-and-off drizzle. At best. Nonetheless, I was determined not to break my streak… and go hiking for this 20th consecutive weekend. I chose to walk end-to-end across the three Royal Parks in London’s West End: Hyde Park, Green Park, and St James Park, on my return from Saturday-morning coffee with colleagues to my home near Victoria Station. It was a surprisingly pleasant five-mile walk, and it seemed half of London was out to enjoy these parks today as well.
A lovely ski tour in the backcountry outside Jackson, Wyoming.
After a week-long tour through Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, about which I’ll post later, I had the opportunity to meet some Dartmouth friends to go backcountry skiing in the beautiful foothills of the Teton mountain range. One of my friends, Scotty, is a professional guide and ski instructor based here in Jackson, Wyoming – check out his business, Peak Performance, if you are ever in the area and want to experience backcountry ski touring, telemarking, kayaking, or paddleboarding!
18th consecutive weekend of hiking
I flew back to the USA for a week-long trip in Yellowstone National Park, which straddles Montana and Wyoming. It is a remarkably long way from London – about twenty hours of travel – but also a world away in climate, terrain, and culture. Upon arrival in Bozeman, Montana, the cowboy hats are the first thing you notice – in the airport, in the hotel, in a restaurant, just a natural part of life. The “Don’t Tread on Me” flags fluttering outside homes and trailer parks. The brown grass and vast fallow fields of hay stretching for miles. The deep cold, well below freezing (zeroºC) and close to reaching zeroºF. The light powder snow falling gently but barely covering the ground. This is definitely not England – or New England either.
I’ve finally finished post-processing the rest of my photographs from October.
In late October I spent an extra weekend in the mountains of North Carolina after concluding a photography workshop in the Blue Ridge Mountains – where I took so many photos of foliage and waterfalls that it was months before I finally processed and posted my favorite photos.
17th consecutive weekend hike!
The weather was a bit iffy, but I decided to head (once again) south of London to the region of North Downs for an extended hike through the countryside. Today’s hike began and ended in the pretty village of Gomshall, and passed through the tiny (and even prettier) village of Shere. The route strolled alongside sheep and horse pastures, past historic churches, and along a forested ridgeline following the North Downs Trail. Other than for a brief drizzle, the sun was a companion and the scenery pleasant.
I’ve finally finished post-processing my photographs from October.
Back in October I posted about an enjoyable week in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, with a photography instructor and a small group of other aspiring photographers, at the height of the fall-foliage season. The focus of our photo workshop, if you don’t mind the pun, was waterfalls – but we also took advantage of mountain overlooks to capture the foliage in the golden light of sunrise and sunset. I snapped a couple thousand photos in five days, and worked hard to improve my photography skills. I finally found time to select and process the photos, and I’m pleased to share the best fifteen in this photo gallery – it’s also viewable as a brief slideshow.
Hiking from sunrise to chai.
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.
Good food, good weather, favorite places.
I wrote yesterday about my lovely hike through Bois de Vincennes, in central Paris. We had arrived in Paris on Friday afternoon after a quick ride through the Channel Tunnel; only two and a half hours from London to Paris!
A lovely hike through Paris woodland.
As I sat over my tea and croissant in an unremarkable Paris boulangerie, looking out into the pre-dawn darkness, snow began to fall. Large, fluffy flakes quickly dusted the sidewalk. Traffic was light on this Saturday morning, although it was nearly 8am. Sunrise wasn’t due for nearly another hour, but I bundled up and headed out, across the street and into the Bois de Vincennes, a sprawling, forested park sometimes called the “lungs of Paris”. I was determined to continue my unbroken sequence of weekend hiking – today was my fifteenth consecutive weekend hike, now spanning five countries.
David Kotz 