I’d planned a top ten trails list for this blog post, a special New Year’s review. But then it snowed which transformed everything! So I’m doing what we’ve all learned to do in the last year or two. Pivot! I work at Island Transit just south of Coupeville and like to take my lunch break walking nearby at Pacific Rim Institute. This week that walk has been especially captivating. I walked over as the noon day sun cast diamonds on the snow. In the roadway a little bird tugged at the ice until it managed to pull a worm from beneath and ate it! As I approached the driveway at PRI, there was a raucous riot among sapsuckers! They flew fast and furious around a big tree that was riddled with sapsucker holes. They wrestled on the ground with feathers and feet up in the air! Tumbling and tearing at each other! I wondered what could provoke such a savage attack! Nothing short of attempted murder! Later, a birding friend thought it might be a fight over food sources. In these freezing temperatures, food, which is fuel, becomes that much more precious to those living outside. I watched juncos, sparrows, towhees and varied thrush foraging at the base of other trees or among the branches. I began my usual walk between the sheds that used to house pheasants. The puddles were frozen on the old farm road and packed snow made it easy to walk. I saw tracks of two toed deer, three toed birds, four toed dogs and coyote, and five toed people. Ski tracks crossed the road and continued over the farm. Bird houses had their own icicles with snow insulation on top. Garry oaks clung to their thick, brown coat of leaves. I followed the old road to the barn that stood stately in the snow at the edge of the woods. Two open windows near the top would seem an invitation to owls or other birds seeking shelter. Passing the barn I entered the forest. Robert Frost’s poem came to mind. “Whose woods these are, I think I know, his house is in the village, though. He will not see me stopping here to watch his woods fill up with snow”. The snowy woods were a magical wonderland, totally transformed by the snow and the slivers of sun stabbing through the gate of vertical trees. Rotten stumps and broken trunks provide a place for small critters to tuck in on a winters night. Ocean spray, salal, and thorny shrubs bent by snow formed a tunnel that, in places, required doubling over to creep through. The splendor of ice and snow highlighted every twig on every branch. Sounds were clearer, smells more intense, and colors shimmered. The dome of brilliant blue arched over the white capped evergreens. The lumpy landscape of snow covered shrubs provided cover for a community of critters searching for food and huddled together for warmth. What joy to experience a deep freeze, bundled up in scarves and sweaters, to step outside under a brilliant blue sky into a stunning world of white, just as we transition from one year, with all its challenges and changes, and gather our gumption to pounce into the next! What a precious parting gift from 2021. Let’s celebrate, whether we light fireworks or candles, as we enter 2022. And remember what we’ve learned, to be grateful for simple, beautiful things, and to embrace change as a teacher. Without a doubt, the new year will bring its own challenges and changes and when it does, take some time, take a breath, take a walk close to home. Take care of yourself and each other and let's all have a happy, healthy New Year. Maribeth For more information about Pacific Rim Institute click here. Directions: From the stoplight on Highway 20 in Coupeville, drive 2.8 miles south and turn left onto Morris Road, then turn left again on Parker Road. Pacific Rim Institute is about 1/2 mile north on the right.
By Bus or Bike: Take the Route 1 bus to Morris Road just south of Coupeville. A bus can carry 2-3 bikes. Walk or bike about a half mile north on Parker Road where traffic is light and there's a wide shoulder. Mobility: Pacific Rim Institute has old farm roads around the fields that are a bit rough but nearly level. Trails through the woods are narrow with some low branches.
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Maribeth Crandell has been a hiking guide in the Pacific NW for over 20 years. She's lived on Whidbey and Fidalgo Island for decades. As a frequent bus rider she easily makes connections between trails and transit. Archives by date
April 2024
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