Mind Over Mutter

Robert Frost's words were echoing through my mind as I wandered through Muir Woods on Friday. Two older women on the path were trying(in vain) to remember the words of Kilmer's "Trees" but, despite the lack of snow, it was Frost's "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening" that kept my company on my hike.

"The only other sound's the sweep,
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep."

I've always loved that poem, and it seems appropriate for the restless traveler in me.

The redwoods here are magnificent, but it is impossible to truly convey the sense of scale in photos. I stopped in the bookshop when my hike was over, and even the grand masters of the craft don't know what to do to express the size and wonder of these ancient trees, so I don't feel too embarrassed by my own efforts.

Click the link HERE to see my photos of the hike, including a deer so unafraid of me that she let me get within about 5 feet of her, (though her faun stayed hidden in the brush) redwoods towering into the sky, an egret fishing for dinner, and Queen Anne's Lace with blooms the size of dinner plates.

Later, I'll post the photos from the second half of my day, my travel up the PCH to the Point Reyes headlands.