alamere falls

rain

A necessary ingredient for life, yet sometimes an unwanted ally. I walked through over five miles of it yesterday in search of something. Not sure I found what I was after but something definitely found me.

slogged

I wasn’t sure that was a word until today when I noticed my computer didn’t try to fix the spelling. I thought I had invented the word yesterday when puddle after puddle muddled my pants and shoes. Should have been more prepared.

muddled

Just realized that is also a word.

meander

I had set off quite hastily in the morning with only a few snacks, a GPS, my running shoes, a camera and a slightly hazy idea of where I was going. I hadn’t been there in probably seven years. But it wasn’t just my desire to go that was drawing me, there was something else.

romanced

The high cliffs and waves pounding the coast make for an incredible backdrop to the 5.5 mile hike to Wildcat campground. The last two weeks of rain and yesterdays forecast of more rain and wind made the journey even more adventurous. The drive takes you through parts of San Francisco, across the Golden Gate, along winding coastal highways, through small sleepy beach towns and finally to Point Reyes National Seashore. The park has multiple access points which means you should probably have a good idea of where you’re going before you end up at the visitor center realizing you missed your point of interest fifteen miles ago. Not that I learned from experience, but that’s just what I’ve heard.

As you drive down the dead-end road you pass some grazing areas for animals and a Coast Guard communication base. Although it’s more just a small building tucked into the hill, the building is surrounded by big radio towers and things that look like they are monitoring a lot more than just the tides. At the very end of the road you come to Palomarin Trailhead. From here you begin the journey that will separate men from boys. This was where I found myself.

At about two minutes into the walk I stopped suddenly and stared at the trail. There before me lay a large muddy puddle that completely covered the path. I realized quickly that I had completely worn the wrong shoes and I would be better off just getting into the car and going back home where it was warm and less windy and less rainy. However, something deeper inside me said to find a way through. So I did. I passed by the left side of the puddle through some sticker bushes and some of the less sloggy parts of the trail. Once past that I figured the rest should be easier. I need to stop trying to figure.

The trail is steep at points, rocky at points, covered in water at points, slippery, wet, dark, dangerous, etc. The very beginning of the trail warns you of mountain lions in the area. So I quickly began talking out loud to warn any would be ‘attackers-of-hikers’ that I was approaching. The trail I was looking for was an un-maintained trail that was so overgrown the branches and bushes are scraping up against you as you walk through. It’s a well-worn dirt path but no one goes and cuts back the under or overgrowth. So basically after you’ve made it through the main trail about three miles, you veer off towards the waterfall and into the difficult part. When you finally get to the waterfall you can’t actually see it unless you scramble down the eroded dirt cliffs to the ocean. On the chance something bad did happen to me, I realized I hadn’t explained very well where I was going which means no one would start looking for me for at least another five hours. So as courageous as I was, I decided not to venture into the deep ravine cut out by the recent rains and erosion. The waterfall was nice to look at. The hill I was perched atop was neat. The wind that almost, literally almost blew me over was interesting. But there was something else there that day that really caught my feelings.

nudge

I’m not sure if that’s the best way to even describe it. But that’s kind of what it felt like. A nudge by a friend to get my attention. Someone just simply saying, hey. I think on Facebook we call it a poke. Kind of weird but I think God had poked at me. Not a super poke, or throwing chickens or practicing karate or whatever all those other things are. Just a hand on the shoulder kind of thing that makes you realize you’re appreciated and cared for. A nudge. Before I had even reached the waterfall, I found myself walking along the trail and feeling that I had been brought here for Him to take His caring hand and shine my heart up a bit. Almost a nudge on my heart that makes you shiver in a good way. I think it was His way of expressing love. And it felt really good.

today

My legs hurt. It’s still raining and I’m remembering the last few moments of the adventure. I made it back to the car. Took a picture of my muddy shoes and pants. Took off my wet raincoat and sat down to eat my poppy seed muffin. Much to my dismay it was a little past due so I drove home hungry. Yet for some reason the commuter traffic, the lack of food, the wet muddy shoes, wet socks and feet, the continual rain, the bad drivers and the long drive home didn’t seem to matter that much. For something of a much greater nature had happened that day. I had been nudged by my creator. And it made me happy.

thanks

for reading


"Certainly spending just one day in your temple courts is better than spending a thousand elsewhere. I would rather stand at the entrance to the temple of my God than live in the tents of the wicked"
Ps. 84:10