Hiking in the woods

After breakfast this morning I found my hiking boots and headed for a long and refreshing walk in the woods which starts right behind my house. It was wet and chilly, and the snow was soft and deep. It would have been easier to walk with cross country skis. But boots it was for me today.

The forest is always beautiful. It changes from day to day, or even from hour to hour when the light changes. I brought my digital camera on my walk today. Often I prefere to walk without, but I have realized that when I do bring it it halps me see the tiny details in a new way.

My favorite spots are where I find water. There are no rivers or lakes close to my house, but brooks everywhere, and with the mild temperature we've had this winter all of them were unfrozen and many of them were open. Others were completely covered by snow. I don't know what it is with water, but looking down in the dark deepness and the silence broken by drops falling from the nearby trees makes me see glimpses of eternity.

I didn't bring any baxkpack nor any food today. But I know I will as winter goes by bring many an hour out there, with or without backpack, with or without my lunch or my coffee bottle. Nature is a blessing, free for all of us to use.