Flatiron Mountains and Colorado Music Mash-up

When we started the hike this morning at the base of the Flatiron Mountains, we didn’t see the sign warning us that part of Saddle Rock trail was damaged in last fall’s floods AND that a ladder was necessary to connect the trail AND that we might want to consider this as we chose a …

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Childhood Bicycling Redux

I was barely five when I insisted my father take off the training wheels on my fat-tired bicycle. How else could I keep up with Anne and Janet, Dennis and Willie in the neighborhood? I was no longer attached to wobbly wheels, no longer left behind, no longer the kid sister. I was powerful, I …

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Summer Sights and Smells

I wake at 4:00 a.m. in anticipation of a walk along Cottonwood Road. Although the sun rises almost an hour and a half earlier here in Walla Walla than in Austin, my current home, it’s dark. The heavy rain from the night before has ended and the sun, in its glory, rises steadily without any …

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Father’s Day walk

The sun rises an hour and a half earlier in Walla Walla than Austin. Early morning walk on Cottonwood Road, sun peeking between the Blue Mountains and the grey/white clouds. The wheat almost all golden but for a few remaining green stalks. Lavender and red poppies burst along side the road. An occasional farmer in …

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