The kid has an amazing ability to pretend they don't know I'm taking a picture of them.
Today is my kid's 16th birthday. We did not go hiking today; that was weeks ago-- I think two-- when, during a particularly temperate spell of weather, kid said "Do you want to go hiking sometime soon?" We went the next day. I feel so lucky to have a kid who still wants to hang out sometimes, who still gets excited about bugs, but now also enjoys a really good cup of coffee and knows what's going on with Trump-Russia. This is the ideal companion.
It's a pretty long drive by now to the start-point of our hikes. We started this time in the town of Brunswick, MD, sleepy but picturesque, and boasting this colorful church-turned-coffee-shop full of stained-glass.
It's a pretty long drive by now to the start-point of our hikes. We started this time in the town of Brunswick, MD, sleepy but picturesque, and boasting this colorful church-turned-coffee-shop full of stained-glass.
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We both bought coffees, and kid got a sandwich, because they didn't have a soggy leftover Mediterranean Veggie sandwich from Panera in their backpack the way I did. We liked this place so much that we seriously discussed taking a weekend vacation to Brunswick sometime, just so we could hang out there.
Upon departing our vehicle, kid decided that they would eat their delicious sandwich immediately, so we sat on a rock just outside the car while kid devoured lunch. (I saved my soggy sandwich for later, though it turned out not to improve with age.) It was a perfect day, sunny and with temperatures in the high 70s-- beautifully cool for Maryland in the summer. I was happy just to sit and soak up my vitamin D.
After a bit, we got on the trail. It looked much as it usually does:
Upon departing our vehicle, kid decided that they would eat their delicious sandwich immediately, so we sat on a rock just outside the car while kid devoured lunch. (I saved my soggy sandwich for later, though it turned out not to improve with age.) It was a perfect day, sunny and with temperatures in the high 70s-- beautifully cool for Maryland in the summer. I was happy just to sit and soak up my vitamin D.
After a bit, we got on the trail. It looked much as it usually does:
Super-green. There were some nice details:
A mossy stump that looks like the cliffs of New Zealand.
Someone we met on the road.
Not my photo. This is what a green heron looks like. Animals we saw besides this toad: 3 beautiful fawns, a green heron, a family of ducks, lots of turtles, colorful goldfinches and cardinals, and a multitude of shimmering dragonflies and shiny green beetles. I don't know where the fawns' mothers were.
Kid was also delighted with what seemed to us like a truffula tree, but appears to have many names, including Persian silk tree or mimosa. It had pretty pink tufts that smelled amazing. All my life I'd been searching for trees such as these.
Kid was also delighted with what seemed to us like a truffula tree, but appears to have many names, including Persian silk tree or mimosa. It had pretty pink tufts that smelled amazing. All my life I'd been searching for trees such as these.
 My photo |  Not my photo |
At the 58-mile mark, the C&O Canal Towpath intersects with the Appalachian Trail. This was the point where I sat down on another rock to eat my own sandwich, pulling off large sections of soggy bread and wilted lettuce. There was far too much feta cheese. I regretted everything.
It was a shortish walk, without drama, but happy. Kid and I are planning another 3-day blitz in August.
It was a shortish walk, without drama, but happy. Kid and I are planning another 3-day blitz in August.
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