Richard Olmer

Every once in a while, an editor asks you to sit and talk and try to explain what it is that you do that makes you stand apart from other columnists. The short answer is that I write about hiking but it is not a trail guide. It is a reflection of what I experience when I am hiking. I write about what I see but also about what I hear and feel and sense ... and learn. There is always something new to learn.

Often as I walk through a forest I make discoveries. For instance, most times I don't notice the creatures that I share the trail with. Then, once in a while, I'll notice all of the insects that cross the trail as I walk along. I tend to think that I am alone when I walk even when I'm walking with others. It is fascinating how many beetles cross the trail, spiders, slugs and bugs.

The truth is that I am seldom alone. There are birds and squirrels that I hear as I walk along. And there is the magic of hearing the raven's wings push against the air as it flies overhead.

Does everyone hear this? It is magical. I never thought that I could hear such a thing. And there is also the magic quiet that descends upon the forest when it begins to snow. I never have heard the woods become so quiet.

Once when I walked along the horse trail down to Dungeness Spit, I heard this clicking noise and I wondered what possibly could make such a sound. I looked up and saw a bald eagle flying toward me through the woods ... his wings were hitting tree limbs as he otherwise noiselessly flew along. Such an experience is a gift.

Another time on this same trail, I was doing trail maintenance and looked into a sea of sword ferns only to see an entire herd of deer rise up out of the ferns and stare at me. It was like watching Captain Kirk and a landing party appear out of empty space right in front of me. I was awed and amazed.

My purpose in sharing these experiences is hopefully to enrich someone else's trip into the wilderness. There are amazing things to see out here on the trails. I remember once on the crest of Elk Mountain, before all of the snow had gone, watching a marmot run and slide through a patch of snow in a fit of pure joy. I remember doing almost the same thing when I was younger.

Getting out into the forest and walking through mountain meadows can be glorious. There are all kinds and shapes and colors of mushrooms and fungi out there, all types of critters to discover, wildflowers galore. Even the bigger animals like the deer, elk and bears ... or even a mountain goat can add to a day's excitement. And, even calling a coyote a wolf can be fun.

There really is a special kind of magic in nature. A dead or dying tree can be as beautiful as a fragile wildflower. I once saw a tree that literally must have exploded when struck by lightning. The forest floor was covered with small slivers of wood and the stump was the only part recognizable as tree.

There are all kinds of surprises outside, waiting to be discovered, and new things to challenge your existing idea of what is possible.

Just last week, coming down from Hurricane Ridge, Candy and I saw this young fellow and his mom taking a stroll ...