Tag Archives for walking

Scene while walking: February 18, 2013

I have a job that requires some travel. Most of the time I just get to see airports, hotels, and meeting rooms. But recently on a trip to Washington D.C. I had a little time before a dinner meeting and took a long walk around the National Mall. The most visible thing from a distance is, of course, the Washington Monument. It is still closed for repairs from the earthquake, but the outside view is always impressive. And since today is President’s Day (the day we celebrate George Washington’s birthday) it seems appropriate to share these photos today.

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Here is the view looking back from the Lincoln Memorial:

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Scene while walking: February 13, 2013

Every weekday when I am working from my office I try to get there early and spend my first hour walking. In fact when I don’t do this I find my day doesn’t go as well. That early walk is a great time for my brain to wander and for me to simply enjoy the scenery. It helps me keep everything in perspective, I think. This may be true in part because I have the privilege of walking by the Columbia River at sunrise, and it is a glorious sight.

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note the duck wakes!

Scene while walking: February 11, 2013

I had a bit of a surprise as I was out walking – I knew this small ranch had several adult cows/steers, but I hadn’t spotted this sweet calf before. He had wandered into the nearby trees and was sampling bark as a meal.

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When he heard the camera he spotted me. We had a short staring contest before he decided to go back to snacking.

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Scene while walking – February 8, 2013

A lot of my neighbors have horses. I hadn’t appreciated just how many before I started walking regularly. One on my street will ride her horses on the canal edge across from our home and when we have the windows open we sometimes hear him whinny as they go by. While I was out recently she was riding him – I was too far away to catch up and ask for a photo this time, but I did get this picture as she rode him to a nearby field to let him run a bit. It’s not a fabulous photo, but I like the sunlight and framing of the horse. I also enjoyed watching him gallop in the field.

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click for large version. It’s better.

Scene while walking – February 4, 2013

These chickens live across the street from me. Technically across two streets and a canal, I suppose. I get to watch them wander around in the road and into the canal (when it’s dry; they’re not big into swimming) and the rooster is not my best friend in the summer when I have the windows open… But they are very handsome and I really need to start carrying my real camera because the phone picture on barely does them justice.

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Scene while walking – January 30, 2013

I get to see a lot of wildlife while I’m walking. There are some wetlands on a ranch that I walk near – the road is above the ranch so I’m looking down. The pond attracts a lot of ducks – in summer it’s covered in algae and in winter part or all of it freezes over.

 

IMG_2707If you look closely (you may want to click to enlarge the photo) you can see that part of the pond is frozen and the ducks are walking on the ice there! A very entertaining scene, indeed.

 

Scene while walking – January 28, 2013

First, let me be fully honest. The date is the publication date of the post and not (at least generally) the date the photo was taken. Let’s face it – I’m usually going to be out walking later and then I may put together a post for the next day. Or I may even be using a picture I took while walking quite a while ago (it’s possible!)…

What I will guarantee is that I took the photos and I did so while I was out for a walk and I probably saw a lot more stuff during that walk than I took pictures of. So I hope you’re going walking too, and taking time to enjoy all that you see.

This particular day I was walking and saw smoke and flame. Wildfire is a constant threat here, though generally not as much during winter. When I saw flames through the trees that seemed to extend quite a way I called 911 to report it. It was then I was told it was a planned burn to dispose of debris and was coordinated with our local fire officials. I expressed concern because there was a LOT of fire and only one person I could see actually tending things (and one small looking water truck). The operator took my information and I figured that would be it. Shortly after that, my phone rang. It was the fire chief calling to tell me what precautions were in place and that the fire department was regularly checking on the area.

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Click to see the large image and you can spot the guy tending the fires (this will give a sense of scale) – this was perhaps 1/3 of the total area that had fires burning.

I love that I live somewhere that I get a personal call to help me be certain my neighbors are safe. (and it was all fine in the end)

It certainly made for an interesting walk that day!

Do you see what I see?

During the holidays I was gearing up to go out for my daily walk, something my husband has gotten used to me doing. This time he started to put on his shoes and I was surprised. He has some back and joint issues that make long distance walking, and certainly at the pace I do it, not truly feasible. But he wanted to go with me – so I suggested a change in route and that we walk to our local pub and then back, thus having a built-in break at a place we both enjoy hanging out. He thought that was an even better idea, of course.

So off we went. We walked a slower pace than I do alone, but probably similar to what most people would walk. Under a mile in he remarked it was further than he thought – and I was very glad I had suggested what I had! The walk to the pub by a direct route is only a bit over 1.5 miles. That’s a really short walk by my standards!

A bit later he said something much more profound.

“Things look different when you’re walking.”

Yes. They do. You’re moving slower and you have more time to notice things around you – and you can stop and investigate more closely if you want to. We live in an interesting area; it’s residential and rural simultaneously. We said hello to the steer we passed by (they watched but did not respond). We saw all sorts of birds. We saw more damage from the windstorm – many trees fallen over.

When we were ready to head home he picked a slightly longer route that involved a road I hadn’t walked on before. It has fast become a favorite – we saw goats (big goats!), chickens (also big!), and more cattle. We saw an enormous flock of birds cleaning up residual corn from a large field – when they flew together the noise was impressive. And we saw this building, which I think looks really cool.

IMG_2713Why this survived the wind when other things didn’t is a bit of a mystery (though the angled boards are likely the major part of the answer). I can’t quite make out what the roof once said and it’s possible this wasn’t a business anyway, but just a building that made money letting a business advertise on its roof in farm country. It has a story, and I don’t really want to know it. I like that it’s there. It gives me a nice feeling and I don’t know why.

I’ve decided I will try to get more pictures of the things I enjoy seeing while I walk and share them here. Sometimes I will venture out with my “real” camera in tow maybe even along with tripod (but remember, I’m on foot for many miles!), and other times we’ll be stuck with what I can manage on my cell phone (which honestly can be pretty good sometimes). I hope you enjoy seeing what I see!