hiking | Teacher as Transformer

Tag Archives: hiking

On the Road

Posted on June 11, 2020 by ivonprefontaine

As a result of where family and friends live, Kathy and I drive through the mountains on a regular basis. We see spectacular scenery and inhabitants. We met and lived in Prince George, British Columbia and then lived in other communities in the general area. Despite this, it is always exciting to see the wildlife in these trips.

These pictures and the poem emerged on one of our annunal trips. Barely on the road, we spotted a bear browsing on the shoulder above the highway about 10-15 metres from the car. We rolled the window down and he/she posed before disappearing.

A few kilometres up the road, I took this picture of mountains shrouded in clouds. In the foreground, there is evidence of colours turning as summer merged into autumn.

peaks peeking

snow trying to hide

clouds blurring my view.

colours changing

nature’s rich canvas

gentle brush.

Mount Robson appeared with a cloud-like frame. I enjoy taking pictures of Mount Robson when the clouds show something different.

Kathy and I hiked a few hundred metres along the Berg Lake trail. I settled for this shot of Mount Robson which disappears from sight as you move along the path. Peaking out between the trees, is the Robson River which has its headwaters on Mount Robson and flows into the Fraser River a few kilometres down the highway.

I borrowed this picture from Wikipedia . A bucket list goal is to hike to Berg Lake, camp, and bring back pictures. I am getting old, so who knows if it will happen.

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The Simple Life

Posted on April 3, 2020 by ivonprefontaine

I began looking through some poetry I have written over the years and the first one I came across was this one called The Simple Life. I am going through the poetry, as I think with the time provided, I might look to put them into a coherent form and publish a book of poetry. I promised myself I would do this and have been given the time to work on project.

I enjoy solitude. For me, it is time to recharge batteries. Even on holidays, I spend time with Kathy and not many others. We visit family and friends, and hike. On the trail, we meet people to see plants and animals of the area.

It is good to be alone at times,

Sheltered by comforting trees,

The wind singing its song,

Here, I experience freedom and peace,

For the moment, worries set aside.

Minnows dart at the water’s edge,

Dancing between light and shadows,

Seemingly, without a care,

There, they experience home’s safety;

Its primal call.

Here, this is me,

I exist within a simple space;

An unseen hand beckons me,

I wave to this life,

Enjoying it each time I return;

Nature’s beauty gradually revealed.

I wrote the poem after spending the day hiking in Waterton Lake National. The one reference is to standing by the lake and watching minnows dart in and out of the sun and shadows. In Arizona, we hiked in an area of Buckeye called Skyline Regional Park.

I took the pictures below over five or six days as the cactus blossomed. As a result, we walked the same path with some variations over that time. We got to see nature’s beauty gradually being revealed.