A Heart-to-Heart Hike

My kindred sister left this morning to go back home to the Jersey shore. She’s my cousin, actually, and that was her photo, (holding my prayer shawl), in yesterday’s blog. Yesterday was our last day together, and the weather threatened to be a washout, but here’s a lesson we can all take to heart when in the mountains: ‘Do not listen to weather reports!’ After lunch Barb wanted to take a hike, and even though the sky was threatening, the forecast was dismal, and there had been intermittent downpours over the course of the morning, we thought, ‘What the heck! What’s the worst that can happen?’ and the answer is “We’d have to dry off!”. (Big deal!!). We never needed a towel, though, because we left regardless, throwing weather to the wind, and we had a wonderful time. We chose Black Cap Trail, off Hurricane Mountain, about 10 minutes from the Lodge. Black Cap is an easy to moderate hike, and once we reached the summit, a magnificent surprise awaited us: the clouds lifted, the sun came out, and we had a perfect 360 degree view! Who would’ve thought? (And what a shame to have missed it, as we were tempted to do earlier in the day).

Once we left the car and started on the trail, we were instantly transported to another place; it was magical. The woods there are beautiful, with ferns and wildflowers lining the sides of the well-marked trails. The scent of the balsam firs absolutely elated us; such a clean, fresh smell. The hike, if taken at a leisurely pace, takes 30-45minutes. We chose to take our time and smell the flowers! The birds were amazing. I know my birds by sight, but am less confident identifying them by song only. I heard some of the most beautiful, strong songs from many birds (some of which I had never heard before in my life), but never saw a one through the thick foliage.

Once on top, the view was fantastic. As we sat on the granite top, drinking in the water as well as the sun and the view, Barb said, “It just doesn’t get any better than this.” I couldn’t agree more. I sat there thinking about all the things I’d like to do over the next course of my life, and realized that it consisted of things like hiking, drawing, writing, playing my instruments, doing my artwork, connecting with friends … all things that cost no money … and ALL THINGS THAT MONEY CAN’T BUY. I realized that from where Barb and I sat, we were as rich as we could ever hope to be in our lifetimes. God’s bounty is so fulfilling, so sustaining and nourishing.

We must have sat there for two more hours, just talking like sisters, sharing our hearts desires, our frustrations, our thoughts and ideas. Before we knew it, it was time to make the descent and get home for dinner. I highly recommend Black Cap or any number of other mountain trails as an excellent way of sharing an afternoon with a friend; in short, of having a ‘Heart-to-Heart’ Hike.