the forest and the trees….
This is an image from my first true hike since moving back to Arizona…it was a different kind of forest with its own smells and sounds, but it was rich in its reward of peace and solitude. I only saw one other person for the first almost five miles…a stealthy mountain-biker who crept up on me as I was kneeling just off the trail making photos of some pine cones and flowers…startled the hell out of me…but otherwise, it was quiet in the way that woods are supposed to be with only the breeze blowing through the tree-tops, the occasional bird letting me know that she/he had seen me, and the sounds of my footsteps on the trail.
Ponderosa Pine forest, Walnut Canyon, Arizona
Scott's Place...Images and Words 
As we say in Norway: I cant see the forest because of all the trees. 😉 Nice photo.
July 22, 2014 at 5:04 pm
We have that saying here, too, Bente…getting stuck on the details and not being able to see the big picture…. Thank you. 🙂
July 29, 2014 at 9:29 am
It’s a great life, even with the occasional sneaker upper.
July 22, 2014 at 5:09 pm
Indeed, it is, Allen!
July 29, 2014 at 9:30 am
Sounds heavenly and look at all that gorgeous green!
July 22, 2014 at 9:15 pm
Marvelous green, Susan!
July 29, 2014 at 9:30 am
Ahhh, that’s more like it. I can almost smell the trees and fresh air. 😀
July 23, 2014 at 2:07 am
“that’s more like it”…absolutely, Gunta!
July 29, 2014 at 9:31 am
What a fresh green……and quietitude…..good for the spirit…
July 23, 2014 at 2:52 am
So very good for the spirit, John…so very good…..
July 29, 2014 at 9:32 am
It must have been a wonderful hike.
July 23, 2014 at 3:25 am
My first in five months, Laura…fantastic and wonderful. 🙂
July 29, 2014 at 9:32 am
Those mountain bikers do the same to me. Guaranteed to give me a few seconds of arrhythmia (crazy heart beat in english). Something special about being buried in the middle of a big forest with nothing but trees in all directions. No risk of bears around there?
July 23, 2014 at 7:20 am
No, Andy…I don’t enjoy THAT particular rush of adrenaline and pounding heart! But yes, there is something incredibly special about being so buried in the middle of a big forest like that…even with the possibility of bears being around. Supposedly there are black bears in the forests, but from what I’ve read, they aren’t often interested in we human creatures unless a baby bear is involved…usually they see us and walk away…but I’ve never encountered one out there, so I can’t say for sure. I had expected to see mule deer and had hoped to see elk, as I understand that those guys are present in larger numbers in these forests at this time of the year, but the only four-footed creatures I saw were a couple of squirrels and a lizard….
July 29, 2014 at 9:37 am
this is a really, really good woodsy poem of a picture and story
July 24, 2014 at 5:40 am
Thank you for that, Liana….
July 29, 2014 at 9:37 am
It’s good to know that there are still places like that in Arizona!
July 24, 2014 at 6:56 pm
It comforts me, too, Terry…I need to get out there and experience more of them. 🙂
July 29, 2014 at 9:38 am
A very peaceful, lovely location Scott. Superb picture! 🙂
July 28, 2014 at 12:10 pm
Yes, it was, Adrian…and thank you. 🙂
July 29, 2014 at 9:38 am