The Trail

Every day, I write for the first two hours of my day.

This isn’t just a way for me to get whatever’s inside my head out into the world, but it’s also me getting into flow state for a little while. Since I’m sharing something interesting with you, I want to make sure the details are right, so I do a lot of research and fact-verifying.

It’s important for me to start every day by learning something new—even if I’m just reminding myself of something I already know, reiterating those facts helps cement them in my head.

All this is to say that I get an awful lot out of writing every day. It’s deeply personal for me, and I’m grateful for the quiet solitude I get to experience while honing my craft.

Writing isn’t the only place where I experience solitude. One really important part of the process is where one idea per day comes from, and so I keep a running idea repository. I will jot down an idea whenever inspiration strikes.

There’s one place where inspiration strikes more than any other, and that’s the trail nearby my house. I want to show you what that looks like today.

Here’s one of the entrances, where civilization meets nature, at least on a micro level:

I’m probably listening to a book while I’m walking in. It might be about history, physics, or economics. As long as I’m learning something and I can lose myself a bit, that’s all I need.

I can quickly lose my connection with the world of other humans, at least visually, as I head a little deeper into the woods. There are lots of things to look at, including countless trees. Some of these trees are majestic, and some are creepy. I love them all.

This tree even rivals the creepy one in my back yard:

This bridge doesn’t have any water running underneath it, but there is water off to the right, away from the “civilization” you can see toward the left of this photo:

There’s something soothing about water. Sometimes, this stream is flowing quickly and every atom of water is quickly being replaced. An old thought experiment suggests that you’ll never step in the same river twice.

Even when the leaves have fallen into the water, it’s incredible to watch them slowly follow the contours of the stream as they dance in slow motion.

Want to stop and do a little bodyweight exercise? No problem:

Two roads diverge on this path. One goes toward nature, and one toward condos. Choose wisely:

Back over to the water for a couple of videos. This first one shows my friend, whom I get to see maybe one trail walk in ten nowadays. Here he or she is, hunting for fish in the water and catching some sun rays:

And, here’s a rare glimpse of my friend actually catching a fish!

If you know what type of bird this is, let me know in the comments.

The trail I get to walk on just about every day is an important way for me to reset from being in front of screens. Maybe that’s why more ideas seem to come to me here than anywhere else: my mind is calm and undistracted. Or maybe nothing can compete with the visual stimulation nature offers.

It certainly doesn’t have to be this particular trail, but I do like to get out into nature when I can.

Do you have any routines like this you try to follow? Are you able to get out into the woods, or are you more of a beach person?

Did you enjoy this somewhat more visual piece today?