Today Brian and I went to the Marin Headlands and did a little hiking from the top of Hawk Hill all the way down to Kirby cove. The day was filled with wonder and awe right from the start. As we got there it was a bit chilly and I found myself spellbound and filled with joy at all the simple and wonderful sights, sounds and experiences around us. The swirling mist and fog was the first thing that touched my spirit. It was almost as if it were spinning and twisting in an intricate dance as the sun rose, warming the hills and stirring the ocean breeze.
We first walked to the ocean side of the hill and in the tunnel we noticed someone had painted huge pictures of animals on the interior of the tunnel. They were grazing animals depicted in the style of ancient cave drawings and were quite interesting to see. The low light prevented me from getting any pictures though.
It was too foggy yet to get any good pictures so we decided to hike down to the beach that we later found out was Kirby cove. On the way down we got to the rocky area and I was taking note of many of the things around us. One of those being a snake in our path. He was a small striped snake, much like a garter snake but too thick and short to be that. He slithered into the brush and we continued on. The rocks were dappled with lichen and mosses and the very patterns were a sight to see as well. I noticed so many smells too. One being that of a furred animal that I couldn�t quite place.
As we got further down into the tree lined area we approached the cliffs and the view there was truly spectacular. There were trees on the bare face of the steep slopes, Harbor seals bobbing up and down in the water far below, pelicans, gulls, cormorants and ravens flying about and a cheerful monarch butterfly dancing around one shrub as we made our way down.
When we got to an area of rough and rugged Monterey pines I began to get a strange sensation. The whole area seemed pristine in a way and I began to sense �something�. I could not tell what it was at first. It felt as though we were intruding on the sanctity of the area. I began scanning the area as I slowly became aware that there was �something� there. We continued on, but I kept pausing as the nagging feeling of that �something� was ever present in the area.
As we got to the base of the area and began crossing the lower reaches of it the feeling became stronger. I had been telling Brian what I was feeling and stopping to look around and even mentioned that I felt we were being watched. Nothing was apparently doing so however. But when we started over a small rise at the base, the feeling became very intense and I began to move slowly and quietly over the rise. I stopped on the other side and focused all of my attention on the area. Brian stopped too and was quiet and it was then that I looked up the hill as I was certain that there was that �something� there. I scanned the far reaches but could see nothing. I asked Brian if I could see his binoculars and he handed them to me. I looked up the hill at the source of my perceptions and there, behind the brush up the hills and through the binoculars the form of a beautiful black tailed buck took shape, exactly where I was sensing the �something� from. He was absolutely motionless and looked magnificent through the lenses. I handed them to Brian and told him where the buck was and that it was what I was sensing. He looked without the binoculars and could not see it. Neither could I without them. But when Brian looked through the lenses and when he saw it he seemed truly amazed. I must say that it filled me with a sense of oneness with creation. A joy I am no stranger to. And still, I found myself wondering how and what made this awareness possible. The buck didn�t move a single bit the whole time we watched him and was absolutely still. We began walking up the hill toward him and when he still didn�t move I told Brian it must be a decoy. It seemed so surreal and my doubts of it�s reality had me thinking that it was a ruse for poachers. But then, just as I had voiced my thoughts, and a few steps more up the hill made the buck move away from us. Well, what a dork I am! He was real after all. Not only that, but a doe that was a bit further up the hill began moving away too. I found it all quite funny, humbling and fraught with wonder and serenity all at the same time. Another treasured moment to store up in heaven.
We got down to the beach area and saw another doe and walked around a bit at the cove. There were some battlements there as well and a campground. A few people were there. Brian found a starfish on the beach and we took it back to the rocky area to help it in it�s survival. Everything played together to make a wonderful day. We saw many other sights too. Kayaks fishing boats, a covey of quail, plants, rocks and waves on the beach. All in the never ending cycle of life moving and changing about us. I never feel more alive than in these moments.
After a while there we headed back and hiked back up the hill. We strolled around the top a bit more and got a few more pictures. We packed it all up and headed for home. The day was short, but in those few hours I experienced more peace and sense of belonging than I ever could in a month here in Tracy. Another treasured day spent with joy in my heart and excellent company.
