AWE
A Foggy Morning Walk
I had the beach to myself
One Tuesday morning, I decided to go for a walk in the park before work. A layer of fog covered the lake, and it started to lift as the sun rose higher over the mountains.
The morning was quiet. A gentle breeze made ripples over the water in the lake. I heard a few magpies calling out to each other. I could also hear cars on the freeway, over two miles away.
The fog was almost eerie. I couldn’t see the mountains behind me or across the lake. This tree must have blown into the lake during the last major windstorm. We had gusts reaching almost 90 miles per hour in the valley.
Hurricane force winds blew a strong winter storm over the Sierra Nevada mountains. The snow didn’t last long, and neither did the wind, but we still see signs that it was there.
I like the muted sounds, the shroud of grey, and the silence that comes with fog. — Om Malik
The sun rose slowly, clearing the fog a little at a time. Soon, I could see the top of Slide Mountain standing above the lake.
He who marvels at the beauty of the world in summer will find equal cause for wonder and admiration in winter. — John Burroughs
I was in awe of the sunlight reflecting off the fog as it rose. The day was beginning. My views of the fog only got more amazing as I continued my walk.
Fremont Cottonwoods stood bare and silent. They’re resting. During the spring and summer, these trees are full of life, with buzzing insects and nesting birds.
Moisture filled the air as the fog lifted. Sunlight reflected through water particles, forming a half circle of light (I called it a fog-rainbow) over Slide Mountain. I’d never seen one of these before, so I had to look it up.
According to Wikipedia,
A fog bow, sometimes called a white rainbow, is a similar phenomenon to a rainbow; however, as its name suggests, it appears as a bow in fog rather than rain… In many cases, when the droplets are very small, fog bows appear white, and are therefore sometimes called white rainbows.
A weed is no more than a flower in disguise. — James Russell Lowell
As I turned away from the lake, this view of the foggy sunlight behind a patch of weeds caught my eye. In Nevada, Tall Whitetop (perennial pepperweed) is a noxious weed that’s native to Eastern Europe and Asia. That morning, in the fog, I saw it as something beautiful and delicate.
The freezing fog formed ice crystals on the weed’s dead flowers and seed pods. Soon, the sun would clear the fog and melt the crystals. This delicate scene would turn back into just another patch of weeds.
My walk was ending and it was almost time to get to work. I couldn’t resist kneeling on the ground for a photo of the native bunch grasses with the muted light behind them.
I had a hard time leaving the trail behind. The fog was lifting. Soon the day would turn into a normal, sunny day that was on the chilly side because of the humidity in the air.
The lifting fog filled me with awe at the beauty around me. When I started my walk, I expected the fog to stick around. I didn’t think I would see much around me, even though I liked the quiet, grey light.
I felt like I was the only person in the park that morning!
