Day #30!!!!!! - April 18, 2017

What a gorgeous day to end my journey!  I'll be back for a visit in October. Thanks Walden Pond for this opportunity to focus on changes and beginnings and the beauty of all.

Day # 29- April 14, 2017

I walked today by myself.  I took some time to just sit in the sun and be.  It felt nice to do as I listened to sounds around me of little children laughing and bluejays calling and airplanes in the distance.  I found a feather floating and watched a pair of cormorants diving for food.  A very pleasant morning.  Only one more trip to Walden Pond left on this journey.

Day #28- April 13, 2017

A slight brisk breeze kept the bugs at bay this morning. It was a beautiful walk, especially when the sun appeared occasionally from the overcast sky. Green is starting to appear around the pond and I can imagine how different it will look when the trees have leaves and the grasses are tall but I'm sure I won't see the change in the next few days. 

Day # 27- April 12, 2017

There is now lots of evidence of people having been at Walden Pond- children's beach toys left behind, sandcastles, sticks used as fishing pole holders, litter, footprints. We saw lots of fish today but not the orange carp we saw yesterday.  There were many schools of different sized minnows along the swim area and even two painted turtles.  In two of the coves we spotted groupings of rainbow trout, just hanging out.  There were no fishermen in those coves so they chose wisely.  I hope they get to enjoy a little freedom and adventure before they become someone's dinner.

Day #26- April 11, 2017

Walden Pond has been transformed by the 84 degree weather today.  There are fishermen everywhere along the shoreline. (Apparently yesterday's boats were stocking it with rainbow trout.)  There is a group of young men playing music and hitting rocks into the pond with sticks.  There are mothers with little children playing on the beach, a large extended Chinese family walking along the path, a couple sitting on the water's edge.  Pete and I took a canoe out after our walk. It was great to be on the water again.  We saw two 3-ft orange carp in Thoreau's cove! A woman joined us on the water doing yoga on a stand-up paddleboard.  Another woman appeared in a kayak.  We had a picnic lunch on the shoreline. Two men jumped into the water.  Briefly. The pond came alive with people today, all enjoying the outdoors in their own way.

Day #25- April 10, 2017

Shadows are long today and plants are beginning to explode from their long winter's sleep.  Pussy willows are out now,  joining the colt's foot's yellow flowers.  Two motorized boats were out on the water today but they were very quiet.  I found two sets of footprints in the water- one racoon and one human, both barefoot. Parents with their babies have begun to arrive at Walden Pond.

Day #24- April 7, 2017

There was so much rain last night and it dissolved all the remaining snow.  It has brought up the pond level quite a bit and caused some erosion along the banks.  The clouds are moving so fast and are so beautiful against the blue sky. 

Day #23- April 6, 2017

The weather is invigorating today. It's fascinating to watch the water react to the impact of the cold rain dramatically hitting the surface. It's hard to really see it because there is so much happening all at the same time your eyes don't know where to look. The many glacial rocks on the shoreline displayed their beautiful colors and patterns today. A flock of tree swallows swam close to the water's surface getting their fill of the flying bugs that have begun to emerge.

Day #22- April 5, 2017

 My company today included a group of artists painting the vantage point from Thoreau's cove, an osprey making a racket flying back and forth across the pond, and the regular hopeful fisherman. As I was walking along the water's edge I kept noticing how the waves had created such interesting ridges in the sand and the dark organic matter had collected in them creating what looked like claw marks or dramatic brush strokes.

 The organic matter had also accumulated on top of the white sand in the cove in a way that made the sand look liked clouds in the reflection of the trees. There were many special pieces of art created that day.

Day #21- April 4, 2017

April showers bring May flowers.  The water level at Walden Pond has gone up a couple of inches since I first started coming here, though it has a long way to go to return to what it used to be.  Rainy and 37 degrees and Pete still came for my walk with me after he returned last night from Florida where it was 87 degrees and sunny!

Day #20- April 3, 2017

Wow, it felt like SPRING today! Fifty degrees, warm sun, birds singing, fresh spring smells! Several things caught my eye today.  The water was so clear and still that leaves and sticks floating on it seemed to be suspended in the air. I also found some really beautiful dirt and scum art!

Day #19- March 31, 2017

 Freezing rain almost kept me from making my trip here today. Things started to clear up a little and I actually had a real desire to go for a walk in the cold rain, something I have really grown to love.  There was a busload of students here for a field trip so I wasn't expecting a peaceful experience, but I started out before them and really never even heard them.  I hope they were able to appreciate the day and the place too.

Day #18 March 30, 2017

A beautiful sunny day was a welcome sight.  The reflections of the sunlight and the shadows  changed constantly as the ripples came in to the shoreline. It was like watching a light show.  I was joined today by my friend Stacey who shares my love of the outdoors and all its healing benefits.

Day #17- March 29, 2017

The thing that struck me today was the color of the water in Thoreau's Cove. It reminded me of Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park with its rainbow colors.  The deep blue center gave way to greens, yellows and then oranges and reds the closer you got to the edge. You could see the color change as you followed the dramatic drop- off of the bottom and the reflections of the red pine needles on the forest floor provided the reddish tones.

Day #16- March 28, 2017

Today began the second half of my radiation treatments and to change things up a bit we walked counterclockwise around Walden Pond. Ha! It was another cold raw day but a couple of fishermen were out there with poles staked in the sand, hopeful of catching something.  I found a hospital bracelet on a shrub near the water today.  A 15 year old girl had come to Walden to find what she needed after her hospital visit. I wish her the best. There was some pretty yellow pollen art on the water in one of the coves. Another sign of spring.

Day #15- March 25, 2017

Light rain and 40 degrees isn't exactly the kind of weather that says "Let's go out for a walk today!" but the right gear and  the fresh air actually made it enjoyable and invigorating.  The best part was that two women from Utah were starting their walk at the same time as us and they had their two little girls, about (4 years old) wearing mud boots and raincoats and everyone was having a great time. I didn't see Friday's flowers which was disappointing.  Lesson learned- enjoy what you are seeing, not what you expect to see.

Day # 14- March 24, 2017

 Such a peaceful day at Walden Pond.  Simple quietness. The water was calm, a big change from recent days.  The first part of our walk is always on the colder side of the pond and there is always something beautiful to discover along the shoreline. This time I found a lovely vignet of four ice bells hanging from a log. (Funny that last night I had just been corresponding with a friend about his wedding.)  We saw no water birds until we got around to the opposite side and noticed a pair of hooded mergansers and a pair of buffleheads, but they blended in so well with the reflections and were difficult to spot.

The true sign that spring is here came when we were almost done with our walk and something colorful caught my eye. The bright yellow stood out in the mellow coloration of the day.  The color of Happiness. :)    

Day #13- March 23, 2017 (HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!)

A blustery day on the pond. A pair of swans joined the other birds on the water. I'm still enjoying the ice formations but wondering when spring will finally get here.

Day#12- March 22, 2017

Just before we arrived at Walden Pond today there had been a short snow squall. It looked like someone had dropped tiny styrofoam beads everywhere. These mini snowballs collected in every indentation in the snow. Almost all of the ice was off the pond again except a small patch in one of the coves.  The mini snowballs decorated the ice island like candy sprinkles.

Day #11- March 21, 2017

Today I shared my walk with my good friend Haralie. We were lucky enough to experience the same thing that Pete and I had experienced yesterday.  We watched and listened to the ice sheet as it slowly pushed up onto the shoreline and then pieces broke off and slid back down on top of the sheet.  It happened over and over again and then just stopped abruptly. 

Another amazing thing that I noticed was that, with my polarized sunglasses, some of the ice pieces were colored like rainbows.  They were gorgeous. The sun hit them just right and brought out such vibrant colors.  I wish I had a special lens to capture it.

Day #10- March 20, 2017

 Islands of thin ice were floating on Walden Pond today.  As we were walking I heard an odd sound and so we stopped and stood quietly.  You could hear the ice starting to move and then all of a sudden, out of nowhere, sheets of ice started to be pushed towards us, sliding on top of each other and then dramatically up onto the shore.  The sudden raucous crashing and breaking sounds stopped as quickly as they started, about a minute later and then peace returned to the pond. Cool!

Around the corner in the next cove we found the "lizard skin ice" again, making strange patterns of clear and cloudy frozen water. It reminds me of the skin on those Star Trek characters.