I don’t even know if #slowhiking is a thing. If it wasn’t before, it is now. It’s kind of our thing.
We needed a name for the slow, slow ambles we take outside. VanGogh, I learned recently, also took these slow hikes, calling them “meanderings of discovery.” The phrase tickles me because it’s so perfect. We take in every small detail, examining leaves, holes, bark, insects, all the small things. For us, hiking is absolutely about the journey, not the destination.
This summer we found ourselves in North Carolina for a football tournament and knew we had to find a way to see the Smokey Mountains while we were there. We squeezed one day out of the trip, from park open to dinner time and we carpe diem-ed the heck out of it.
Rather than miss one majestic Smokey Mountain moment, instead of stopping for meals we snacked on nuts and dried mango between hikes, stops at scenic overlooks, and taking it all in.
When we stepped on the Appalachain Trail time must have stopped. People passed us in real-time, hurrying on to get the next mile in or to get to the best selfie spot. For us, it wasn’t about conquering the trail. As we walked further down the trail, taking all the gorgeous details in, the parking lot noise and tourist chatter fell away. Soon we were surrounded only by trees, plants, birds, and the great outdoors.
As we examined the forest floor, sides of the trail, rocks, and trees in the slow, almost methodical way we do, we made discovery after discovery. It truly was a meandering of discovery. (Thank you, Van Gogh!).
P would shout when he discovered something and all three of us would come together and ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’ as if we were admiring a newborn baby. Then he would return the organism to where he found it and I would shout, “Look at this! ” And we’d gather again, giddy in our newest discovery.
These are few of the amazing things we spotted on the Appalachian Trail
Millipedes and Insects
Snails
Salamander
Ground Nest
I don’t know if we made it even a quarter of a mile down the Appalachian Trail. When we return, we surely won’t make it to Katahdin Maine. But we know that trail in a way most of the thousands of AT hikers and backpackers will never know.
What about you? Is hiking about exercise, achievement, fresh air, exploring? Or some of each?
Follow all our adventures on Instagram
Cannot get other user media. API shut down by Instagram. Sorry. Display only your media.
Leave a Reply