Trail to Lake
Hadley Davis
My journey begins on a cold Thursday– bright and early,
about 8 a.m. Packing some coffee, food, and a book in my backpack, I set off. I’m greeted by soft, fluffy snow falling on my face, so gentle it's like the touch of a mother. I find comfort in this, despite the bone-chilling cold. I start my journey at the very beginning of the river trail– my hands enclose a hot flask of freshly brewed coffee. As the caffeine and cold start to wake me, I finally notice the trees all around me, blanketed in the fresh cold fluffy snow. The river below me sparkles like tiny ice crystals. The world this early morning is still, peaceful, and silent. Breathing in the cold crisp air, the air that stings my lungs. Walking along the fields almost 2 miles later, I finally come across Utah Lake–
overtaking my vision, spreading as far as my eye can see. I’m amazed at the scene in front of me, tall snow-tipped mountains in the background. I take a couple moments just to admire the world around me; I want this moment to last forever. I can’t believe that a mere lake could be this breathtaking; I walk along the sand and close my eyes, afraid that when I open them the scene in front of me will disappear. The cold wind stings my face and brings the sounds of unknown birds, I hear them flocking to and fro Despite it being winter, birds are still all around me. The unpleasant smell of sulfur fills my nose,
the odious smell of decaying organic matter. I open my eyes once more and continue– hoping to leave the unpleasant smell behind. I pause once more to see even more birds hiding, I can’t believe I almost missed them! I travel through the grass and come upon a small trail, leading me to an observation tower for bird watching. I make my way up to a beautiful view, The species I see were so many that day that I can’t even keep track. My 2 favorite birds were snowy egrets and white-faced ibis |
After a while, I leave the observation tower and come across,
reeds as far I can see, reeds double my height. As I travel through the reeds, I make my way to the edge of the lake and my shoes hit the ice. The sound rings in my ear repeatedly, as if on a loop. Surprised, I jumped back, afraid the ice might break. Despite my previous anxious stumble, I try to slowly travel as far as I can on the ice and then I slip and fall down dejectedly. I wish I could ice skate so badly at this moment. I then look down and faintly see some fish underneath me I watch in wonder. I make my way to a hidden walking trail– a spectacular view awaits. The softly falling snow with the slightest sunlight hitting my eye the wide, frozen lake that sparkles in the light of the sun seems never-ending With the tall snow-tipped mountains in the background. I usually spend my days apart from nature–
I even brought a book with me, because I thought I would be bored. Much to my surprise, during these moments, I can’t help wanting these tranquil, peaceful moments to last forever I reluctantly decide to head back– down the little hidden trail and my winter visit to the lake comes to a close. I walk the trail, close my eyes, and envision the coming spring- green trees, bright sun, and a clear clean blue lake with birds and fish aplenty. I can already see myself there. |