A Walk at Dawn 7/19/24

My cousin, Thayer and her husband, Bill, live in a sweet log home a few minutes north of Bar Harbor, Maine. Although in her 80’s and a great grandmother, she can still scamper around me like a rabbit. She is sharp, full of a zest for life, funny and a lover of nature.

One morning she challenged me to be ready at 5am for a walk to a special place she goes to watch the sunrise. We arrived at a designated historical site, the Stone Barn Farm.

Armed with my new walking sticks, we headed up the hill of an old pasture, luckily on a path that had been mowed. The sun was just cresting the treetops as a cool mist hovered in the low-lying parts of the land.

The plants and forest glowed in the dawns reddish light.

We entered the forest, thick with evergreens and deciduous trees. A perfume of pine needles and old leaves wafted up in greeting.

A new mushroom pushed her head up through the leafy carpet.

We trekked up and down the gentle hill to emerge at the edge of a salt marsh.

A lovely, quiet spot for reflection, both visually and mentally.

Thayer stood quietly as I took in the beauty of the surroundings and the water that would eventually lead to the sea. Water that also moved with the tides – advancing and receding.

Retracing our steps, Thayer easily outdistanced me as we moved through the maples, oaks and birches along with unusually formed pines and old spruces.

We reentered the pasture, now bathed in morning light…..

……and filled with magical spider webs that had been woven during the night.

Most of them faced southeast, perhaps a bug flight pattern?

Each one, woven in an intricate pattern by a master architect. If we walked past them at a perpendicular angle, they were all but invisible.

The entire field seemed enchanted with the weavings of these nocturnal arachnids.

We completed our adventure with a visit to the building for which the land is named,

Stone Barn Farm, built in 1879.

A pond graced the land north of the farmhouse.

Surrounding the old farm pond were plants from an original garden, including rhubarb and asparagus. These lovely poppies were nestled up against the house, part of a perennial garden.

The view from the house showed the pasture we had just walked across, the forest and salt marsh beyond.

The morning was a sensual, mystical experience.

Thank you, T.