First Post

4/7/13, 4pm, 46 degrees, raining

Today I sat in the rain. I suppose that’s not that uncommon for Pacific Northwest (PNW) folk though... I’m not the best at introductions or beginnings, so here it goes...

I love nature and probably always will. I can be a very skeptical and unsure person but I’m pretty sure of this. I don’t believe it’s any coincidence either. But how I came to appreciate the outdoors probably better told inside because I’m currently sick and sitting in a downpour isn’t helping...

(typed later)

Looking back, my love for nature did not come from one particular event, but a sequence of many. As a child in elementary school, I’d go sledding on snow-days in Indiana and search for frogs in the woods by our house during summer vacation. I remember fantasizing about going on long journeys into the wild from a very young age. When I moved out to Washington, I had many more chances to go camping with my family and close friends. Some of our favorite spots near Seattle are Lake Kachees and Iron Creek. A significant journey my family took in 2005 was to visit the Canadian Rockies. We went around Lake Okanagan, up to Jasper and down to Banff. The mountains and the forests seemed to create a harmonious balance. After my senior year of high school, we journeyed to Glacier National Park, just south of the Canadian Rockies. By that time, I had become an outdoor enthusiast. I wanted to hike the mountain trails in the summer and ski down the slopes in the winter. In college, quickly took interest in geology because it valued field work to collect data. Understanding how some of the most marvelous features came to be has become one of my goals. My most recent great adventure was a trip I took around Iceland in the summer of 2011. If the Grand Canyon is the Mecca of sedimentary rocks, Iceland is the Mecca of igneous rocks. Of course, I’ve had many other great experiences with nature that are just as significant to me, but these select journeys come to mind when I reflect on how I came to appreciate the natural world.

~ ~ ~

So how did I find myself here? I’m here because of an assignment I have for a course I’m in, ENVIRO 280: Natural History. My professor believes we might gain some further appreciation for nature by journaling in a natural area. I think he could be right, but it remains to be seen. Currently I’m wet and I have to be out here to complete my homework.

Why did I choose Union Bay Natural Area (UBNA)? My background is in geology. I love mountains and the rocks they’re made of, so I typically find myself at higher altitudes. Swamps, being the geographic low, generally are more confusing to me. Oddly enough, the abundant mess of life here makes me feel smaller than standing on top of a mountain.

I had never been to UBNA before today which is a shame. As a Seattle local, I’ve experienced many of the parks the city has to offer but as I mentioned before, swamps make me feel a bit out of place. I spent some time wandering around the park before settling on a spot to journal in. My spot is roughly 20m from the shoreline of Lake Washington, so I have a good view of the cat tails, water and 520 bridge. Roughly 10m behind my spot is a creek which feeds the lake. Many shrubberies cover the creek giving it a shady swampy feel. Mostly I chose my spot because of the granitic boulder I saw. A boulder of this size (3 cubic feet) is too burdensome to move, so I figured it must be a remanent from the last glaciation. Having a giant rock in my journaling spot makes me feel slightly more at home.

I find myself here because I try to be a person who’s open to new experiences and I’ve heard swamps can be rather mystical. But for now, I’m leaving.