TRAIL PLAN AND LETTER TO THE EDITOR

The recreation department in the town has recently approved its master plan for our favourite municipal park, Mateway Park. If you have a chance to look at this document it is available online, see my previous entry for the address.

Below is the text of a letter to the local paper, the Mercury, which summarizes my reaction to the plan and the reality of the way the park is currently being mistreated by motorized vehicles.

The recent release of the development plan for Mateway Park by the town's Recreation Department was a reassuring and welcome document for those of use who routinely use the park on foot. It was further reassuring to see that, after the major facility, the trails are the most used and valued parts of the park. As the leader of Renfrew's recreational walking group, The Kick and Push Pedestrian Society and as a regular dog walker at Mateway, I am pleased at this. I think the Department shows real foresight in looking at ways to further improve the area, especially the ideas of an outdoor cross-fit area and improved accessibility for wheelchair users and less mobile others. This really acknowledges both ends of the ability spectrum, as it does of the importance of recreational walking for a healthy community.

For these plans to work, the Department is going to have to address what I see as a major obstacle for us foot-powered users. This is the night-time use of the trails by various motorized vehicles. In recent months the few yahoos who are unaware of the purpose of these trails have chewed up and damaged trails, making them unsafe for pedestrians. With the most recent snowfall, another group of 4-wheeling truckers have utterly destroyed the trails for walkers, skiers or snow-shoers. I am disappointed that this inappropriate use by a few makes it unusable by so many. Its not as if there aren't kilometres of proper seasonal roads which are open to motorized vehicles.

The signage in and around the park is either absent, illegible or, in places, where the signs are so old, seems to approve motorized vehicles. There are very few obstacles to motorized vehicle travel on the trails. A few open barriers which would not affect pedestrians would go a long way to discouraging vehicles. Hopefully, there is something which would get the message across to motorized vehicles without having to rely on any enforcement or fines. There is not much use to imagining a great park if the property's managers allow uncontrolled misuse that discourages intended users from enjoying the trails.

Yours , on the journey,

Ray

Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet

Thich Nhat Hahn

MATEWAY MASTER PLAN AND WALKERS

This week the town of Renfrew released its and much-anticipated master plan for everybody's favourite park, Mateway. This park provides facilities and programming for a wide swath of our community, walkers can be pleased that there are some new improvements coming their way. This plan does not replace the much broader community plan that was released in 2009, rather it focuses specifically on Mateway Park. The Town has earned our praise and support.

The plan is based on a survey and study that was completed over the past year or so, which consulted citizens from all age groups. From a walkers perspective, the outdoor portions of the park were identified as being primarily used by walkers. The use of the trails was more than half of the access to the park, only slightly behind the use of the interior space, and hockey arena. In general the public is satisfied or very satisfied with the trails. There were some complaints, however these were not identified in the study, beyond a few general complaints. These are addressed in the proposed improvements.

The first of the improvements will be trail maps, signage and night time lighting. Continuing the theme of accessibility, there will be improvements to the trails below the hill making them much more usable for wheelchair users. There will be new picnic tables installed, creating a kind of outdoor dining room facility. There will be improved access and parking on the East side of the trails, where one accesses from Opeongo Drive. There is one other addition to the park for walkers and outdoor fitness people. In the North corner, beside where the soccer fields are, there will be a CrossFit workout area developed. There was some discussion of an indoor walking track, but this is something for the future.

It is clear from the report that the town is paying special attention to environmental concerns. There will be more recycling bins available. More importantly, the park will protect certain areas as conservation. Walkers can feel satisfaction at these developments. In combination with the parallel improvements all along the K&P and Millennium trails, we will have excellent outdoor walking facilities.

The Report is viewable here

http://www.town.renfrew.on.ca/2015%20Recreation/Proposed%20Master%20Plan%20Renfrew%20Presentation%20October%2022%202015.pdf 

(PDF 11.MB)

You will need to rotate the presentation.

Yours , on the journey,

Ray

Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet

Thich Nhat Hahn

WALKING IN PORTUGAL

Walking in Portugal was as wonderful as every other aspect of our recent visit. The main difference was getting used to two things, the first of these was cobblestones. So many places that we walked we found were paved with century old cobblestones. Very often these dated back to Roman times and, in particular, in cities like Lisbon , they were laid in fantastic geometric patterns , swirls, end sweeping designs in various tones of pinks and roses.

The other thing to get used to was the elevation. Being from a relatively flat environment it was always a little bit disorienting to be faced with steep climbs up or down as part of any given walk. One story in particular happened again in Lisbon. Late in the afternoon the four of us decided we would go out to a seafood restaurant, located in an old convent, which in itself had been converted into a brewery. We checked the map and, from our hotel, it was a mere four or five streets to the north. What we hadn't accounted for was that the restaurant's location was also uphill. This meant five blocks of continuous stairways , often twisting and turning between single lane three-story buildings. Because we were not used to street signage, we're not entirely sure if we were going the right way. At each intersection we would stop and look around and wonder whether we are to continue going up or give up and return to our hotel. In the end we found our restaurant and had one of the most memorable seafood meals of the trip, and possibly of all time. Thankfully after our meal, full of large quantities of seafood and Portuguese wine, we knew we had only a downhill walk back to our hotel .

HOW SENIORS WALK

I had the opportunity a few weeks ago to attend some further training in relation to doing assessments for memory loss and other conditions related to aging. In the course of our training we had a brief workshop on gait analysis. This involved examining how an individual walks and how that can be evidence to support a particular diagnosis.

Gait analysis gets used often in assessing orthotic devices for athletes or people with common anatomical issues related to walking. It can be used in a highly specialized way for elite athletes to refine their technique towards maximal performance. In the case of my training we were looking particularly at how gait relates to events that may be occurring in the brain or nervous system. Of primary interest were dementias, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, palsy conditions and so on.

Within the workshop we watched a set of video demonstrations by an extraordinary physician named Benjamin Weiss. Here is a link to Dr. Weiss's video set which you may find interesting in describing disease-related walking conditions.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaCGXOiLr-_WEbnybtwNYGnLiYaK_MB40

On that same channel you can also find more general links to gait analysis as it might be done in a chiropractic setting.

Yours , on the journey,

Ray

Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet

Thich Nhat Hahn

MANITOU MOUNTAIN PART 2

The KAPPS walk on Sunday was another in the set of the past four incredible walks. We began at the Barret's Chute end of Manitou Mountain and walked over to the Eagle's Nest again. This was about 10 km, including some interesting side-trails. It took us about 3-3.5 hours.
This trail was absolutely breath-taking. It was that time of year with flourescent yellow, golden brown and lime green foliage. The trail was almost obliterated by fresh leaf-fall. Fortunately we had the services of our loyal track-master, Josh, who sniffed his way to indicate where to go, when the blue slashes eluded us. 

We climbed one lookout at Red Arrow Lookout. From there I thought we would walk below Manitou Mountain Lookout, but we actually walked right up onto it again. This put us back on the trail we did in August. It felt somewhat familiar, but with the changed colours, it had a freshness too.
We looked for a back access to Eagle's Nest and tried 2-3 different side-trails. Maybe we gave up too soon. Who knows. We never did find anything in spite of Doug's "theories". 
Afterwards we all ate like starved children at Mumfords. Even Joshy got a half-sausage and some bacon trimmings.
Thanks to the whole walk team.
The other insight we got from the walk is how many more great walks are waiting for us on Manitou Mountain.

As a side-note, I attended a lecture at the Renfrew Library the weekend before. It was given by a wonderful Algonquin elder/dancer who described what indigenous life in the Valley was like 400 years ago. He made many references to the area around Calabogie, where he grew up and where his ancestors lived. This added some interesting dimension to our walk.

GOODBYE OLD FRIENDS

These old friends are retiring today. 
These are my Keen walking shoes, can't remember the model name but they have been wonderful companions and earned their rest.
They have supported me through sun, rain and snow; beaches and mountains, trails and sidewalks. Their slim soles (souls?) taught me not to pound the pavement but to slip into each step. To feel the ground and roll along it.
You can tell that the lesson was not fully learned by the heavy wear pattern on the right heel. As is my pattern, this is more pronounced on the right than the left. The black mark on the left toe-cap is from the persistent wear/pressure from a small fungal  growth that has re-appeared on my 2nd toe over the last few years. Sometimes its big and hard enough that it wore that hole.
This model seems to have disappeared, so I will go back to the Keen catalogue ( I wouldn't wear anything else) and find my next companions.

THANKS FOR THE BLUEBERRIES

Went out on the Blueberry Mountain hike as advertised. Great to have Doug, Maura and new friend Pat along. And the Padakun Walkin' Dog too of course, who joined the other 2 dozen four-leggeds. A real mix of seniors, kids, families and couples. Nice to run into a few old acquaintances from our days in Almonte.
The approach is a gradual and flowing blend of the best of eastern Ontario Shield landscape. About 10 minutes from the summit it tilts upward and gives an exhilirating mini-climb, leading up to another spectacular view. Its similar to Eagle's Nest, only a bit higher. You could see all the way across the Valley to Bon Echo Park.
I'd never been at the Alba Wilderness SChool and I could now imagine it being a fine place to visit. Mr. Clifford Junior had a fascinating "soundscape" set up. He had micropones buried in pond mud attached to headphones. Lots of folks got to "hear" the many critters chatting away in the swamp. Cool!

Doug and his monocular

 

BLUEBERRY MOUNTAIN WALK, OCTOBER 4

 

Our September KAPPS walk is a Special Event, only partly because its not in September! We will bump the September walk a week forward to October 4 so we can join an important walking and environmental day in this region, the Annual Fall Walk to Blueberry Mountain on Sunday, October 4th, at 9:30 a.m. (rain or shine)

Each year the Mississippi Madawaska Land Trust (MMLT) offers its annual Fall Colours Nature Walk at cliffLAND. Registration for the Nature Walk begins at 9:30 a.m. and a guided, interpretive tour will set out at 10:00 a.m. sharp. A donation of $10 per person (children under 12 are free) will go towards maintaining the Land Trust's protected properties. As usual, refreshments will be served following the hike.

For more on the MMLT and cliffLAND, including a map, go to http://mmlt.ca/event/fall-colours-nature-walk-on-blueberry-mountain/
For info, call Ray at 433-9405.

DISCOVERING THE CITY SECRETS

In the last few months I've been reading about the modern history of walking in city environments. This walking practice has to do with discovering aspects and subcultures within the city that are either invisible to vehicular traffic or at risk of being erased by urban development. It might seem a stretch to be considering this kind of walking in a small rural town, however that has proven not to be the case.

Over these last few weeks, partly in combination with my Blue-Box Walking,I've discovered two or three secret places in our small town. It's easy to see how people could ignore these places. They're not very well developed, but they clearly provide a getaway for certain citizens of our town. You can call them secret patios,since what they seem to provide is outdoor social space where people will meet. I have no idea who these people might be, they could be youth or homeless or secret drinkers. There doesn't seem to be the usual kind of evidence that one sees with a secret drinking place - no beer cans, wine bottles or the like. My guess would be this is a secret meeting place for young people who probably have no similar place to meet. These are the kind of people also see hanging out in schoolyards or on Main Street. Further, since our municipal government has removed all public seating in the main public spaces,young people or people limited to very small or shared housing have few options but to create personal social space where they can. What I believe that I see are such spaces.

These are not random places either, clearly they have arranged seating and cleared away brush to make room for sustained visits and conversation. And in some of them there are even small fire pits where I would guess a small inconspicuous fire has been set, partly for warmth and partly for social ambiance.

Yours , on the journey,

Ray

Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet

Thich Nhat Hahn

CELEBRATING THE HILLS

Sunday, September 13, 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
150 Donald B. Munro Drive, Carp
A donation of $5 per person, $10 per family is requested.

Join the Friends of Huntley Highlands in “Celebrating the Hills”, a public event on a 50-acre private property in the Carp Hills near the village of Carp.  Surrounded by an old forest with rocky outcrops of rugged Canadian Shield, participants can enjoy many activities, explore nature trails, and climb to an exceptional view overlooking the Carp River valley. An art show and sale, guided and self-guided nature walks, music, refreshments, and children’s activities are planned.  The West Carleton War Memorial sculpture by artist Ron Cowle will be on display.

Celebrate the Hills has two purposes:  to raise awareness about this scenic and ecologically important wilderness area and to raise funds for the Friends of Huntley Highlands.  First and foremost is to show people how special the Carp Hills are.  These hills comprise the only expression in the city of Ottawa of the billion-year-old Canadian Shield, the oldest rock on earth and a Canadian icon worldwide that inspired the famous landscapes of the Group of Seven. The Carp Hills are also acknowledged by the City as one of its most important natural features and by the province of Ontario as an Area of Natural and Scientific Interest hosting provincially significant wetlands.

Dr. Owen Clarkin will lead nature walks along paths in the forest and up onto the Carp Hills ridge. Dr. Clarkin is the conservation committee chair of the Ottawa Field-Naturalists, and is well known for his expert knowledge of trees. We are excited to welcome him back to explain the special ecology of the Carp Hills. The old red oak tree that was the winner of our recent Biggest Tree contest will be just one of the highlights of the nature walks.

A call-out has been sent to artists in the region to display their work at this event.  The art on display will be inspired by nature and depict the landscape of the Carp Hills:  hardwood and coniferous forests, wetland and rocky outcrop vegetation, spectacular igneous and sedimentary (including glacial) geology, and wildlife, including species at risk. A marketplace table will be selling small or donated items such as pins, cards, books, small trees, etc, and refreshments from local establishments will be available.

This will also be the final day to bid on Autumn Splendour, a oil painting by by the late, renowned Canadian artist, John Mlacak, donated by his widow, Beth.

Bring your family, enjoy the scenery, and discover the Carp Hills.  For more details, go to www.huntleyhighlands.com

Yours , on the journey,                           
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn

RENFREW HISTORY WALK

At our In nature, With Nature retreat yesterday, I lead a walk through some little know parts of Renfrew, relating the impact of industrialization on the natural environment. As we walked I added comments about the ways that our growth as an industrial and railway town had changed the landscape. I also noted how, with the economic shift of the past 30 years, the character and landscape has changed again, leaving scars of a huge scale. We paused at the old industrial zone with empty and collapsing foundries and grain mills.  We passed through a factory site, unnamed by any of our group, which showed rusting machine mounts and concrete slabs. The whole site was nearly entirely overgrown with trees and shrubs and now anonymous.

 
We walked past the main town recycling site and noted how much land in our town needs to be reserved for waste management. Later we strolled through Mateway Park. I explained the emergence of the modern “park” as a civilizing space in modern urban landscapes. It was interesting to appreciate how much we value these as “natural” spaces and forget how much of the space of an urban park is carefully premeditated and preserved to appear in a form that planners consider to be nature-like. We observed the scattering of sports facilities and zones around the park and how these structured recreation spaces belong to the same concept of the modern park. Organized sports arose at the same historical period as the modern park and provide the place for those who use structured space for structured activities. The ideas of solitary strolling, interaction with the environment and of a wild space are all absent.

Yours , on the journey,                           
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn               

WALKING AND DOGS

Several times a day I and one or more of my dogs will take a walk down the street to one of several parks that we have at our disposal. This is not a demanding routine but familiar nonetheless. People walking and dogs walking are two very different worlds. We humans will set off from the front door at a brisk pace, purposeful and directed. We have a route and a destination in mind. As we travel the route towards the destination we enjoy the sights and sounds, perhaps a few social opportunities, and the walk is more or less uneventful. For a dog, from the moment we set foot on the path away from the front door, the experience is first and foremost at ground level. What may be going on up above us or down the street is relatively unimportant. Of utmost importance are smells. As soon as we leave the front porch there are smells on the lawn, smells on the laneway, smells around the trees, smells at the edge of the road, smells on the tires of the cars. Theirs is a world of smells.

Where our walking is shaped by a destination and a route, a dog’s walk is shaped by territory, by history, and by the critical task of establishing one’s importance in the environment. There is no distinction between a tire, a blade of grass or the most archetypal of spaces, a fire hydrant. What matters is the identifying scent left behind.What matters is being the freshest and strongest of scents. The top dog.

As we walk these issues do not alter any importance. Designating territory right off the porch is every bit as important [or so it seems] as any bush or clump of grass anywhere along the route. It seems that my dogs can take a break from this territorial obsession for brief periods of time, apparently enjoying running around or circling around my feet as we walk. Nevertheless, such distractions are short-lived. Over and over again, they come back to that smell that calls them like a siren song, ever enticing, ever challenging, with no possibility of not responding.

We each have our needs as we walk around streets and parks of our neighbourhood. We each seek out the corners and vistas that satisfy our needs each time we walk. The challenge Is always to respect the needs and priorities of each other and find a pace and rhythm, so that the return to the front porch brings satisfaction, at least for the moment.

Yours, on the journey,                           
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn                       
       
                   
   

           

NEW BLOG NAME

Sometimes, when a path grows with use and new side-trails open up, they earn the right to have a name of their own. We started this blog a couple of years ago as the blog associated with the Padakun initiative. Now its necessary to distinguish the blog, as a weekly commentary on walking topics, from the main Padakun website, which is more of a hub for what has grown into a few different Padakun-centred projects, like KAPPS.
As of this post we announce the new name for this blog as Footprints. In this space we will continue to post weekly reflections and information related to walking. The emphasis will remain on some of the more contemplative aspects of walking and related most specifically on my walking experience here on the trails and pathways of Renfrew County.
Padakun has spun off its first major projects in the form of Ray’s Walk Like A Mountain (WLM) book and the Kick and Push Pedestrian Society (KAPPS), and each of these have prospered in their own way. They will each continue to have their own blog-trails, and we encourage all our followers to check them out too.
Starting this Fall, 2015, we will expand into 2 more projects. The first will take the form of a more scholarly exploration of what we introduced in WLM as “contemplative walking”. We would like to reach across disciplines and determine what we can learn from relatively new sub-discipline known as eco-psychology or eco-therapy. Over the coming year we will examine the main works in this field and try to articulate a larger description for contemplative walking, as well as inviting shared study with others in this micro-field of study.
The second project is just taking shape and is much more practically-oriented. It has occurred to us that most walkers enjoy their walking in a sometimes messy and trash-spoiled environment. We would like to introduce Blue Box Walks as a project that combines our favourite activity, walking, with a little more responsible engagement with the places we walk. Over the next few months we will unfold this project and how you can participate and even introduce it to your neighbourhood.

Yours , on the journey,                           
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn

WALKERS AND OTHERS

I went out on the K and P trail this week with my boy, Josh, and more or less had the trail to myself. There were two occasions where I came across fellow travellers and it brought home to me the difference between walkers and other travellers. This is hardly a scientific analysis, but interesting nonetheless, to see the distinction so clearly.
The first to come along was a couple on what is known around here as “a side-by side”, meaning an ATV where the driver and the main passenger sit beside each other, as opposed to one in front of the other, as they might on a motorcycle. They crept up on me, a very respectful and reasonable pace, and passed me in the way that I appreciate, not inconveniencing Josh or I as we each went off in our separate directions. As I usually notice with riders, they chug along making considerable noise, breezing the copious amounts of gasoline fumes, and restricting their interaction with the trail and its periphery to what one can see through the hole in the helmet, cruising at 25 mph. There is scarcely any physical effort required for their trip, and I’ve been told by riders that such riding can have a negative effect on one’s body.
Shortly after that, the next traveller was a young man on a bicycle. He did not have any helmet, shame on him, and had is personal music device plugged into both ears. Unlike the ATV riders, he barely noticed me, and whisked by with barely an acknowledgement. I can only hope that the landscape made more of an impression on him then did my presence. I paused to speculate on what he might remember from his trip once he arrived home.
As others have written, walking is the most immediate means of crossing the landscape, be that urban or rural. The Walker can only have an immediate, intimate and fully physical relationship with what surrounds him/her. These different kinds of riders seem to reduce the landscape to background noise or incidental scenery, rather than the immediate setting of one’s travel.

Yours , on the journey,                           
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn                       
       
                   
   

           

EAGLE’S NEST

In the Calabogie area is a collection of trails and lookouts just west of Calabogie Peaks Ski Resort which is called  Manitou Mountain. There are about 6 lookouts and the highest profile is a spectacular promontory called Eagle’s Nest. It is a set of perches facing west which overlook the hills and valleys of our beautiful Valley.
Its tempting to just see it as a beautiful lookout, but its important in these times of sensitivity to aboriginal history to consider what has been written about this location :

The Eagle is sacred to all First Nations People upon Turtle Island (North America). Eagle soars in the sky and sees things clearly in all the sacred directions and colours; east, south, west, north, below, above and centre. Thus, the Eagle is a bird of Great wisdom and vision and when we visit its nest to be nourished and inspired by all the Eagle represents. When Eagle flies highest he transforms into Thunderbird, the Manitou or Spirit that flies closest to Kitchi Manitou – The Great Spirit. Where Eagle exists is considered sacred; a place of power and good medicines where people may come to see a “great view” or even to “vision quest” for spiritual guidance not only from Eagle, but from all Manitous and the Great Spirit.

 
There is a clear sense that one is standing on a special site when there. I felt a strong reverence for the place and, at the peak, there is a clarity and quiet which deserves respect.

For a map of the whole set of trails around Eagle’s Nest and Calabogie Peaks, visit:
http://www.calabogie.com/so-much-more-to-do/hiking-adventures/hiking-maps.html

Yours , on the journey,                           
Ray               
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn

URBAN POLES RECONSIDERED

A year or so ago I was certified as a poling instructor under the auspices of the company called Urban Poling. This is a Canadian company who specializes in a line of strapless poles with a unique handle-grip. They have targeted a wider market than the usual hiking and skiing crowd. They have positioned themselves more closely with the recreational walking community with a special emphasis on seniors and people with less comfort with poles than your usual hiker. Their designs seemed a bit clunky at first and they seem a bit pretentious suggesting they invented Nordic poling.

Back to the pole handles. For the most part Urban poles aren’t a whole lot different from any body else. They have stressed the alleged risks of straps and have put their eggs in the basket of a sculpted grip with a sort-of hour-glass shape which supports a hand-supported grip rather than the wrist-strap ones many of us are familiar with.

At first I really didn’t like them. However, after several months of intensive testing, I give them a definite “A”. I have come to enjoy the handle shape and, even with my arthritic wrists, I find they are more comfortable than my strapped ones. My only complaint is that they limit their length to what they call a “6 foot-2 inch” model. As someone with exactly those measurements, I still find the length a tad short. Iw ill be adding a tip extender so I can get just a bit more drive.
           
Urban poles has an assortment of models and are very easy to order and competitively priced.

They are at: http://urbanpoling.com/

Yours , on the journey,                           
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn

TAIMA MANDARA

In my explorations of symbolic walking practices, I have been re-reading Japanese Mandalas: Representations of Sacred Geography by American scholar and friend of Tendai Buddhadharma, Elizabeth ten Grotenhuis. (Available for loan from our sangha library). My earlier study of this marvelous text originally emphasized her middle chapters which describe the twin esoteric mandalas called the Taizo-kai (Earth World) and the Kongo-kai (Diamond World). She explains that the term mandala refers to the symbolic images or maps which have been part of the Vajrayana tradition since its emergence in India early on in Buddhist evolution. She distinguishes this from “mandara”, a Japanese term which she relates to uniquely Japanese images. Lately, as I have been exploring numerous Pure Land sutras, and associated practices, I wanted to review her study of what are Pure Land images, especially the Taima mandara.

 
These are not taken as esoteric but as representations of the descriptions of Sukhavati, Amida’s Pure Land, as presented in sutras like the Visualization Sutra or the Sukhavati Sutras. These sutras are not doctrinal or philosophical, but primarily descriptive, providing great detail of what one would see in Amida’s Pure Land.
These images then and now provide the content for numerous visualization practices, part of the devotional practice “kit” of Tendai. Teachers since Chi-ih have structured devotional visualization practices as the four-fold samadhi - continuous sitting, continuous walking, walking and sitting and neither walking nor sitting (this is continuous practice within everyday life).

To view images and detailed descriptions of the three most important mandara:
                                               
http://www.euroshinshu.org/www12.canvas.ne.jp/horai/mandala-index.htm

       
Yours , on the journey,                           
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn                       

       
                   
   

           

CAMINO BOOK ARRIVES

In preparation for my October Camino Portugues, I ordered what looks like the definitive guidebook written by a similarly geezerly walker who appears to live on the Camino. A Pilgrim’s Guide to the Camino Portugues, by John Brierly, is subtitled A Practical and Mystical Manual for the Modern day Pilgrim. The majority of the book, which was updated in 2015, its 6th update, is the usual full-colour maps and diagrams of each of the 23 daily stages of the walk from Lisbon, through Porto (where I’ll start) to the common end-point of all Caminos, Santiago. There are also sections on preparing with clothes and equipment, a brief history, some useful phrases and a short contemplation encouraging walkers to ask “Why am I doing this?”

 
Nearly 6 months away from my first steps, this seems like a good question to ask. For starters I am clear on one reason that I do not share with most Santiago walkers - I am not doing it for any Christian reasons. As a Buddhist priest I do feel slightly disingenuous in using a space which is sacred to another religious tradition. Truth be told, if it wasn’t so far, dangerous and expensive, I would prefer a Buddhist pilgrimage.
Nevertheless, its part of my understanding of pilgrimage walking that, apart from the Cathedral at the end-point, there is enormous spiritual value in engaging with the path itself. This is probably my main reason. I anticipate and welcome time to pare down my life to a few necessities and spend the days reflecting on those things that do matter to me. I welcome the time away from the demands of an emotionally-draining and deeply frustrating career.
Finally, but perhaps not least, like so many pilgrims worldwide I am undertaking this to re-position my own life as it draws to its natural conclusion. I am noticing how many of my near-and-dears are fading and dying and it causes me to examine the best use of my own remaining sunrises. Just walking for two weeks is such a fulfillment. And it offers me the time and spaciousness to consider what else matters most in this late stage of my life.

Yours , on the journey,                           
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn                       

       
                   
   

           

DIXON ROLLER-PACK:REVIEW

In preparation for my Camino Portuguese walk in the fall, I decided I would use an alternative to a conventional back-pack . Too old for that kind of lugging. I identified the Dixon Roller Pack, developed by Bob Dixon in the USA, as the ideal choice. It’s a modern variation on the “travois” which was used by Plains Indians to carry loads by foot or on horseback or pulled by a dog. And yes, the Dixon Roller adds a wheel at the ground, so you are rolling the weight not dragging it. 

It appealed to me because it transfers the pack weight to the hips, and rolls it. This seemed a kindness to my back and knees. I got mine about 6 weeks ago (cost about $400.00) and it includes a nice duffel bag designed for the pack. It was a piece-of-cake to assemble and I was rolling in less than 30 minutes. I have been playing with the straps and such since then to get the weight distribution optimized. I have been testing it out with light and medium weight loads over 30-120 minute distances on road surfaces or forest trails.

I have found it a wonderful means of walking with equipment. There is zero strain on the upper body and the location of weight along the hips is easily accommodated while walking. It does take some getting used-to because it limits your mobility in that, like a tandem trailer, you need to swing slowly when turning. This can make walking on a narrow and twisting trail awkward. It is imperative that you balance the weight properly too. I tried carrying some wine bottles back from the store and did not pay enough attention to the balance. The liquid sloshed and shifted making for an annoying wonkiness. I’m still perfecting the hook-up process, which can be fumbly at times. 


My other accomodation is while pole walking. Good poling form requires a smooth hip-swinging and this can conflict with the pack-harness fitting. At first I had it tight, which was comfortable for weight but not motion. Now I need some fine tuning for the swinging motion - there’s a sweet spot I have almost found. I’ll keep testing it and report more later.
The Dixon Roller Pack comes in 2 load sizes and has a winter ski attachment too. So far I give it 5 out of 5 stars for performance and quality.

You can see numerous videos on these units in use - http://dixonrollerpack.com/

Yours , on the journey,                           
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn

A CAMINO DECISION

Things have fallen into place so that I can walk a large part of the Camino Portugues. This is an alternate route to Santiago. Instead of the Northwest-to Northeast routes that go from France along the mountains and plains to Northern Spain, this route starts in Lisbon and heads due north through the upper half of Portugal into Spain.  Here’s a slide show someone recently posted followed by a map of the route.

http://www.caminodesantiago.org.uk/threads/camino-portugues-landscape-photos.4889/



I’ll be leaving in late October and walking for about 2 weeks. After I arrive and complete that route, I’ll head back to Lisbon to meet my wife and another couple for a much more leisurely boat cruise down the Duoro River , from Wetserrn Spain to the Atlantic and the city of Porto.

Here’s the cruise details:

http://www.vikingrivercruisescanada.com/cruise-destinations/europe/portugals-river-gold/2015-porto-pinhao-porto/index.html

It hardly needs saying that I am excited to join the path of thousands and thousands of other pilgrims who have criss-crossed that corner of Spain. I am equally thrilled and shaky at the prospect of doing this walk solo. I have never attempted anything as long or challenging, so this will mark a new part of my life-journey.

Yours , on the journey,                          
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn               

WALKING AND PHILOSOPHY

For many of us, walking can be a break from thinking. It can be a time to just be, just breath, just step and enjoy the unmediated experience of being alive. I recently finished a new book called  A Philosophy of Walking by Frederic Gros, a philosophy lecturer from Paris, which takes the opposite slant. It presents the importance of walking in the lives of several central thinkers of the Western tradition.
 

The chapters include the obvious and expected story of Thoreau and his time “sauntering” around Walden Pond and the phenomenon of the “flaneur”, the public walkers of Paris in the later 19th century. What was new to me was the passion of Nietzche, whose walking slowed and moderated his gradual descent into madness. I hadn’t realized how much of a walker the French poet, Rimbaud, had been. I loved the portrait of Kant, who only ever had one route, which he took daily, like clockwork, through his town. Other walkers - Rousseau, Snyder and more - fill out a broad landscape of different thinking walkers or walking thinkers who walked in different ways for different reasons in different times.
An excellent and highly recommended read and thanks to my brother, Joe, for the gift of this book. I look forward to walking and philosophizing with you again soon.

Yours , on the journey,                           
Ray
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet
Thich Nhat Hahn