There are a great many outdoor places to invigorate a person by offering an opportunity to exercise in the beautiful setting that is Sonoma Valley and the surrounding Bay Area. This is a record of some of my excursions.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Why hiking is better than the gym



I do not like gyms. And for many good reasons. First there is the noise: a cacophony comprised of grunts and groans, bad pop music, the relentless pounding of feet on a treadmill, and the incessant banter of people who should be talking less and exercising more. Then there is the smell of sweat, mold, and desperation. Visually there is little I care less to see than someone else's reflection, let alone my own, while exercising in too little clothing against a taupe background. This is why, when I need a good workout, I take the Goodspeed Trail to Gunsight Rock.



Traversing the boundary between Sugarloaf Ridge State Park and Hood Mountain Regional Park, the Goodspeed Trail is as physically challenging as a gym workout, while more ascetically pleasing. And the pleasant sensory experience began as soon as I turned off the car.



The trail begins just inside the park boundary along Adobe Canyon Road next to a small, dirt parking lot . As I cut the gas flow to the engine - and my music with it - the sound of Sonoma Creek made it seem like I'd step out of one world and into another. The feeling of teleportation was enhanced by the redwood grove, smelling damp and earthy, that dominates the first of many micro climates I encountered on my hike.



Walking back down the mountain, my legs shake as I move carefully down the steep, gravel trail. With an elevation gain of more than 2,000 feet in just over three miles, the Goodspeed Trail is one of the more demanding hikes in Sonoma Valley. But the difficulty of the hike is not due solely to the incline.



The vegetation along side the trail changes as I move from the cool shade out into the sun. the manzanita shrubs and madrone trees end abruptly and I’m walking in a steep grassy meadow. The green grass, vibrant in the direct sunlight, creates an emerald backdrop to the blue and violet flower of lupine flowers clinging to steep hillside. About half of the hike is uncovered, which means there is enough sunlight for the golden poppies that are scattered beside the trail, but it also means the hike can be almost unbearable on a hot day. This is why the hike is best made in the early morning or late afternoon. Regardless of the heat or the incline, the view at the top, not to mention what you might see along the trail, make it more than worth the trouble.




My legs are warmed by the sun from above and the oxidized rock from below as I snack on a peanut butter and jam sandwich on Gunsight Rock. Turkey vultures make lazy circles is the sky, using the same wind to glide around the western slope of Hood Mountain that I feel blowing past my face. To the south, past Sonoma Valley and San Pablo Bay, I can faintly see the San Francisco skyline through the mid-day sunshine and haze. To the west I look across Kenwood and Glen Ellen upon the tree covered slopes of Sonoma Mountain. As my gaze turns northwards, I see the sprawl of Santa Rosa flanked by the Mayacamas mountains that seemingly stretch on forever.



This is not the first time I've enjoyed the view from Gunsight, and it won't be the last. But on any hike there is always something new to see that you haven't seen in the past.



There is a stream that runs down the mountain side that has to be crossed on the way up and down the mountain, which I can never seem to cross it without getting wet. When the sound of running water reaches me from behind the dense chaparral scrub brush, I start to feel a little anxious about stepping from rock to rock over shin-high water. This time, though, a Douglas fir that had fallen in the few months since I'd last taken the trail provided the means by which I was able to keep my feet dry.




As I’m about to head back down the mountain, I hear a chirp every ten to fifteen seconds behind me. Turning around, I see a small blur rise high into the sky and then dive straight down before pulling up abruptly. It is at the moment where its flight path veers upward again that I hear the chirp of the Anna’s hummingbird. What I’m witnessing - as many of you probably know - is the mating ritual of the hummingbird; the chirp isn’t caused by any vocalization by the hummingbird, but by the spreading of its tail feathers that pulls the bird out of its dive.




Similarly to the golden poppies I saw along the trail, Anna’s hummingbird is common in other parts of Sonoma Valley. but there is something special about seeing it half a mile above sea level in a place where previously I had only seen turkey vultures and red tail hawks. When I hike someplace I’ve been before - just like frequenting the same gym - I know I will see, hear, and smell things that I've experienced previously. Just because I walk down the same trail, though, doesn't mean things will be exactly the same each time. Each trip to a gym is probably unique as well, but I would much rather quietly walk beside giant redwoods than awkwardly toil in a noisy box with sweaty people.

1 comment:

  1. I agree. Hiking is my favorite kind of exercise. Sugarloaf Ridge State Park is one of our best local hiking spots. My first hike at Sugarloaf Ridge went down to Sonoma Creek Falls. Maybe next time I can take the Goodspeed Trail to Gunsight Rock challenge.

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