After several days of learning and practicing the nuances of good wrting, it was time for a group fertilizing expedition. Both Jacki and Eric, our writing instructors, stressed the importance of practicing detailed observation – or as Eric called it, collecting the fertilizer needed to help inform your piece of writing. So on a beautiful fall afternoon, notebooks in hand, we headed out to the field for some observation practice. Our destination – the Red Rock Secret Mountain Wilderness in the Coconino National Forest near Sedona.
It was chilly when we arrived at the trailhead. The past several days had been unseasonably cold with below freezing temperatures, but we would hike at a lower and hopefully, warmer elevation. The sun was strong and once out of the shade, its warmth rejuvenated us and like reptiles, we quickly began shedding layers. Our assignment – engage not just our eyes, but all five senses to observe our surroundings as we hiked along the Oak Creek River to the slot canyon and back. Stop and take notes – in other words, gather the fertilizer – the details, the impressions, conversations with others on the trail, for a piece to be written later that day. We were encouraged to think about different themes for our writing to focus our observations.
After agreeing to meet back at the trailhead in two hours, everyone scattered. As I walked, I began mulling possible themes for my day’s writing. I am not a ‘detail’ person by nature. I’m the first to miss the color of the walls of the room I’ve be sitting in, the clothes a colleague wore, sometimes even whether a person wears glasses or not. Detail is not my forte. I’d make a terrbile witness! I was assured that this is a skill that gets better with practice, so practice today, I would. A possible theme I considered – this was Red Rock country, so I was sure to see intricately sculpted sandstone rocks. I could play off of Sedona’s famous shaped rocks – Snoopy, Lucy, Cathedral or Courthouse, and invent a few more likenesses from the interesting shapes I was sure to see. Immediately after crossing a small wooden bridge, I saw my first vista of red rocks. Staring for several minutes, I saw and imagined …. a beautiful vista of red rocks. OK, this theme was not working for me.
Maybe playing off the concept of Secret – after all, this was a Red Rock Secret Wilderness – would work for my theme. A quarter mile into the hike, the trail wound through the ruins of an abandoned lodge. This was originally the site of an early homesteader community in the late 1800’s and was flush with apple orchards. Unfortunately, it was too late in the season and the trees were bare, eliminating my best opportunity to engage my sense of taste! The lodge, built in 1926 by Flagstaff photographer, Carl Mayhew was a rustic retreat in its heyday for politicians and movie stars. Mayhew bought the property and built the lodge after filming Zane Grey westerns in the area. His family operated the lodge until 1968 when the property was sold to the National Forest service. There were lots of hikers exploring the ruins of the lodge, so nothing really secret about this place!
The trail was shaded as it left the clearing and paralleled the river. A surprising, delightful find, (could this be my secret?), was the abundance of icicles adorning the shaded rock face. The sub freezing temperatures from the night before had suspended and frozen the trickles of water dripping down the cliff, forming long jagged spears of ice. The surrounding trees protected these works of nature from the warm sunshine, preserving them but still passing through a few random rays to set the ice glistening.
Hiking alone, I started to notice my fellow trekkers along the river. Some were sunbathing, others were playing on the rocks and yet others appeared to be quietly contemplating the river’s beauty or listening to its soothing babble. Maybe framing my theme around the hikers on the trail, finding out why they were here, where they were from, what they enjoyed about the area, might be interesting, so I attempted to make conversation with the people I encountered.
I met a couple from Colorado on a short vacation, hiking for the day. They had family in the area and wanted to stretch their legs after the long drive. A mother from Flagstaff was here for the afternoon to ‘enjoy nature with her children’, but mentioned that a few hours of hiking and playing in the river would exhaust them and make tonight’s bedtime go smoothly.
Another local woman was hiking for exercise – ‘if she was going to walk, she may as well do it outdoors in nature’. Maybe my approach was wrong or I lacked imagination, but these short conversations did not net much of interest for me to write about.
It was shortly after coming upon another local couple hiking with their dog, Max, that I was inspired. As we traded dog stories, I noticed a patch of brilliant red foliage ahead. I was surprised – up to this point, the changing leaves sported shades of yellow – mustard, gold, amber; lovely shades, indeed, but not the brilliant reds and oranges of autumn that I typically see in my home state.
I’d expected red rocks; after all, Sedona is well known for its its multi-layered red sandstone formations. But red foliage – that was an unexpected surprise. Was this patch of trees an anomoly or were there more? So I began to hunt for more Arizona reds and in doing so found my writing theme – the Arizona Reds of October and nature’s infinite capacity to surprise and delight. And so later that night I wrote the piece below.
Unlike brown, green or even yellow, red is a tincture more sparingly used in nature’s pallet, but when brought forth, has dramatic impact.
Who can’t visualize the color of Georgia’s clay, the sandstone canyons of the Southwest or the fall foliage of Michigan’s maples?
But one of nature’s joys, is that it often delights and surprises and disposseses us of our preconceived notions. Like a loved one, so familiar, who still has the capacity to astonish, astound and amaze us, so too, does nature. And so, much to my delight, nature once again surprised me during my fertilizing hike in Arizona’s Red Rock Secret Wilderness.
Arizona – the state conjurs images of deep rocky canyons carved over hundreds of thousands of years by mighty rivers, mountains blanketed with tall, stately Ponderosa Pines, and vast deserts guarded by the prickly outstretched arms of saguaro cacti. In Arizona, red is the color of sandstone, desert wildflowers and spectacular sunsets. I never expected it to be the color of fall foliage.
As I hiked towards the slot canyon, the woods became denser. More and more reds and oranges augmented the yellow foliage canopying the trail. Not just the trees, but the brush, undergrowth and fallen leaves proclaimed their redness as if to say, be open, don’t preconceive, observe and you will be awed. And so I did. Yes, the Arizona reds of October gave me something to write about, but more importantly, gently reminded me of the power of opening one’s mind and soul to feel and appreciate the moment. Call it fertilizing, mindfulness, consciousness or whatever you like, suspending judgment ro observe and appreciate your surroundings is not only important for good writing, but for good life.
