Today, I was hiking at the Pinnacles National Park near Soledad, CA and not too far from where I live. It was a beautiful day - cool and overcast. More often than not when I hike there it's 100 degrees. Looking at nature all around me with sweat dripping into my eyes is not so fun. But today was great.
There's a California Condor spotting team of volunteers that I run into quite often. There are about 70 condors nesting between Big Sur, CA and the Pinnacles - a huge success story. I didn't see any today; didn't see much wildlife today, but I did see lots of mushrooms.
Mushrooms are so intriguing and stylish and creepy and whimsical and deadly. Look at this one. What caught my eye was the big canopy top, but when I bent down to get a closer look I noticed the fluorescent band around the bottom. So cool.
I like the way this one has a saggy, droopy roofline and that giant foot-like stem. A little Tolkein-esque - Lord of the Rings middle earth feel to it.
So much in nature inspires creativity. That's what keeps me hiking! That and the piece of chocolate cake I ate after my nine miles today.
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