The Healing Power of the Woods

I love the woods. I love to be out amongst the trees. I have a goal of hiking as many trails as I can find with a 20 miles radius of my home. Yesterday I did part of the Heritage Trail on the Merrimack River.

This morning I decided to hike at Carter Hill Apple Orchard. I have wanted to hike the trail for a week or two but didn’t want to do it on a weekend when there were a lot of people. It is less than five miles from my home and this morning was a little rainy but still a perfect fall day for a hike.

The owners of the orchard recently built an observation deck and this is the prime time of year to falcon watch. A man was on the deck with high powered binoculars and said he had seen a peregrine falcon this morning. I had to take his word for it. I was impressed with how far I could see. My pictures do not do the vista justice because of the cloudiness of the day, but I enjoyed the view.

The hike started at a small pond next to the orchard. I did some Qi Gong and yoga to warm up my limbs and get my energy lifted before heading into the woods.

As I walked in the woods I thought about how easy it is for me to understand the earth religions that embrace nature as a pantheon. The wind through the trees was like a thousand voices singing as one and the creak of a fallen tree rubbing against its neighbor invited me to pause to listen for a message. I often feel that trees are welcoming and extend their energy to humans who share their love of the forest. A copse of trees provided full body Reiki as I passed through.

The trail led back to a gate to the orchards and I picked a bright red apple to eat as I walked along. The trail offered many views of the area.

When I got back to the orchard store, a young man was just finishing preparing a batch of apple cider donuts. I watched as he loaded the dough into the hopper and the rings of dough fell into the fryer. I asked him if I could have the first six to come off the rack and he dusted them with sugar before handing them over. They were a perfect ending to a great hike.

This is the first real day of my vacation. I will be spending three days in Maine but the rest of the two weeks will be spent here in New Hampshire. There really isn’t anywhere else I would rather be this time of year.

I am a little concerned about having two weeks to myself. I haven’t had more than a few days off of work since I went to Nepal and Tibet three years ago. I usually find myself to be anxious after four days and find it difficult not to check my work email. This time, however, I think I can ride the anxious period through and be able to rest, enjoy the outdoors, and spend time with family and friends.