Ice.
The culprit to many car accidents, falls leading to injuries, and the reason why people hate winter (besides the temperature of course). However, while skating trails with my parents at Charles Lindbergh State Park, I saw a positive side of the hazard – a sign of Spring.
(Stay with me now, I promised it’ll be good).
The above freezing afternoon expressed evidence of this as the Oaks and Pine alike continued to shake off the remainder of snow and ice from their barren branches to make room for future blooms. The excess; in turn, conformed onto the packed down paths before freezing once again when the temperature dropped with the sun.
Additionally, the ice helped us slow down and take in our surroundings – although not by sight (the ground being more appealing to prevent us from an embarrassing fall), but by sound and smell. The chilling breeze brought the smell of fresh pine to my senses more than once throughout the hike, asking me to stop and breathe deeply again. The song birds were also quite chatty (mostly Blue Jays of course) during the adventure; though, the forest echoed the “ice!” cries from both my parents and I.
There is a lot of history at this State Park too; unfortunately, parts of it closed due to the spread of COVID-19. This included the nearby museum for Charles Lindbergh, who the park is obliviously named after. Besides the posted information about Lindbergh throughout the state park, the area also hosts the location of where Lindbergh famously landed his plane “Jenny” in a forest clearing about a mile and a half loop walk.
My favorite aspect of the hike, neared the end along Pike Creek that meanders around the whole park. A breeze brought to my attention the nearby White Pine stand while my ears hummed along to the bubbling brook to my left. By then I stopped, just in time to see the late afternoon sun pierce through the sturdy trunks, causing them to glow, warming my face. As a result, the fresh green needles glistened and swayed, dripping with melted ice; their smell reaching my nostrils once again.
I smiled, thinking ice (in this fashion) is a lovely sign for Spring indeed.
