Trail Notes

Do you remember the first time you “discovered” a special place? Do you remember that feeling that overwhelmed your body? How did you feel?

Weekend Adventures Magazine is about those special places and great feelings you get when you discover them. Why do you suppose some people set out to find them, while others sit at home only dreaming about them? I had such experience discovering a very special place, I like to call mine.

I was recently driving on a familiar country road. It is quite beautiful, as it tops spectacular mountains and rolls through pleasant valleys. But for some unknown reason, I found myself turning off onto a  less traveled road, unsure of  its destination. Obviously, I had been spellbound with the need to discover where it leads and to absorb the sights along the way. About three miles on my journey down the road,  I came upon a washed out bridge. So much for my destiny, I thought. Disappointed,  I turned around and headed back out.

However, all was not lost, I had learned something in the process: where the road lead to and that I have a yearning to explore. For reasons beyond myself, I am haunted by an attraction to the unknown. I always have to seek what lies around the next bend, or where that other trail goes.

As I arrived back to the familiar byway and began traveling towards my hometown, I found myself wanting to do it again. Leave the comforts of my familiar surroundings to take the road less traveled. Something had caught my eye. Unsure just what it was, I passively turned the vehicle again and made another bid for an amazing discovery. Sure enough, after a few minutes, I had been blessed with a view that would challenge anything I had ever seen before. As I sat there marveling at rolling pastures, dense forests on steep mountains and a twisting river tying everything together,  I pondered how I would describe the day to my family when I arrived home  if I hadn’t chosen to travel up this road. Probably average, I thought, but for now, this average day has been transformed into extraordinary experience.

I am not really sure what forces cause a person to act like that. But, one thing is for sure, it made my day. I hope that you will try it too, and Weekend Adventures Magazine can help point you in the right direction.
 

Steven B. Leyh
Publisher/Editor-in-Chief