'The Road Not Taken'

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I - I took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference." - Robert Frost

I awoke Thanksgiving morning to a brisk and invigorating invitation. A fine day for fresh air before the traditional pig out...and Bothe Napa Valley State Park was calling us. With my husband, my best pal and 3 other friends hoofing it upward on a spongy path - we found ourselves in the shadow of a north-east facing ridge; tree covered with redwoods, maples, sycamore, manzanita and a myriad of mysterious oaks - not my usual acorny suspects from Southern California. It had rained earlier that week, and a dampness hung to the golden leaves littering the trail and creek bed. Moss clung to every thing dead, decaying or free from direct sunlight. Textures so fern-ladden and fuzzy I swore I was on some kind of Trekkie planet...you know the one with the "tribbles"? Or, in that weird fantasy film "Legend" with once naive Tom Cruise (pre sofa stunt on Oprah and the Scientology) and scary Tim Curry (from Rocky Horror Picture Show) as the evil beast, cue in the unicorn! AND, then along came the fungus! Seriously, we may have seen 30 different varieties of mushrooms...it was quite magical and mysterious. Was I really there or was it just a beautiful dream?

Cheers,

Adrianne