Sweat poured from the sides of my temple down my face under the blazing hot sun. You could hear the heavy breaths that I took as I quickly moved one leg forward in front of the other. I moved with the urgency of reaching the summit of one of the largest mountains in the area, and never slowed for anyone or anything.
The fast-paced race to the top has been the trend on many of my hikes over the last year or so. The goal was to reach the end, which was great, but I was missing out on the little things you get to experience on your journey when you slow down.
For the past two months, I have been forced to slow my pace in the outdoors. I was encouraged to notice the plants, learn their histories and stories, learn more about their relationships with other plants and animals, and hear from the people studying and trying to protect and preserve the future of our environment. I was encouraged to sit down outside rather than just trail-run or hike extremely fast up a steep mountain, and to take in all that I see, touch, hear, and smell around me. The time has forced me to take a pause and reflect on the path that I was taking.
A lot of the information I came across during the California Naturalist course I completed wasn’t new to me, but the way and the people who presented it made a difference in how I thought about my surroundings. Learning about environmental studies and experiments from the passionate scientists conducting them and hearing the unspoken details behind the ecology was eye-opening. The details and information I hadn’t come across before the course, such as tips on making nature journaling easier, allowed me to rethink my own storytelling. I was also inspired to create my own intro to nature journaling for young people as part of my capstone project. I heard from perspectives outside the hiking and backpacking world and met other nature lovers who enjoyed just sitting and planting new things in the dirt.
I have always appreciated nature and being outdoors, but when I hiked alone, I wouldn’t always take time to truly sit with it and ponder. I now notice more things when I go outside alone. I wonder if I can guess the type of grass that I’m passing along the trail and whether it’s invasive. I actually stop to listen to bird songs. I keep an eye out for tunneling bees, and I know the difference between a Coastal Live Oak and a Valley Oak tree, and the types of plants, insects, and animals that live in and around them like a bustling metropolis. My thoughts go deeper than the Leave No Trace principles. I now catch myself thinking of different ways to speak about ecology to more people.
The California Naturalist course has made me a better outdoor educator by giving me the time and space to reflect on my own nature journey. I’ve been influenced to write and document more of my adventures outside again and share them with those willing to listen. Surrounding myself for two months with curious and intelligent people who take a moment to ask about best practices for native gardens and restoration planting techniques in recreational spaces has encouraged me to consider the details in everything and to ask my own questions to foster further study. More knowledge, deeper reflection, and more enjoyment in the outdoors are just some of the benefits of being forced to slow down while I’m on the trail.
Check out the vlog I created highlighting some of what I did during the course.