Finding community on the trail

I love nature. I love being outdoors. I love hiking. So when I was looking for a new opportunity to volunteer, I reached out to Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST), which protects open space on the Peninsula and in the South Bay for the benefit of all.

They have great volunteer opportunities and I was interested in their ambassador program, which trains volunteers to spread the word about POST and help at their community events and hikes.?

I was intrigued with the idea of leading hikes, so when I mentioned it to my friend, Kali, she was over-the-top excited and said we should do it! So we did another round of training and signed up to lead our first hike at Rancho Ca?ada del Oro, a beautiful open space in Morgan Hill that is sprinkled with wildflowers in the spring, crunchy leaves in the fall and sweeping vistas all year. We were excited for our first hike and loved sharing this special spot with a new group of people (plus some dear friends who came to cheer us on — thanks friends!).

After leading a few more hikes, we had an extra special experience recently at Bear Creek Redwoods Open Space Preserve, just south of Los Gatos tucked up in the Santa Cruz Mountains. This preserve came to be thanks to hard work by POST, Midpeninsula Regional Open Space, and also voters — like you! — who approved Measure AA in 2014, which provided a $300 million bond with funds designated for public access improvements within Midpen’s properties.

This preserve is teeming with a rich cultural history, including Ohlone mortar stones, stumps of redwoods that were harvested for construction and a piece of Alma College, which was the first Jesuit school of theology in the American West. But beyond history, it’s a gorgeous escape into nature with a few old-growth redwoods, beautiful green trails and serene open space.

We were delighted to see all sorts of community members show up to hike, learn and explore. There was a group of friends who were originally from the Philippines but now all lived in the Bay Area. There was a person who traveled from out of the area and had never seen the redwoods before. There were men, women, young and old. Everyone made makeshift name tags from blue painter’s tape and a sharpie, and there was chattering as we all gathered and then headed off on the trail.

It’s hard to put my finger on why camaraderie always seems to bubble up on a trail. It may be because we stop along the way to share information about the trail and cultural history of the land. It may be because people who show up for a guided hike are interested in nature, learning, and travel, so conversations come easily. Or it may be because time in nature grounds us, helps us put things in perspective and links us to our planet and to the people around us. Heck, we were on the Alma (the Spanish word for soul) Trail so maybe that helped too? Whatever the reason, it proves true on nearly every excursion.

The Alma Trail hike is rather rigorous with fairly steep hills at the beginning. Kali led with enthusiasm and shared the history with the hikers who were a bit quicker. I was the sweep, so I stayed at the end and had the most lovely conversations with my cohort. Along the trail, you could hear hikers asking questions, sharing stories and bonding in a simple yet profound way. We saw massive redwoods stretching into the sky, bright red poison oak that we pointed out with reminders not to touch, beautiful sprawling Madrone trees, and three elegant deer that played near the water before trotting across the path after the last of the hikers passed.

The afternoon stretched on as we wound our way back down the trail. The sun was moving lower in the sky as we neared the parking lot and one of the hikers pulled Kali aside and said, “This hike was life changing; I’m so grateful I got to be here.” They didn’t explain why but rather just gave us hugs and headed to their car.

Who knows if it was being in nature on a beautiful afternoon or the majestic redwoods or a? conversation they had on the trail; it doesn’t really matter. It’s just a reminder of the power of nature and the importance of getting involved, whether that’s leading a hike or joining one.