Portal to Paradise

Beautiful isn't it? While looking at this picture, you're probably hypothesizing right now that I'm going to write about the wonderful camping trip Layne and I took over memorial day weekend.

I'll probably write about how we just needed to"escape" and enjoy nature a little. I'll mention the hike we went on and how we canoed down this beautiful and peaceful river, during the sunset or fell asleep looking at a giant clear sky full of stars...


Man, that sounds great...if it were true. Layne and I stayed home for memorial day weekend, and in fact didn't go anywhere, or do anything out of the ordinary. So where, you may ask, are the pictures from? Answer: Our back yard. You'd never know that from looking at these pictures, but its true.


Well, to be fair, it's more like our side yard actually. When we bought this house, we couldn't have been more thrilled with the location, but I had no idea then what lay just beyond the fence across the street. In fact, I didn't know about it at all until my mom discovered it during her visit in April. In the cul-de-sac across the street, someone took out a section of the fence that surrounds our neighborhood and it has turned out to be our little portal to paradise!

A stone's throw through that fence is the Jordan/Provo River and miles of jogging, equestrian, hiking and biking trails, picnic & fishing spots and bird watching lookouts along it's banks. There is so much wide open space that you can be as alone as you want out there. Now that the weather is so gorgeous, I have taken to jogging, or walking the smaller trails that run by the river in the evenings. I really like dusk. I think it's my favorite time of the day (even more than lunch time). Out on the river, the sunset is so pretty, the fish are jumping, the frogs start croaking and the birds really let loose. And that SMELL!! It's DIVINE! Last evening was particularly clear and crisp, so I took my camera. Kim and I busted out our roller blades and did the Murray Parkway Trail on Monday and had a blast. Generally I prefer to go off the beaten path (even though I almost stepped on a snake in the process the other day). I think the real gems of this place are unpaved.

I also love to be by the river. I love running water. I think I got that from my dad who used to sit in a lawn chair in the backyard while watering our little garden, and watch the water inch it's way down the carefully dug rows. I think there is just something soothing about the sound and appearance of running water.

It's great to be able to pretend for an hour or so a day that I really don't live in a townhouse in a Salt Lake City suburb and work in a lab underground with no windows. I've had some complaints about "our lovely deseret" since we moved here, but the landscape and the mountains certainly aren't one of them! I think this is a beautiful state and will never complain about the scenery.
Ok so I know this little video clip is totally Blair Witch Project-esque and it might make you sick to watch, but I pushed the little record button on my camera while I was walking my little trail and thought I'd put it on here. You can hear the birds and the frogs and the running water...and my heavy breathing. Sorry, I had been running. Anyway, you're welcome to take an evening stroll with me. Here's looking at you nature!