A Walk in the Park...
Five minutes by foot from my apartment lies the entrance to an enormous park packed with giant redwood trees, a Vietnam memorial, a holocaust memorial, a kiddie museum, a zoo, a Japanese Garden, and the list goes on.
So on Sunday I decided to venture out and explore this massive park that’s virtually in my backyard. I had the day off and thought it might be fun to visit the zoo, so I followed the little wooden signs that ushered me along a winding trail into the misty woods.
After quite a while of walking—maybe an hour—I spotted my fourth zoo sign. So I continued on, figuring I’d get there eventually. Several teenagers zoomed by on dirt bikes, leaping over mounds of dirt and posing midair. I watched them until they vanished around a bend and turned just in time to see a rugged looking man jetting by on a ten speed, fully camouflaged, with a crossbow strapped to his back.
I started to worry. Was he chasing them? Was this some deranged version of Surviving the Game? And then I started really taking a good look at my surroundings. The forest was thick. The ground was covered in a mass of dewy foliage. I thought back to the sign I’d read about not feeding the wildlife. What wildlife? Oh shit. What wildlife! Crap. Frightening images of grizzly bears and mountain lions sprang to mind. I suddenly remembered a Discovery Channel special I’d watched on Sasquatch. Wasn’t he spotted in Oregon?
I came to another wooden sign announcing that the Hoyt Arboretum was .9 miles away. There were several other destinations listed, the zoo at the very bottom. When I finally arrived at the Arboretum I spotted a huge map of the park and so I traced my path. I had walked three miles—uphill! And the zoo was clear on the other side of the park—maybe twice the distance I’d already walked.
Exhausted, I gazed across the distance and thought, Holy crap…I’m gonna have to walk all the way back. But just then, I spotted a small brick building in the middle of a clearing. A sign said in huge red letters: The MAX. My heart leapt. I hurried over. Yes! There was an elevator. I pushed the button and stepped in. A digital display showed that I was at 700 feet elevation. The elevator descended…
600 feet…
500 feet…
The doors opened.
I was in an enormous subway station! I threw my hands up to the sky and shouted (in my head, of course): I LOVE PORTLAND!!!
So on Sunday I decided to venture out and explore this massive park that’s virtually in my backyard. I had the day off and thought it might be fun to visit the zoo, so I followed the little wooden signs that ushered me along a winding trail into the misty woods.
After quite a while of walking—maybe an hour—I spotted my fourth zoo sign. So I continued on, figuring I’d get there eventually. Several teenagers zoomed by on dirt bikes, leaping over mounds of dirt and posing midair. I watched them until they vanished around a bend and turned just in time to see a rugged looking man jetting by on a ten speed, fully camouflaged, with a crossbow strapped to his back.
I started to worry. Was he chasing them? Was this some deranged version of Surviving the Game? And then I started really taking a good look at my surroundings. The forest was thick. The ground was covered in a mass of dewy foliage. I thought back to the sign I’d read about not feeding the wildlife. What wildlife? Oh shit. What wildlife! Crap. Frightening images of grizzly bears and mountain lions sprang to mind. I suddenly remembered a Discovery Channel special I’d watched on Sasquatch. Wasn’t he spotted in Oregon?
I came to another wooden sign announcing that the Hoyt Arboretum was .9 miles away. There were several other destinations listed, the zoo at the very bottom. When I finally arrived at the Arboretum I spotted a huge map of the park and so I traced my path. I had walked three miles—uphill! And the zoo was clear on the other side of the park—maybe twice the distance I’d already walked.
Exhausted, I gazed across the distance and thought, Holy crap…I’m gonna have to walk all the way back. But just then, I spotted a small brick building in the middle of a clearing. A sign said in huge red letters: The MAX. My heart leapt. I hurried over. Yes! There was an elevator. I pushed the button and stepped in. A digital display showed that I was at 700 feet elevation. The elevator descended…
600 feet…
500 feet…
The doors opened.
I was in an enormous subway station! I threw my hands up to the sky and shouted (in my head, of course): I LOVE PORTLAND!!!
posted by Grant-Will-Rant at
6:59 PM
2 Comments:
I'm still amazed at your initiative. I'd never venture forth as you do alone. It scares me.
By
Oliver Dale, at 8:13 PM, March 01, 2006
That's very cool. I am very jealous of anyone who lives in a climate hospitable to humans. I've been considering finding a bike to ride the four miles to work, but I wonder if I would need a shower after. Although, I suppose if I was stinky the kids would keep their distance...
Public transportation is a very, very good thing. And even better when it makes a long dangerous walk back unecessary. My mom lives in CA and she's always talking about these walks she takes and the mountain lions and such. I hope nothing happens to her, but I figure if something ever did, she would die happy. I wish I could live life that way.
By
Kate, at 7:13 PM, March 05, 2006
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