Everytime we hop in the car and drive out of the valley, I never fail to marvel at the stark beauty of Arizona's many landscapes and the way that variations in light and season create subtle changes at each moment in time. The last time we hiked the Horton Creek Trail 15 miles east of Payson, it was late spring. There was a misty spring rain that fell on the floor of the forest that was carpeted with bracken and wildflowers. There was an invigorating aroma of sage and pinon pine in the air and we shivered as we walked along the slick and gluey mud that felt as though we were walking on oiled glass. The mud built up on our boots and we clumped periodically down the path with six pounds of the stuff clinging to our soles. This particular journey, our second hike along Horton Creek in the middle of the summer was a totally different experience. To me as an artist-a card -carrying member of a cult that worships light, the contrast was amazing. The harsh summer sunshine failed to illuminate the soft, gentle landscape like I remembered it. The trail writhed in shimmering heat. Our soles left bootprints in the fine dust. The contrast of the two hikes was remarkable.
Like the tremendous natural variations, I have discovered that there are variations in the ways that people experience hiking. On our hikes, I have discovered that there are two types of people, those who relish the journey, and those who enjoy the destination.
Yes, I like hiking, but I like to go for the journey, not the destination. In fact, there have been a few hikes that I never made it to the "destination" because I have been enjoying the journey too much. Sometimes the scramble up numerous steep paths of rocks and crumbled boulders deters me, and I would rather spend my time enjoying the sights, sounds and smells on level ground. Actually, I kind of saunter through the wild breathing in the fragrance of hot pine needles, sniffing the bark of pine trees (they smell like strawberries) and listening for the secrets of the wind as it whips through through the junipers, pinon and ponderosa pine trees, or the supremely refreshing and relaxing sound of a spring fed stream at first trickling and then bubbling, accompanied by the occasional distant bird singing carelessly. I check out downed logs for lizards and stop to check out the wildflowers. I love to watch the striders skate across the surface of ponds, and enjoy butterflies of every color imaginable flit about in the warm sunshine. I revel in the queendom of dragonflies in every color of the rainbow, blues and greens and suprising flashes of bright copper. I carefully step over baby horned toads and vibrant blue spotted blister beetles.It is pure joy.
The French call it Joie de vivre-the joy of living, the Italians express it as Nienta sense gioia- nothing without joy and to the Greeks, it's Kefi-the spirit of joy, passion, high spirits. It is what I and my kindred spirits who hike for the journey treasure. Actually, as Tim Cahill once said, "A journey is best measured in friends rather than miles." To me and my kindred spirits, joy is found not in finishing an activity, but in doing it. We embrace the journey. Sometimes the destination is restrictive, it sets an end to what we will achieve. It thwarts our freedom.
There are others who live for the destination, the journey is only a medium for the destination. They find it preferable to reach their destination and then relax and soak in the beauty, peace and serenity of their surroundings. They hike for the workout. They as Lao Tzu put it "Do their work, then step back. This is the only path to serenity." They do take short pauses along the hike to enjoy views, snap photos, grab a snack or catch their breath, but their main goal it to get there. The spring at Horton Creek was the destination for this hike. The spring literally gushes out of the side of a mountain into a cascading waterfall. Below the falls, the water pools into a small pond that is lined with moss covered rocks. The heavy vegetation filtered out the bright sunshine. Those who were really brave ventured into the freezing waters of Horton Spring and enjoyed throwing rocks into the pond.
Regardless of whether one is a journey type, or a destination type, the pine forests, spring fed streams, cooler temperatures, spectacular views and wildlife and just spending time with treasured family and friends made this hike a treasured memory.
