Forest Bathing
Garden Clippings for September 3, 2021
If you were to ask me where I’d like to go on a week’s vacation I would respond with “Doesn’t really matter, as long as there is a Starbucks nearby.”
It’s not that I am in love with Starbucks, but where there is a Starbucks there is architecture, museums, festivals, escalators, busses, botanical gardens, noises and concerts. Right up my alley.
A week ago, Cheryl and I drove up to Tobermory, boarded the Chichimaun and by 8 pm were enjoying dinner at the Rockgarden Terrace Resort in the heart of Manitoulin Island. Our hosts, Carmen, Sander, Angela and son Sebastian gave us a welcome far warmer than you could ever expect from a Hilton or Best Western.
Dinner was served overlooking Lake Mindemoya, probably the smoothest and clearest lake I have ever seen. Dessert and coffee arrived while the full moon rose over the eastern sky. Spectacular.
“If you think the moonrise is amazing, you should be sure to get up before 6:39 to see the sun rise,” said Carmen.
He was right. The sun popped up at 6:39, first over the distant trees, then glistening over the quiet lake, uninterrupted by architecture of city life.
By 9:30 AM we parked our car at the trail head of Cup and Saucer hiking trail, tied up our hiking shoes and began the trek upward. Within a few short minutes, I realized I was having the time of my life, miles and miles away from museums, malls and Starbucks.
The Cup and Saucer Trail is an up to 12 km walk along the top edge of the Niagara Escarpment providing breathtaking views. The first and last kilometer have a degree of difficulty, although I’d say anybody aged 8 to 64 could handle it comfortably. Since it is the Escarpment, parents should hang on to their kids where it is necessary to do so.
The Cup and Saucer Trail, or any other Canadian trail, is worth visiting for the following reasons:
The Views are amazing. Whether overlooking the Escarpment, discovering waterfalls, or just absorbing nature, in the forest, beauty is all unending.
The quiet is deafening. We are accustomed to city noises that won’t go away. But deep in the forest there is noticeably no noise, except for the occasional bird chirp, loon call or chipmunk rustle.
The trees are majestic. Trees are the anchors of a forest. They tower so high that we feel diminished.
The detail is bewildering. If I was a legitimate photographer, I would take a close-up shot of everything: the ferns unfurling, the bees buzzing, the moths idling and the rocks standing firm.
Those of us struggling with anything would do well to bathe in the forest. Any forest. For at least an hour, but hopefully for a day or two.
Forest bathing is a thing. Books have been written on the topic, helping us gain a deeper understanding of our connection to nature, and moving us to healing our mental woes.
