Birds in Flight.....
I have blogged about it before
but
feel like I can blog about it again
blogging is sort of like an online converstation
we all know that we have our preferred topics for parties
we like to go with stories that are tried and true
well
this story is not tried, but it is true
watching the film WINGED MIGRATION could not help but bring back some epic experiences on the bike while riding down the C&O Canal
it does not happen often
but when it does
I am more than happy to be there in that moment
there are times when the sound of my wheels on the sandy surface of the topwpath along side of the canal spooks a bird or a flock of birds but most usually it is a Great Blue Heron
when the Great Blue Heron is spooked and just happens to flee in the same direction it can often become something magical
on a handful of occassions the bird has taken flight only to slow its wings and glide
there I have at my side a bird soaring gracefully at my side
with the bushes, rocks, and trees passing like a rolling canvas backdrop
along with the mirror like water benieth the out stretched wings of this massive bird
it really enhances that feeling of flying that cycling offers a child but as an adult we manage to forget
somehow it is a sight that effects more than just that one sense
it turns into a full body experience
sometimes longer than others
but always epic no matter the duration
still don't know what I am talking about?
check out the site for http://www.sonyclassics.com/wingedmigration/home.html
shit
enough with this blogging crap
time to leave work
bye!
back from a post work spin on the Cannondale Commuter.... a bike I hate but still ride daily
this post started at work
and is being finished here at home
what is so special about that whole moment with the bird in flight is that it is such a chance dance with nature
something stumbled upon
not something so easily created
and tonight proved just that
moments after earlier sections of this post were published at work I left out on my bike
thought about going straight home but figured I needed at least a half hour to lose the day
as well as trying to shed some of the residual side effects of last night's volcanic erruption
unsure where to go I headed through georgetown cutting the lanes of the last bit of rush hour traffic
uninspired by thoughts of the Mt Vernon trail to the airport and back I directed myself towards the Capitol Crescent trail
in an effort to avoid too many stairs I rode on the towpath along the C&O canal
no more than a quarter mile into my canal ride I saw a great blue heron doing a little night feeding in the shallow waters of the now drained canal
with my headlamp I made an effort to spook the bird into flight
no luck
I kept the pedals going
then not even a mile later was another great blue heron
again I tried to spook the bird with my headlamp
the grand bird responded, but not with flight
but with just a few quick steps with its long lanky legs
again I kept the pedals going
accepting that such magical things are tough to be created
and that the specialness of such an experience is magnified by its seldom occurance
just two miles into my ride I felt the urge to drop my pace and turn it back
yet somehow I managed to push a few miles past Chain Bridge before turning it around
again my estimate was off
a 30 minute ride took me a tad over an hour
only to get home to a wife in the process of tucking our sons to bed
with a quick kiss hello
and a question of why I had to work late
nothing to say but I had to go for a ride
then I before the boys fell asleep
I got to give them my goodnight hello
I have blogged about it before
but
feel like I can blog about it again
blogging is sort of like an online converstation
we all know that we have our preferred topics for parties
we like to go with stories that are tried and true
well
this story is not tried, but it is true
watching the film WINGED MIGRATION could not help but bring back some epic experiences on the bike while riding down the C&O Canal
it does not happen often
but when it does
I am more than happy to be there in that moment
there are times when the sound of my wheels on the sandy surface of the topwpath along side of the canal spooks a bird or a flock of birds but most usually it is a Great Blue Heron
when the Great Blue Heron is spooked and just happens to flee in the same direction it can often become something magical
on a handful of occassions the bird has taken flight only to slow its wings and glide
there I have at my side a bird soaring gracefully at my side
with the bushes, rocks, and trees passing like a rolling canvas backdrop
along with the mirror like water benieth the out stretched wings of this massive bird
it really enhances that feeling of flying that cycling offers a child but as an adult we manage to forget
somehow it is a sight that effects more than just that one sense
it turns into a full body experience
sometimes longer than others
but always epic no matter the duration
still don't know what I am talking about?
check out the site for http://www.sonyclassics.com/wingedmigration/home.html
shit
enough with this blogging crap
time to leave work
bye!
back from a post work spin on the Cannondale Commuter.... a bike I hate but still ride daily
this post started at work
and is being finished here at home
what is so special about that whole moment with the bird in flight is that it is such a chance dance with nature
something stumbled upon
not something so easily created
and tonight proved just that
moments after earlier sections of this post were published at work I left out on my bike
thought about going straight home but figured I needed at least a half hour to lose the day
as well as trying to shed some of the residual side effects of last night's volcanic erruption
unsure where to go I headed through georgetown cutting the lanes of the last bit of rush hour traffic
uninspired by thoughts of the Mt Vernon trail to the airport and back I directed myself towards the Capitol Crescent trail
in an effort to avoid too many stairs I rode on the towpath along the C&O canal
no more than a quarter mile into my canal ride I saw a great blue heron doing a little night feeding in the shallow waters of the now drained canal
with my headlamp I made an effort to spook the bird into flight
no luck
I kept the pedals going
then not even a mile later was another great blue heron
again I tried to spook the bird with my headlamp
the grand bird responded, but not with flight
but with just a few quick steps with its long lanky legs
again I kept the pedals going
accepting that such magical things are tough to be created
and that the specialness of such an experience is magnified by its seldom occurance
just two miles into my ride I felt the urge to drop my pace and turn it back
yet somehow I managed to push a few miles past Chain Bridge before turning it around
again my estimate was off
a 30 minute ride took me a tad over an hour
only to get home to a wife in the process of tucking our sons to bed
with a quick kiss hello
and a question of why I had to work late
nothing to say but I had to go for a ride
then I before the boys fell asleep
I got to give them my goodnight hello