I wanted to wish all of the dads on the blog a wonderful Father’s Day. I started my own celebration before dawn on the Billy Goat trail to watch the sun go up while hiking along the river. It was glorious, as always. I have a few pictures from this morning’s hike.
The trail was teeming with wildlife, including a wonderful owl sitting majestically on a rock:
Coming over some boulders on the rock scramble, I came face to face with a rather large brown fox. He was a surprised to see me as I was him. After giving him a lot of room, I was able to cut back and take a snap:
The river was like glass this morning in the soft dawn light. It made for an enchanting hike:
I hope that everyone will have a relaxing Father’s Day. On my hike, I was able to think of my dad, Jack Turley, who was my best friend in this life. A day does not go by when I do not think of him and miss him. Sitting above the river at dawn, I thought of how I owe him so much in what he taught me. He was the most brilliant man I have ever known and the only man I ever truly wanted to impress. When he died, I could not imagine going forward without him. Yet, I now see so much of him in my own children and realize that the people we love never truly leave us.
Yesterday, Leslie and I went to our little local butcher for beef ribs. (Leslie is doing my favorite slow-cooked beef ribs in red wine and Guinness stout). The shop was packed. I asked my friend if this was the biggest holiday for meat sales and he said yes with the possible exception of Christmas. It seems people buy flowers for Mom and meat bouquets for Dad.
So, to all of the fathers out there, have a great day doing all of those things that dads do. Let the dad puns and jokes fly. They have to laugh…no matter how many times you have used them.
Here are some other pictures from the hike.
