Victory at Winter Solstice
To me it seems ironic that the first official day of winter has just passed. Here in Ontario we've had persistent snow cover for the last six weeks. This year has ended the trend toward light, mild winters. Almost every day of the past fortnight has brought some fresh precipitation of the ice crystal variety. The ploughs have heaped it high as my elbows along the streetside.
My childhood memories of winter are mostly pleasant, except for the blistering, shelterless kilometre walk to catch the school bus. My family bought cross-country skis before it became a fashionable sport. At the cottage we relished the metre-deep snow, even the chore of working shirtless to shovel it off the roof on a mild day in March.
The burden of weather
I don't remember when I stopped liking winter; but probably during the five years I commuted 45 minutes twice a day along the busy divided Highway 401. Bundling up, scraping off the car, braving the perils of Ontario's winter roads and sitting in a traffic jam whenever somebody else screwed up became a daily ordeal. During that period, bad weather seemed like just another source of irritation draining my time and life away.
For the past several years I have shunned snow and cold. But last spring when I committed myself to daily walks, I had in mind building a habit that would persist throughout the year. As the weather has turned more unpleasant, I've kept reminding myself that if I stop getting outside each day, I'll only be letting myself down.
Winter walking
Despite some brief lapses, mostly I'm pleased with my determination this year. Walking is easiest when I visit friends on the weekends and we can go somewhere together. But during the week while working at home I rarely miss a day of getting outside.
Since the heavy snow last weekend, my ritual has seemed particularly arduous. The path through the riverside park is soft, barely packed, adding effort to each trudging step. I usually only go about a quarter of my usual route, and rather than retracing my steps I turn up a side street where I can follow shoveled sidewalks homeward. It is enough.
But today dawned bright with one of those crystal clear skies no summer day can match. It demanded my fullest attention, no wimping out this time!
A peerless day
After strolling the single quiet residential block to the park, I followed a different route than usual, turning east toward the city limits. Five minutes from my apartment I can climb a steep embankment and cross a busy bridge over the Eramosa River. On the far side are two paths. One narrow trail turns back toward downtown Guelph through a dense woodland along a low limestone cliff, also offering a side route to the University of Guelph Arboretum. The other way follows a wider track through mixed woods and old meadows into rolling countryside outside the city. This latter one is the path I took today.
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