Sometimes, the desire to leave the city overwhelms me to the point that each strike of my foot on the concrete seems to call out 'Go! Go!' and I know that a leisurely walk through Frick Park isn't going to cut it. I must go farther away, deeper into the woods. Time restraints and the necessity of being home in time to greet ones' children from school doesn't allow for anything too far away, but an hour or so outside of Pittsburgh there's Ohio Pyle.
Even in Ohio Pyle, it's difficult to get entirely away from people unless you have unlimited hours to go walking on the less traveled hiking paths. But, for this day, encountering small groups of two or three people on occasion was acceptable and considerably less than the constant stream of runners, walkers, bikers, and dog walkers Frick Park offers at this time of year when Winter has finally lost its battle and Spring is struggling to hold on before Summer overwhelms.
A friend who had never visited Ohio Pyle and I packed a light lunch and headed out of the city. When we arrived, we spent a few minutes walking through town and stopping by the Falls before we ventured over to the trail near the Natural Waterslides.
It was a warm day, but by the water, the trees keep the sun only peeking through here and there. We hiked up a thin, dirt and sand scuffed trail and clambered over rocks large and small until we found a perfect lunch spot. A smooth flat rock was the ideal height to sit on with feet dangling in the little-too-cold! water with a young tree overhead that fanned out its glowing branches. We lunched with only the sound of water, the occasional bird, and our own voices which was quite the difference from the noisy traffic, rowdy people, and squawks of bizarre background music choices we usually lunch to in the city.
It's the small things that make such a difference in one's outlook.
