An Introduction

In the words of the freshest of princes, my life has recently been flipped turned upside down. I am 30 years old, out of shape, two months out of a sad and heartbreaking relationship, and living on my own for the first time in my life (not counting my cat, who is officially named Mouse, but also goes by fatty, rathead, mouserat, jerk, jerkle, and dickhole, depending on my mood and his behavior).

After my recent breakup, and desperate for not only a clean transition to singledom but also a new serene home where I could recover and get my shit together, I signed a lease on a small studio apartment in Kensington, CA. For those not familiar with Kensington, it sits in the hills just to the north of Berkeley, and just east of El Cerrito. I have found that it's helpful to only pronounce it "Keeensington!" in the style of a hysterical yet composed socialite from England. Probably over 60 years old, is what I'm thinking. It helps that there is a pub here called the Kensington Circus Pub, lending the town a sort of British sensibility. Anyway...

What I mean to say is that Kensington is in the woods. As in, there's a creek in my backyard. I see deer every day. Yesterday I saw a baby deer (are they called fawns or something? Did Disney make that up?). A fucking baby deer!

I've always appreciated hiking, but never did much of it. Growing up in San Francisco, my preferred method of transportation was always walking. I found it a testament to the quality of my life if I had both the time and the energy to walk everywhere. So I tried to prioritize that when possible. I think some assholes probably call that "urban hiking" or some other bullshit. In any event, now I am in a prime location for lots and lots of hiking, and have thus far found time to go for a hike at least once per week in the surrounding areas. The closest parks to me are Tilden Regional Park, and Wildcat Canyon Regional Park. A little further southeast are Redwood Regional Park and Anthony Chabot Regional Park. Even further east is Mount Diablo.

Originally pursued mostly to stave off boredom, I have found some pretty amazing benefits to hiking regularly. I am excited at how much stronger I've gotten in the short time I've been hitting the trails regularly, and I hope to chronicle my physical conditioning in depth in future posts. Beyond the physical conditioning, I have also been pleasantly surprised at the psychological, emotional, and spiritual benefits I am feeling. I hope to describe those in future posts as well.

I have mostly followed Jane Huber's excellent blog: www.bahiker.com. Jane Huber is also the author of 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: San Francisco: Including North Bay, East Bay, Peninsula, and South Bay. Although most of the hike descriptions have not been updated in several years, the ones I have been on have continued to be fairly accurate, for which the East Bay Regional Parks Department should be given some credit as well. While I have historically relied heavily on this blog to choose hikes, I am also interested in designing hikes of my own, and look forward to sharing some of those here.

So, I suppose I should get writin' about my hikes now! I hope you enjoy reading as much as I am looking forward to sharing my journey here.