How many places have you lived? It counts if you moved everything with you and never moved back to the same house.
And what is the longest time you have ever lived in one community? Some people never leave the community where they were raised. Some wander frequently. Some are driven from their home, a sadness I hope to never experience.
I lived the life of a ranger, a nomad of sorts, but always at home wherever we went. I’ll share at the end how many fingers I had to use to answer both of these questions.
I am discussing “moving” because we are moving this week, across town. We have loved living in Skyline, with Washington Park a block away, the beach two blocks to the south, or three blocks going north. It is such a blessing to walk out your door and in two minutes be in ancient forests; to listen to resident eagles, owls, and osprey as we lay in bed; to walk on the beach in a slashing rain (but not for long!), or across the juniper balds in a blanket of snow; to feel spring warming the rock faces and encouraging flowers to rise up and sing; to sense the coolness of the deep woods on an almost-hot summer day; and to meet dozens of neighbors out doing the same thing.
We took one last walk around Washington Park as if we were saying goodbye to a close neighbor, because we were. Oh, we know, we can visit again any time we wish. The park will always be here, just a short bike, bus, or car ride away. That is the treasure of any park – their permanence. It has been a privilege to have it as one of our neighbors.
We walked up into the woods on Lea Place, where Janet, another wonderful neighbor, provides a colorful grassy entrance into the park. From here we climbed southwest. The deep woods with gigantic cedars and firs quickly changed over into grassy meadows and rocky knobs sprinkled with crinkly junipers. Here is where we found Havekost’s tomb. After a word of thanks, we went up and down the southern trails, basking in the warmth of this late summer day, the rocks reflecting the heat and encouraging us to shed some layers.
Our destination was the far western tip, a half mile west as the raven flies, where a simple bench offers magnificent views over Burrows Channel and Rosario Strait, with Mount Erie, the San Juans, and the Olympics seemingly just beyond arm’s reach.
From there to the north, the scenery and weather change quickly and dramatically from dry meadows, sunshine, and warmth – to cool, moist, deep-shadowed woods.
Our layers came back on as we descended through the forest to the campground emptying its campers on this late Sunday afternoon. We walked a graveled backroad east, then caught Trail 501 to get us back to where we started. Back to ferns, firs, mushrooms, nettles, and elderberry. Back to filtered sunlight and shade. Back to the side trail that took us back to Lea Avenue, down the hill, and up the stairs back at our place.
Home again, our home for just one more day. But this place, this land, this island we call home, will always flow through our lifeblood in our dreams, our joys, and our once and future travels.
Speaking of homes, we acknowledge the first peoples to live on this land, who continue to treasure their homeland and share it with us and all living beings.
So, how many places have I lived?
20. Yikes, that’s a big number. My kids have trouble identifying where they are from because they are from so many places. The entire state of Washington is our home.
And how long have you lived in one community? Twenty-one years in Anacortes for me, as of this coming November. This is truly my hometown; I have lived here longer than any of my other homes. They have all been in Washington.
How about you?
Directions
Directions: from our current home, walk one block west. From downtown Anacortes, take 12th Street west four miles to the entrance to Washington Park. The street changes names twice, but stay with it.
By Bus: Take the Route 410 bus from downtown Anacortes to Skyline Way, a quarter mile east of the park entrance.
By Bike: Use the above directions. Twelfth Street is busy, very busy, with narrow shoulders and some minor hills in places, but it's the only real option. Local riders know some side streets to bypass some of the highway.
Mobility: The park has options for traveling by car to some good view points. Some of the trails are wide and suitable for various mobility styles; some are tough for any kind of hiker.
Republished with permission. Read the original article here.