My Own Walk in the Woods

This past Wednesday, I went out on a field trip with my SWS class to Blanford Nature Center. Even though I’ve visited it several times before, it was my first time going to relax and take in the scenery. I carpooled over with several other people from class and as we started to pull into the parking lot, I got immediately nervous.

The first time I ever went to Blanford, I went on a day-long field trip with my fourth grade class. It started well, as the large group on children shuffled down the path in a disorganized line. I was one of those kids who disappeared for no reason, keeping the whole group waiting, until they found me near the creek attempting to catch frogs. As the group trudged down the pathway, the guide leading us was talking about snakes and how we shouldn’t be afraid of them. Ironically, moments later, a large garden snake emerged from under one the small wooden bridges. It hastily slithered in our direction and latched onto a nearby girl’s leg. She started shrieking, frantically trying to shake the snake from her leg. All the other children started shrieking in unison, fleeing in opposite directions.

I can safely say I was very scarred. So as we pulled up into the parking lot and approached the welcome center, I became overwhelmed with a sense of dread. I kept my eyes constantly on the ground, searching for anything that moved. As we branched off, I started to let my guard down. The calming rustle of the leaves overhead, like the mellifluous waves on an ocean shore, put my anxiety to rest. As our small group continued along the trail, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a small black tail moving under the fallen leaves. I instinctually shrieked, inching toward the opposite side of the path and prepared myself for the worse.

However, the snake merely continued on it’s way, paying no notice to our small group. After that, I just tried to keep my mind focused on donuts and cider as we wandered through the woods. I was fairly disappointed that the creeks and streams were pretty dried up. There was nothing more than mere trickling. The frogs were the highlight of the trip for me. While we were strolling past the welcome center, I noticed a small pond not more than a few yards adjacent to the building. The pond was not more than maybe a yard itself, but it was filled with dozens of frogs. I observed them for a few minutes, before continuing on my way. As the trip concluded, I came to the conclusion that I would do a poor job if I had to hike the Appalachian Trail. Mainly because of the snakes. One hundred percent because of the snakes.

As I close this, what is something that would keep you from hiking the Appalachian Trail? Or, what is a mistake you would likely make if you did choose to hike it?