I have been paying attention to the forest, during my Naturalists Studies. It is funny, the things that once passed right by with only minor interest from me. Now, it is like I am on noticing overdrive.
Soapstone has an abundance of rock formations. I am currently reading Manitou: The Sacred Landscape of New England's Native Civilization by James W. Mayor Jr and Byron E. Dix. Glacial randomness may not account for some of the more "interesting" placements. With open eyes, uniqueness reveals itself regularly.
Trees have always been important to me; I feel their power in the
ground when I am close by. Running through the "Elder's Grove" in
Mohawk Trail State Forest gives me true power, gained from the height
and age of the living, communicating, entities.
The trail we were finishing up on today gave us a really great example of a black birch that may be showing the effects of starting up on a "nurse log". It is amazing what we can find if we just slow a little, and keep eyes and mind open.
This last rock formation was surprising as it wasn't part of a nearby boulder field. It sits at about 870', on the southwest side of Soapstone Mountain.
It was a fantastically cold day, but the sun was bright and it didn't feel that cold. I guess the temperature was in the teens. First good day of snowshoeing, 5.8 miles in 90 minutes... slow going with all the stops to cement the magic into our minds.
Map of the day follows, with track and locations of "Prayers in Stone".
Miles for week, 5.8; Total for Year, 60.1.