Hiking...With A Cat And The Moon

Yesterday, after dinner, the cat and I took a little hike. We are fortunate enough to live at the base of a mountain--not the highest mountain around, but high enough, and where we live, we can't see the top. Yesterday, as it has happened in the past, our cat followed me up the hill.

A nearly full moon rose above the mountain line and I snapped a few pictures. I also tried capturing the cat as he followed me. Cat's a wily one, and he's getting over a battle wound. I took a few shots.

Of course, the purpose of going up is to see the world below. The sky wasn't the prettiest, nor was it in full sunset mode, but it was beautiful up there, looking down on the valley, at my home, at a place where I grew up and that has changed so much.

Here's just a snippet of what I saw, the valley, the cat, and the moon.

Going On A Hike...With A Cat

Living on the side of a mountain and at the head of a very popular hiking trail, I see hikers trek up and down the mountain all the time.

I don't think I've ever seen anyone take their cat along...

But last week, I did.

It was me.

It was after work and I wanted to see if I could get any pictures of the colors before storms erased it all. I loaded up my nice camera and I began my hike.

Teewinot, our cat, started following me.

It's not unusual for him to do this. If I'm out and I decided to walk to the end of our street or around my yard, many times he'll follow me. When I started out on my hike, I didn't know how far I'd go or how long I'd be gone, so when he started following me, I thought it was cute. I didn't expect he'd stay with me the entire time.

I hiked about a half a mile up the hill. There's a road we call the Fire Break Road that far away. I wasn't sure I'd end up there, but it was such a beautiful afternoon, that became my goal. Teewinot kept up with me the entire time.

Our cat's been with us for years. I'm sure he's been up and down that mountain and where we went was nothing new to him. Still, it was fun to watch an aging cat make the hike. He was much quicker going down--aren't we all? 

It's getting colder--it even snowed last weekend, not enough to stick around, but it will, eventually. I don't do a lot of hikes anyway so I'm probably not going to be up the hill again much any time soon. But, last week, on a nice Utah autumn afternoon, me and the cat had a good time.

The Other Side Of The Mountain...

This morning I drove up the nearest canyon to pick up my daughter. She had a dance obligation and ended up spending the night with her dance troupe in Morgan, Utah. The drive was around thirty-five miles from my house, but if I had a helicopter and could fly over the mountain, it would be more like five.

I was blown away at how beautiful it was.

What surprised me the most is, I thought I already knew how beautiful Morgan Valley was. Apparently, I only saw the tip of the iceberg.

It was raining when I left my house. I had to drive north, then east, then south. The home where my daughter stayed was almost at the end of the road. Beyond it was mountains. It looked like Switzerland or Austria up there. Of course, I drove up the canyon and through the valley in the spring when the greens were breathtaking. I can't imagine what it must cost to build a house up there. Usually beautiful locations are protected by those who live there. I'm sure there's been a battle for some time between those who live there and those who'd like to.

I snapped a few photos--none did the views justice. As we drove down the canyon, both my daughter and her friends (to whom I gave them a ride home...) agreed they wanted to live in Morgan Valley.

I kept it to myself, but I could picture myself living up there, too.

I Love The Mountains Of Ogden, Utah...

Driving home from the bus stop earlier in the week I glanced over to see a snow-covered Ben Lomond Mountain. In Utah County, just south of Salt Lake, they have Mount Timpanogos, above the Salt Lake Valley you'll find Mount Olympus, but I'd take Ben Lomond Mountain over both of them. It's simply beautiful.

I have a friend who lives at its base. I'll bet waking up to that view each day is a treat. But, as we are sometimes prone to do, maybe it gets ordinary when you see it everyday. Maybe not. I know that many people have posted pictures of their hikes on both Mount Timpanogos and Mount Olympus, but I don't see a lot of pictures posted from Ben Lomond. It could be it's not as accessible as the other peaks. Maybe I just have more friends who live in Salt Lake and Utah Counties.

I once heard, and it's confirmed by Wikipedia (so it must be true...) that Ben Lomond Mountain is the original mountain used by Paramount Pictures for their logo. Per Wikipedia, William W. Hodkinson, founder of Paramount, sketched the mountain on a napkin during a meeting. He would have been quite familiar with the peak--Hodkinson having spent time there and having opened up one of the first movie theater in Ogden. Of course, the Wikipedia page for William, or W.W. Hodkinson, states the logo was actually Pikes Peak (another beautiful mountain...). It's possible since he was born in Pueblo, Colorado. Is the logo Pikes Peak, or Ben Lomond? Too bad we can't ask him--he passed away in 1971.

Famous logo origination or not, it doesn't much matter in the grand scheme of things. So if you're traveling in Northern Utah, just look up. It's definitely worth it and you'll be glad you did.

All Things Change...Some Quicker Than Others

On Friday I went with my wife to pick up dinner at the shopping center near our home. As I waited I looked east and saw the mountain on which we live covered in a blanket of white, the setting sun made it come alive.

It was beautiful.

It struck me tonight, as I looked back on some of the pictures I took this week, just how much things have changed. We'd heard about the shopping center for years and it took many more for it to be built. Before that, the only company I would have had at exact spot where I stood were cows, and the only food to eat, the grass on which they grazed.

We all know things change; it's the only constant. Even the mountains will erode over time, but for now, at at a distance, they look pretty much the same way they did in photographs taken a century ago. 

Somewhere, just above the buildings sits our house. It'll be gone one day, too. I don't know if it will be replaced, or if not. I suppose by then, I won't care. Just as the shopping center will one day go. Who knows, maybe it'll be bulldozed over to make room for cows to graze. Wouldn't that be something?