Running in Rock Creek Park, Washington DC.
This is a guest post by Steve Roll, the creator of Travelojos, a blog about traveling to and living in Latin America. Follow him on Twitter @travelojos.
It was a cold Sunday morning in winter and just as I accelerated through a curve on a wooded road overlooking Rock Creek Park in Washington DC, the seditious voice and explosive chords of the White Stripes surged through my sound system.
I floored it as I headed down the straightaway even though the road was damp and still a bit icy as the sun rose above the leafless trees.
But as I took several more turns as fast as I could, a car accident or a speeding ticket was the last thing on my mind. This was because I wasn’t in my car at all. I was running.
I was among hundreds of runners and bicyclists who take to the swathes of Rock Creek Park’s scenic roads that are closed to traffic for much of the weekend.
While the park is in DC city limits, the views of the creek that flows into the Potomac look like something you might see in Colorado or Vermont. The water flows past snow-capped rocks and logs that were gnawed by beavers.
Sometimes when I’ve reached a clearing, I’ve seen a hawk or a bald eagle flying overhead. I’ve come face-to-face with deer with huge antlers. Sometimes the creek is no more than a faint trickle. Other times, it’s gorged with storm water or melted snow and overflowing.
I wouldn’t notice any of these things if I were speeding down the same road in my car. I’d have the heat adjusted to the perfect temperature. My radio would be tuned into my favorite country music station. My thoughts would linger over the things I needed to do that day or the week ahead.
The car has become a “comfort pod” that induces a passive state akin to watching television. The windshield that separates us from the outside world also keeps us from experiencing the world as acutely as we would if we were walking, running, or biking in it.
So, next time you want to take a scenic drive, leave the car at home. It will really get your motor running.
Roaming Tales is publishing a series of guest posts from fellow bloggers, while I look after my newborn twins.
Photo credit: Trailvoice on Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons.
Wow, it was refreshing to hear you share that experience! I definitely agree – we’re so insulated by technology these days that we’ve almost forgotten what raw, wild nature feels like.
this is a unique way of appreciating the things that are around us
To experience nature, one has to be with it. Being in a car is NOT being with nature. The beauty of nature can surpass the beauty of any man-made structure every created.