365 True Things: 16/Walking

I am in a lazy spell: about the most vigorous exercise I get these days is a daily hike. Or, just a walk. The dog keeps me at least somewhat honest on that front.

One of my favorite places to go walking is right nearby: the Del Rey Oaks Frog Pond Preserve. It's home to Pacific tree frogs (Pseudacris regilla), and David reported the other day that he saw a woodpecker (downy, we surmise) building a nest— carving it out of a willow tree. Next time we walk the dog there, I'll have him point it out.

The path is just a 3/4-mile loop (which I sometimes do twice or three times), but it's got tons of variety: willows, coast live oak grasslands, even a little redwood grove with a couple of benches for sitting and enjoying the stillness. And of course, the pond, which now is full—of water and dabbling ducks—but soon will evaporate and become a grassy green flat.

When the pond is full, the tree frogs let you know with their nightly celebratory chorus. It's fun to stand on the deck next to the pond, lean on the railing, and listen: they'll all be yelling full throat, then, as if a conductor has waved his baton, they all abruptly fall silent. The quiet lasts maybe ten, twenty, thirty seconds, then one by one by two by six they start in again, until they're all at it, trying to outdo each other. Then, that conductor waves his baton, and silence again. Over and over. It's an amazing performance, made even better by the darkness: nothing to look at, really; all you need do is listen.

Here is a series of photos I took on a walk last January: one circuit of the loop. Click on it to see it larger.