Dodging raindrops

This was the view out my window this morning at 8 AM. Not too promising - rather dark and dreary, if you're honest about it. The zoo cancellation was rather fortuitous, as no one, especially those who have contracted the mysterious flu-like cold, really needed to be out in the cold and wet.

Five minutes after this picture was taken, it began to pour again, just like last night. Resigning myself to a day spent mostly indoors, I went about my business until 10, when the rain mysteriously stopped and bits of blue - right, right, the so-called sky - made an appearance. I decided that a walk was in order to keep me sane, and so I grabbed my tennis shoes (and waterproof jacket, no sense in tempting fate) and headed for the park.

I got there by a back route of which I'd been previously unaware, a nice little path through the greenway across from the park proper. Trees were beginning to change color and the berries were coming out, and everything looked rather nice and autumnal. Looking across the road at the Crags, I suddenly remembered why I like Holyrood so much - it's stunning when the weather cooperates.

Entering the park, I headed across the grass toward the paths up the hill, only to notice something a bit inconvenient (besides the mud sucking at my shoes): the wind was stronger than I'd realized, and I'd left my ponytail holder at home. No matter; I stuck my hair down the back of my shirt and went on as well as I could, pulling flyaway bits back once in a while (like every thirty seconds or so).

For the benefit of anyone who's never seen me on a hike, I'm not the world's best. Actually, I'm pretty close to inept. I love getting out on a nice day, but I do best on flat terrain - hiking uphill's no problem, but coming down is another matter entirely. (In this regard, my parents' new puppy and I have something in common - she still can't figure out how to go down stairs.) Still, I'm trying to improve, and so I like to take little hikes around the Crags, where there's usually an easier way around if I get too flustered.

Well, today really wasn't the day for that. The wind, which had been a mild nuisance on the ground, was now whipping around my head at thirty to forty miles per hour. I found myself on a bit of a ledge overlooking Edinburgh - a nice view but for the gathering, ominous clouds over the Pentlands - unsure how to get down and being thrust against the rock by the force of the wind. This was not helping me find my happy place. Giving up on the way I came, fearing an imminent downpour, I continued over the trail and mercifully saw the path back to the lower trail off the mountain.

It sprinkled a bit on the way home, but that was all. Still a nice day for a walk, even if one would do well to stay on the ground.