One of my favorite parts about growing up where I did was the woods. I would go out there and play for hours and build forts. I’d wander in the woods and make up stories. Those memories are a big reason I wanted to buy some land, and also why I was first excited about purchasing our new home.
This past Tuesday, we went on a hike. It was our first exploration of the wooded section of our property.
Jacob grabbed the hedge clippers and the branch loppers and we went for a hike in the back part of our property past the trail we could discern which goes about 50 feet into the woods to a dilapidated tree stand. It was the first time we explored past there and I was a bit determined to find at least one neighbor’s property line. Jacob cut as we went making a safe way for us to follow. Anna was a trooper and followed wherever he led. Isaac even walked for a bit, finding toddler-sized walking sticks. But soon the hill went up steeply. I carried him up to the top of our land.
Where it flattens out, we found the fence that connects to our neighbor’s field. It was quite a hike to get up there. Isaac found a huge rock that he made a slide out of while Anna found a fallen tree bridge. I left them up top to explore while I wandered back to retrieve a tool we had left assuming we would be returning the same way we came. I volunteered because my sense of direction is a tad better than Jacob’s but my arrogance, I mean, confidence soon subsided when I stood in the middle of the woods, halfway down the hill we had just scaled and looked around me without a single recognizable landmark, just an uphill and a downhill and a view full of trees. It was startling and my anxiety increased, especially when I called for Jacob and didn’t get a response. But all of a sudden I turned to the right and the tool was in the tree where we had left it, four feet from me. A blessing.
We hiked home along the fenceline to get a feel for our property better. We found some damaged fence, more added to the to-do list. (Not a day goes by without that list growing.) Anna started pointing out shapes, this fallen tree made a rectangle but that tipped over one made a triangle.
After we were back we did a guestimate on google maps and decided we had been out for about a half-mile hike. While on the computer we also bought some saftey whistles. We’ll give one to Anna to wear the next time we take her out in the woods.
I feel really grateful to have so much property to enjoy and explore. It is a little crazy we’ve owned this property for over a month and we still haven’t even found all the boundries, I guess we’ve been a little busy. To be fair, it has been a little rainy but we were grateful for a nice warm sunny day in October. Fall is treating us well here in Virginia.