Chinese Version
09-02-2020, Wednesday.
My daughter had no class today, so we drove to the nearby Walden Pond State Reservation early in the morning.
There were signs saying “Dogs not allowed” before we reached the lake. We saw a few swimmers in the lake, some of them had brightly colored yellow or orange floating balls tied to their legs as they swam. Slow moving bright objects floating on the surface of dark blue lake which was surrounded by fresh green trees, this is a very unique sight from far away.
When I saw swimmers in the lake, I asked the life guard: “Are there showers here?”
Life guard said: “Yes, there are showers. However, all are shut down this year, because of COVID-19.”
It drizzled. We walked on the dirt trail along the lake for one circle, which is about 1.7 miles. The trail is underneath trees with dense leaves, the dense leaves shielded us from the drizzle like a roof, so the trail was dry and we enjoyed the very fresh air along the lake in the rain without getting wet.
While walking, we saw lots of brave chipmunks on the road and on trees alone. When I looked at a chipmunk sitting on a branch, it stared back at me didn’t move, very cute.
There were no benches along the trail, I missed the comfortable benches I used to sit on while visiting Filoli garden in Silicon Valley, a garden that is a personal favorite of mine.
Because of COVID-19, the 1.7 miles trail was a one way trail now. Walking on the empty, quiet, one way trail, we heard trains passing by a few times. So we noticed that part of the trail is next to a rail road, and we saw Amtrak trains.
Walking along the lake with a few meters between us and the water, we heard someone saying “hello” from the lake. Then we saw two senior ladies wearing swimsuits and playing in the water.
My daughter politely replied. “Is the water cold?”
One of the lady in the water joked: “Oh, it is very cold, you’ll need to wear jacket.”
Another lady said: “I feel fresh.”
My daughter said. “Enjoy.” Then we went ahead.
Later, we saw a boy fishing on the shore of the lake. My daughter wondered what kinds of fish he was trying to catch. The boy told us a long list of fish names, I heard the name bass a few times. It sounded like there were many kinds of fish at Walden Pond.
According to wikipedia, Walden Pond is a famous example of a kettle hole, it was formed by retreating glaciers 10,000–12,000 years ago. Walden Pond attracts more tourists because of a leading transcendentalist, Henry David Thoreau’s book “Walden”. Walden Pond is a beautiful place with mixed culture and natural history.
Little Episodes
1. 09-02-2020 Walden Pond：
2. Fish in Walden Pond (poster in Boston Logan Airport)：
3. Some writer said: “Thoreau’s life, so fully expressed in his writing, has had a pervasive influence because it was an example of moral heroism and an example of the continuing search for a spiritual dimension in American life.”
