Do you like to play it safe when you go hiking or would you rather go on an adventure? Do you need to be in a state of certainty all the time or are you looking to go exploring and be in your sense of discovery? Either way, The Hot Springs Trail has a section for you. In this post, I go thru some of the other noteworthy opposites that will be experienced while traveling along this trail.
During my own end-to-end journey of the HST, in 2016, the opposing aspects that I'll be describing below were never too much to manage and actually kept things fresh. Because of them, the days were never boring and the weeks, never dull. But since one man’s feast can be another man’s famine, I decided I'd better put this image gallery together so that you can see for yourself the extreme opposites in environments that I’m talking about, before getting there.
Feast and Famine on The Hot Springs Trail
Listed below is a few of the most noteworthy extreme opposites that will be experienced while on The Hot Springs Trail. Be prepared for these things when out on the journey:
1. Challenge & Reward:
Whew! This is a challenge experience.
Ahh! This is a super relaxing experience.
2. Safety & Uncertainty:
This is somewhere lots of people have been before.
This is somewhere practically no one’s been before.
3. Feast & Famine:
I haven’t seen water for days.
I haven’t left the water for days.
4. Hiking & Biking:
This part can be driven or bike-packed.
This part is for hiking only.
In summary...
The Hot Springs Trail visits places of healing and wonder, but it also visits places that may challenge, overwhelm, or otherwise leave you wondering if you’re on the right path. Strangely enough though, it’s during these times of moving between opposites that I find the most unique, rewarding, and fulfilling experiences of the journey.
Call it a trail of opposites or just call it diverse, either way, this trail is never the same for very long.
Happy Solstice from The Hot Springs Trail, on a day where all things are equal.