Written: Late August 2017

During the day, the smoke makes the landscape a formless grey. Hints of mountains are outlined in tones of grey scale, only to shift and dissipate.

But as the sun sets, the sky becomes illuminated in bands of pink and purple. An angry red eye glared at me between the trees from amidst an orange swath. The colours light up trees and the trail in lively shades. I came around a corner and see Mt.Hood illuminated by that same sunset. I sit down for a break. I can’t stop looking at it…it’s stunning. A half moon is rising to the west.

And then it’s gone in an instant. The sun must have passed the horizon for the mountain is still illuminated, but no longer a painting of warm colours. Better keep hiking. Miles to go before I sleep.