Dakota Beacon

A mild autumn keeps things stirring. Living things in the earth may slowly go to sleep. But people continue to move in the gentle autumn weather. It is great to get outdoors. What better way to greet the day than to get out and start walking.

Why the infatuation with walking? People tramp for health and exercise. Plus, walking is cheap, easy and available. For the average person, specialized equipment is not a “must.” A pair of comfortable shoes generally oxford style with cushioned inserts and clean socks are ideal. Ordinary loose fitting clothes will do. A hat to protect from the sun is wise. After walking becomes a habit a person might consider stiff-soled shoes designed for walkers. In the meantime, don’t let the accumulation of “walking gear” get in the way of a good brisk stroll. Just do it!

Many people hike for health or saunter for serenity. Walking is good for mental health. A person may walk to calm stress and tension, drain off anger and anxiety, think through a problem or not think at all. This is the magic of walking.

Others ramble for recreation. Hiking in national parks or strolling through city parks offers cheap entertainment enjoyed individually or in groups. The pleasure of being outdoors and in the company of kindred spirits is one of life’s simple pleasures.

Walking is part of some folk’s job description. Soldiers walk. Policemen walk. Mail carriers walk miles each day.

My dad was a walker. He and his brother grew up one step ahead of poverty. They walked because of necessity, but they learned to make it recreational as well.

As a toddler I vaguely remember accompanying my father on his walks. Of course I could not keep up. He took me along for his own exercise and would carry me on his shoulders. I loved it and he loved it. For those few moments I could see the world from the vantage point of six feet.

The Boy Scouts really taught me how to walk. I earned the hiking merit badge among others. The exact requirements for the award don’t come to mind, but I do remember that my buddies and I did a lot of walking. Hanging with my buddies helped the miles quickly slip by.

My most rigorous walk occurred the summer following graduation from high school. I took a job in Yellowstone Park working for the Haynes Company at Tower Falls. Much of my free time was spent hiking in the back country. Near the end of summer some of us hearty hikers planned a walk from Old Faithful to the Bechler River Ranger Station in the far southwest corner of the park. Setting out well before dawn and hiking until long after sunset, we covered thirty-two miles that day. I had never walked so far in my young life. I never walked so far since.

We don’t appreciate what we have until we lose it. Most of us take walking for granted -- until we lose the ability to walk. That is how I was recently humbled.

For the past 15 years I endured increasing pain from bone spurs in a toe joint. The spurs grew and I could no longer walk comfortably, much less jog. Even prescription orthodics afforded no relief. Corrective surgery was the only recourse.

Recovery from foot surgery took time and I am impatient by nature. If I could not walk I could at least relish the romance of walking. So I read. Reading The Ends of the Earth by G. K. Chesterton, The Pleasure of Walking by Oliver Wendell Holmes, and Night Walks by Charles Dickens is some of the literature I found encouraging.

Over the years I continue to walk for fun and exercise. I enjoy walking. I always have; guess I always will.

A word of advice: It is human nature to stall. However, when all is said and done, just do it. Walk! Don’t talk. Just walk!

Wealth I ask not, hope nor love,

        Nor a friend to know me;

All I ask, the heaven above

        And the road below me.

                        The Vagabond by Robert Louis Stevenson