Have you ever loved a movie so much that you watched twice in two days?
On the second viewing, did you notice things you missed the first time?
Well, that’s what happened to me with the hike up to Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh.

This hike was the perfect combination of beautiful, challenging, and relaxing.

My first trek up to Arthur’s Seat was purely spontaneous.
Gazing upon its beauty, barely visible through the thick, evening mist,
my friends and I decided to make our way to the top.

Hiking at night is a challenge.

The darkness masks the ditches, footpaths, and wildlife so visible during the day.
Despite the challenges of the midnight hike, the adventure was perfect.

The night time hike was drastically different than the day time hikes I have taken during the course of my hiking class in Europe.
With the city lights and dark scene, the view was beautiful and new.
I loved sitting on top of Arthur’s Seat in the darkness, looking out into the endless night.

In contrast to this view was the day time hike up to Arthur’s Seat.
Also on this second version of the hike, I took an easier, more round-about path.
This path was nice for the early morning because I was sleepy, so it was relaxing.

The nighttime steep hike compared to the daytime slow hike helped me realize the different ways a hiker can choose to challenge him or herself. Oftentimes, mountains offer family-friendly routes in addition to adventurous, daring routes.
I prefer the more challenging of the two.

After all of the hikes I have experienced on this trip, I have learned that I enjoy more difficult hikes because it makes the mountain top seem like more of a reward than a finish line.
Conquering a challenging hike provides a further sense of accomplishment than a simple hike, and it also requires more innovation and exploration.
I feel much more satisfied and successful after a “difficult” hike.

Climbing Arthur’s Seat in two drastically different ways allowed me to experience this landmark in a broader sense.
I am thankful for the opportunity to have explored several natural mountains in Europe.

I will definitely come back to hike these mountains again
….hopefully in a more daring, skilled manner as my hiking experience progresses!
BEST HIKING TRIP EVER.

Planning a hike is harder than it sounds…

Last week, I was part of a group that planned a trip to Uffington White Horse.
Well-planned hikes involve more dynamics than I realized such as transportation, prices, resting points, eating stops, and general information.

At first the hike up to the chalk figure sounded like a time consuming and physically challenging feat, but I must say that it was worth every minute and every mile to catch a glimpse of this famous chalk figure.

From the bottom of a hill stood a mysterious figure.
A beautiful, mysterious symbol of something unknown.
…..only a steep uphill climb between separating us…..

The hike was not nearly as bad as it looked or as bad as I had read about in the pre-planning process….maybe because I had the image of an impossible stairway to heaven in my mind going into the adventure.

Once the entire group was half way to the Uffington White Horse, we played around on top of Dragon Hill.
(where it is said Saint George slew the infamous dragon)
Pictures simply do not do Dragon Hill justice.

Continuing up to the White Horse was a physical, yet rewarding journey.
The group as a whole handled the steep hill with laughter, smiles, and appreciation for the landscape.

The landscape was beautiful —
patches of land clearly marked by their differing shades of green and yellow encompassed by the rolling hills as the Uffington White Horse looked own upon the scene.

Taking pictures on and the around the horse is a memory I will never forget.
Leading the group in a discussion of potential origins and purposes of the Uffington White Horse led to some imaginative possibilities.
…….but obviously aliens put it there, right?

Finally the group treked further into the high altitude to see the long awaited Uffington Castle!
….which quite possibly was a center for ants.
The castle was as anticlimactic as it was hilarious. I’ll always get a good laugh out of it.

So instead of exploring a castle, the group took some fun pictures inside of the drained Uffington moat!
This picture is certainly a favorite from the trip.

Walking through the wildflowers on the descent to the bottom of the hill was the perfect ending to the hiking trip.

I would make the hike up to the Uffington White Horse again on any day.
The experience of engaging with such an existential, ancient landmark was worth the journey, the fatigue, and the time.
I still can not believe that this chalk figure dates back to the Bronze Age nearly 3000 years ago.

Grasmere.
A place of peace.
A place of solitude.
A place of inspiration.
A place of love.
Home.

The hike to Grasmere was challenging.
The trek up the steep mountains seemed to never end.

But then the shaded trees abruptly stopped.
There I was.
Standing on top of a mountain.
Literally.

It was breathtaking in every sense of the word.

The hills stretched for miles,
Encompassing the lakes below,
Allowing the sun to shine on the splendor of the place.

Every ounce of fatigue immediately vanished.
I was rejuvenated, revived.

For some reason, after pausing for some class and lunch,
I felt the need to run. To go. To live.
….so I did. I ran as far and as fast as I could.

Running through the mountains after a long hike was perfect.
The grass on my bare feet made me feel like one with the landscape.
The wind in my hair made me feel free.
I couldn’t have felt more alive than I did in that moment.

The hike down renewed peace in my spirit.
I felt whole. I felt fresh. I felt full.

Grasmere is a place that can fill the hearts and souls of any stranger.
Grasmere feels like home.