David Canyon never

dissembles:

I’m fine.

Arrive and you know

if thirst

has been quenched.

If so,

grasshoppers

may fling themselves

against your hat.

In the burn scar,

a twisted stump’s heart

gleams silver-black,

says I’m still hurting.

All you need to know

is right in front of you.

Hike: Turkey Trot Trail + More Turkey Trail + FR 530, David Canyon

Hike length: 7 miles

Difficulty: moderate

Trail traffic: almost none

Creatures seen/heard: nuthatch, woodpeckers, hawks, chickadee, wrens, crows, Townsend’s solitaires, butterflies, beetles, grasshoppers, lizards, horned lizard, deer, juniper titmouse, blackbird, violet-green swallows