"NEAR ST. HELENS, Ore. It's a hot September afternoon as I set off running past farm fields into the woods on Sauvie Island, which lies at the meeting of the Columbia and Willamette rivers. It's a perfect trail for running with 60-year-old knees, the forest floor soft with leaves and pine needles. The gentle path offers views of the vast Columbia River. After a day of work, I love finding places like this, where I can turn off my brain and just move and breathe."
"On this day, I stumble across an unexpected delight: blackberry thickets so dense I have to dodge the thorns as I run. The fruit is perfectly ripe, berries hanging thick and dark. I pick and eat, then run a little, but again and again the berries tempt me to slow down and snack. Finally I run on, my fingers stained purple."
"I come out of the tunnel of trees into a beautiful, open green meadow, the wind blowing through grass. There are wildflowers on every side, tansy and Queen Anne's lace and goldenrod, the bright colors of late summer. This is one of my favorite seasons for running. The heat has mellowed, but it's not quite autumn. Kids are back in school, so the crowds in wild places like this have faded away."
Sauvie Island sits where the Columbia and Willamette rivers meet, featuring farm fields, soft-needled woods, and gentle trails. A late-summer run reveals dense, ripe blackberry thickets that invite frequent snacking and leave fingers stained purple. The trail opens into an expansive green meadow filled with tansy, Queen Anne's lace, and goldenrod, with cooling temperatures and fewer visitors as school resumes. Historic layers include Multnomah Native villages and nearby Lewis and Clark campsites. The route passes an old lighthouse and a long, private-feeling sandy beach. A post-run plunge into cold river water provides deep refreshment and stillness.
Read at www.npr.org
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