Hello Fall! Hiking

Written by Rocky Xu Cheng

Published Date: September 4, 2023

Blossoming in Nature’s September event at George Bush Park provided a much-needed break from the stress and exhaustion that returned alongside our first few weeks of school. Fall was in full swing, and the hot, summer days were now only an afterthought to the breezy, cool afternoons that enveloped George Bush Park.

Learning from lessons from our April hike in George Bush, we started at the trail with the intention of looping back on a path next to the riverbank. This way, we could circumvent the hard concrete roads with little shade at the trailhead and also avoid having to ferry the parents back to their cars at the event’s conclusion.

Some volunteers arrived early to set up the equipment in a shady clearing we chose near the beginning of the trail; the food was still hot and fresh, and the picnic blankets we laid down provided the perfect place to socialize. By the time everyone arrived, the volunteers and special children were already happily mingling and enjoying the picnic food.

After the food was finished, we split the volunteers and special kids into groups of one or two, and assembled at the start of the trail. We noticed a funny coincidence while assigning groups: three volunteers and three children with special needs shared the same name! Capitalizing on this opportunity, we put them together to build a strong bond. After a quick heads-up on the conditions of the trail and the cart full of water for everyone, we began the hike.

Bikers were a source of constant wariness during the hike, but we eventually figured out a system for alerting the entire group when bikes were approaching. The first volunteer to see a bike would, and this message would be passed down our long line of people until everyone had moved to a side of the road. We would resume our hike once all the bikes had passed, and everyone had returned to the path. These intermittent stops provided many opportunities to rest during the hike, and everyone remained pretty refreshed throughout.

By the time we made it to the boardwalk, the sun was just barely suspended above the trees and was beginning to set. We made a quick trek across the boardwalk to enjoy the water scenery. The trees had grown healthily since our last trip here, and the waterfowl seemed to have flourished as well. There were countless white and gray storks testing their fishing luck in the water, and the heads of many small turtles bobbled in and out of the water.

The trip was a very rough affair. We had set out to follow our plan of hiking back next to the riverbank, but with the sun down and the high humidity next to the river, the bugs became a major bother to everyone on the trail. After a while, we turned back to the main trail and continued until we reached the end.

A big thanks to the thirteen families with special needs attending the event. The event can only be successful with your trust.

Special thanks to Anny Cao, Yuyang Cao, Haofei Deng, Stephanie Xinyue Dong, Venus Jossef Dantas, Fei Feng, Owen Ge, Kunsh Kalra, Eric Liu, Karen Jiaen Liu, Jay Larson, Philip Ndiokho, Eric Wang, Sarah Wang, Grady Zheng for volunteering at the event and making the experience for every participant even better.