Moon nearly full in the early morning... lights that I bought for commuting mounted on the mountain bike... I can safely get to the foot of the hill before dawn and climb with the sun. Turns out to be a real delight. It's quiet. Animals are about: a coyote barely visible against the moonlit grass, nightjars fluttering from the trail ahead, bats jinking over the ridge, looking for early-rising bugs. Later on there are deer foraging in the sunlight through an oak-grove saddle. At the top of one hill, two large coveys of quail explode from the dry plants. August. Two months before we can expect rain, and yet the land thirsts. Rain ended early this year; the flowers are mostly gone, save for a few hidden in shadier or cooler spots out of direct afternoon sun: scarlet larkspur, indian pink, sticky monkeyflowers. Even the hardy buckwheat is mostly gone to rusty red. Waiting. The currants have shed most of their leaves and the bare branches wait. Still, the birds are busy rustling around, finding seeds.
I'd prefer hiking but would have to drive to the trailhead. If I ride the bike I have to take it up the trail with me. I alternate riding with walking and get good from both.
