A Walk in the Woods
By Margaret Magnus
In the years before the December 2017 Thomas Fire, my husband Sam Ervin and I always noticed a deer trail leading up the side of the hill from the well head. It was particularly evident in the Spring when the taller grasses were matted down to form a narrow pathway about six inches wide.
We always said it would be interesting to follow that trail, but we never did.
After the Thomas Fire burned the ravines leading down to the well head, that trail was no longer visible. We wondered if the deer still used that pathway.
When the rains came and the growth returned, it once again became clear that the deer continued to walk that pathway. To where and why? That’s not clear. There’s not an actual water source at the well head since the well is underground with no leaks.
Exploring the Deer Trail
When Sam and I visited Meher Mount for the weekend of Amartithi 2020, Caretaker Ellen Kwiatkowski suggested we take a hike down to the well head and follow the deer trail. She had been scouting the area and regularly cutting back the poison oak, making the hike idea even more appealing.
PAUSING A MOMENT to enjoy the Coast Live Oak woodland forest at Meher Mount are Manager/Caretaker Ellen Kwiatkowski and fellow hiker Erin Sommerville. They are joined by Margaret Magnus who is taking the photograph. (Photo: Margaret Magnus, February 2, 2020)
So on Sunday, February 2, 2020, Ellen, Erin Sommerville who was also staying in Ojai for the weekend, and I took off for our walk.
Armed with clippers to hack down any returning poison oak, Ellen led the way. We started along the deer trail – and really the word “trail” is not the right description. It’s a very narrow bit of land along the side of hill not wide enough to even put our feet side-by-side.
An Angel in the Woods
After the first ascent, there was a small clearing and a downed tree trunk that made a perfect place to pause and take in the beauty of the Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia) woodland.
THE BURNED TRUNK of Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia) at Meher Mount looks like an angel in the woodland beckoning the hikers to reach for the heavens. (Photo: Margaret Magnus, February 2, 2020)
As we sat there having a thoughtful discussion about life, life decisions and whatever else was on our minds, a beautiful burned tree trunk stood in front of us.
We began to fantasize about what the burned tree trunk represented. It felt as if the right side looked like angel’s wings with the left side representing a hand reaching toward the heavens with the support and encouragement of an angel.
Later we continued our walk to an open meadow sometimes visible from the trail to Baba’s Tree. Then as we reached the crest of the hill, a friend of Ellen’s from Delaware arrived, and so she went to show her friend Baba’s Tree. Erin and I continued back to the Visitor Center feeling rejuvenated by our time in nature.
A Burned Trunk that Could Have Inspired an Artist
Recently, I was going through my photos from that walk to look for one to post on social media. One of my favorites is of a burned oak tree that reminded me of a modern art sculpture.
NATURE MIGHT HAVE INSPIRED ART when a burned tree trunk at Meher Mount reminded us of a modern art sculpture by Alberto Giacometti. (Photo: Margaret Magnus, February 2, 2020)
I texted the photo to our friends Byron and Nancy Pinckert (architects and designers). They suggested it reminded them of work by Swiss sculptor Alberto Giacometti (1901-1966).
SWISS ARTIST Alberto Giacometti was awarded the grand prize for sculpture at the 1962 Venice Biennale. In 2010, Giacometti’s life-size bronze sculpture of a man, L’Homme qui marche I , became one of the most expensive sculptures ever to be sold at auction. The same work currently appears on the 100 Swiss Franc banknote. (Source: Tate, London)
Obviously, this tree trunk couldn’t have inspired Giacometti, who was living in Switzerland in the 1940s when he conceptualized his ideas for his postwar standing figures, but it sure looked as if this burned oak tree trunk at Meher Mount was his inspiration.
The Mountain Lion Postscript
As a postscript to this story of the deer trail hike, Caretaker Eric Carlson recently mentioned that he had placed a trail camera in a spot along the trail near where we had hiked earlier.
“There’s a small plateau where the grass is matted down. It looks like a spot where deer might bed down,” he explained.
He posted the trail-cam to get some nighttime photos of deer. What he got instead were photos of a mountain lion.
He described the area as having an oak tree with branches that spread across this bedding area, which provide an opportunity for the mountain lion(s) to lie down on the branches to observe – sight unseen – the deer bedding area.
“It’s perfect for an ambush,” he said. Hmmm… We all agreed that it’s important to look up when hiking in the woods and to not go alone.
A MOUNTAIN LION photographed with a night trail camera posted by Manager/Caretaker Eric Carlson at Meher Mount near the deer trail. (Photo: Eric Carlson, March 9, 2020)