Sacred Wonderland Newsletter

Sacred Wonderland Newsletter - November 2025

Published: Mon, 11/17/25

A small, reflective pond is surrounded by tall pine trees and grasslands under a clear blue sky. In the background, sunshine glints on a large body of water with distant mountains on the horizon. This tranquil scene captures the untouched beauty reminiscent of Yellowstone's natural wonders.

Issue #24, November 2025

Hello friend,

Today is National Hiking Day. Or, as the American Hiking Society calls it, "National Take A Hike Day." A Monday may not be best for many people to take a long jaunt through the woods or even a power walk at a local park. But a quick walk around the block may be precisely what you need to deal with a hectic, stressful beginning of the work week.

Walking has always been a favored activity for clearing my mind and getting some perspective on life's stressors. Good weather or bad, going outside to travel by the power of my own legs refreshes my mind and eases my spirit. It involves a slowing down, which helps to settle the tornado of thoughts, worries, and ideas swirling in my brain.

Nearly everyone walks at a rate of two to four miles per hour (varying by age, sex, physical fitness, terrain, and conditions). At that rate, you notice details impossible to find while speeding along in a car or any other form of mechanized transportation. The sound of birds filling the forest with song; signs of animals who have crossed your path; the subtle patterns of tree bark; the contours of the land as the trail rises and falls.

For me, hiking is the best way to get to know a place. This includes cities. Exploring the local neighborhood on foot helps me to appreciate architecture and landscaping I would not have noticed otherwise. It also encourages conversations with neighbors and even strangers. I've had many delightful conversations with people I've met while walking.

Hiking can be an ambitious, multi-day trek across wild lands and over high mountain passes, a casual stroll in the neighborhood, or anything in between. Whether long or short, whether strenuous or relaxing, taking a break from the daily grind to enjoy some time outdoors on foot can make life's challenges more bearable.

Happy hiking,

Tom

Featured Photo

A hiker wearing a red cap and backpack walks with a trekking pole on a dirt road to the Medicine Wheel in Wyoming. The road winds through a dry, rocky landscape with sparse vegetation under a clear blue sky. The moon hangs faintly in the sky above the horizon.

Following the Moon to the Medicine Wheel

(Photo by M.R.W. Bremer)

Ancient people etched a large Medicine Wheel high in the Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming. A service road leads up the sacred mountain that has been the site of rituals for about seven thousand years. It’s an easy hike of little more than a mile from the parking area to the Medicine Wheel. Well, easy if you are in good physical condition and have adequately adjusted to the elevation (nearly 10,000 feet above sea level), which I had not done on my first visit—the thin air left me lightheaded as I circled the wheel. I was better prepared for my second visit, shown here as I followed the pale moon, seen faintly in the sky above the mountain.

News, Commentary, and other items of interest

A park and a song: “With almost a quarter of DC’s total acreage devoted to public lands, most of it tracing the Potomac River and its tributaries, I had found the nation’s capital to be a place of astounding natural beauty and biodiversity.” The Rhythms of "Rock Creek Park" – Orion Magazine

Climate doulas: “I would really love to see this program fully tested and expanded and incorporated in general medical care,” she said. “This is the new environment we live in.” Doulas are crafting a climate disaster blueprint for pregnant people – The Nineteenth

When Yellowstone wolves leave the park: “Crossing Yellowstone National Park’s protective boundary, an apex predator becomes prey. These wolves don’t last long in the modern Mountain West.” What Happens When Wolves Leave Yellowstone? – Mountain Journal

Traditional art on antique pages: John Isaiah Pepion “is best known for his ledger art, an art tradition that developed in Plains tribes when the buffalo hide traditionally used for painting became scarce, and people were forced to adapt by making artwork on ledger paper from accounting books.” The Traditional Ledger Art of John Isaiah Pepion - Orion Magazine

Historic graffiti from the Lewis & Clark expedition: “Clark’s journal noted he engraved his name and the date on the face of the rock that included numerous native engravings.” A Lasting Mark Of The Corps Of Discovery | National Parks Traveler

A book worth reading:

Now Go Home: Wilderness, Belonging, and the Crosscut Saw

By Ana Maria Spagna

Hikers benefit from the thankless work of crews who build and maintain trails in some of the most challenging and sometimes dangerous terrains. Before she gained success as a writer, Ana Maria Spagna worked on trail crews for the National Park Service, experiences that inform many of her essays. I have enjoyed her writing ever since meeting her at a writer’s conference ten years ago. Among my favorites is Now Go Home, her first book that recounts her life from her youthful years in Southern California in the “hot-pink eighties” to clearing trails with a crosscut saw in the Pacific Northwest. It includes how she and her partner built their home in an isolated community far from the comforts and conveniences of modern society. Throughout this book, a parade of outdoorsy characters populates the essays.