New blog: Hiking the Salem National Forest - Phil Decker


Follow along for the ride on my new blog "Hiking the Salem National Forest".  This is a tongue and cheek photo essay, since there is no such thing as a "National Forest" in Salem, Oregon and since I'm "hiking" along classic urban/suburban strips here. 

Lately, I have been interested in taking walks to look closely at landscapes that I've been driving on and by for years. Instead of venturing far and wide from the urban/suburban sprawl to visit majestic parks where pristine nature is preserved, I'm searching for the remnants of the forest, nature's diverse leftovers and transplants, tenaciously hanging on. 

The lone pine tree stuck in the yard of a dilapidated apartment complex across from the ARCO gas station is just as triumphant as a pine tree nestled within the thick shady forest.



May this blog encourage us to look carefully at the landscape that surrounds us, the water that envelops the fish. May this blog remind us to notice the miraculous, and troubling, in the seemingly mundane.

Text, photos © Phil Decker
Here's the link:  salemnationalforest.blogspot.com



Comments

frala said…
Great idea - like your pictures a lot.