My name is Rich Dalton and I walk a lot. I walk regularly. It has become one of the most important, healthful, creative, things that I do. As a kid I was very fortunate to have a grandfather who liked to walk. He grew up on farms and ranches. He took my brother and me into the woods and taught us the names of the trees. He showed us how to make sling shots and flutes made from Hickory. He taught us how to shoot rifles. We mostly killed tin cans. He taught us respect and appreciation for nature. He also taught us about classical music. I am an Eagle Scout. I was a trail guide for Missouri's Taum Sauk Trail. Like so many of you, I have walked in State and National Parks all over the country.
For most of the last 35 years I have been on the radio playing rock and roll. Most of it has been in St. Louis. I am known as Radio Rich. You notice that I say "walk" and not hike. I have done lots of camping but very little backpacking. With the Boy Scouts I have done hundreds of miles of hiking. But mostly I walk.
A number of years ago, I was walking a very beautiful 2 mile loop with the intention of having lunch and then walking the same loop in the opposite direction afterwards. It was a particularly beautiful spring. It had been raining and there where numerous streams and waterfalls. Now the sun was shining and the air and light was crisp and clear. There seemed to be an unusual amount of wildflowers in a large array of colors. It was really one of those "glad to be alive days."
I had a great lunch and started back down the trail in the other direction. It is funny sometimes how different the same trail can look when you walk the other way. In short, it was just one of those great moments that we can have in the woods when we can really feel the connection with nature and therefore, a lot of joy.
I was bopping down the trail at my usual brisk pace, when I realized that I was already more than half way through. I didn't want to be done that soon! It was such a good day on the trail that I wasn't ready for it to be over. So I slowed up. I looked more closely at things. If I wanted to stop for a minute, I stopped. I went down a couple of side trails. I climbed up a little waterfall.
I was playing in the woods.
I soon realized that I was more like a dog would be on the trail. Sniffing and smelling everything, not necessarily going anywhere in any particular hurry. Not thinking of exercise, calories, mileage, work, home, stress, but feeling alive, breathing fresh air, and greatly appreciating the incredible beauty of nature. Then of course, I had one of those incredible revelations of the obvious! I was stopping and smelling the roses. I was realizing that I wanted to wander through my life the same way that I was wandering through this beautiful woods.
I have coined a term for what I do, a name for what I did that day in the woods. I have invented nothing. Man has been doing this ever since there has been man. Many of you have been doing this naturally all your lives. I have just given it a name. I call it Rapturous Wandering. I do not exaggerate in the least when I tell you that Rapturous Wandering has changed my life and become one of the most important things that I do. There is a time on almost every one of my walks when I say to myself: "I know this is not for everyone, but it is so easy to do, it is so beneficial, that I know there are lots of people who would really love to do this, but for whatever reason, don't."
Now, this is my opportunity to give you my aid and encouragement to this approach to peace and joy. You don't have to join anything, there are no tapes or books you have to have. No meetings. Guidelines, but no rules. In other words, I am encouraging you to get outside and feel good. In the upcoming months on this site, I will tell you what I have discovered about Rapturous Wandering and how to go about it!
So keep an eye here and don't wait......walk. Rich
If you are ever in that mood to “get away” and do something relaxing, you may want to consider Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Eureka Springs is very different from what you would expect from Northwestern Arkansas. (It is about an hour south of Branson.)
It was established in 1879 as a result of the spreading fame of its healing springs and many hotels and spas sprang up in the hills surrounding the city. The downtown area is dominated by quaint older buildings such as the Basin Park Hotel and the hills are dotted with beautiful Victorian houses.
Eureka Springs is a very beautiful and unique place and you can feel its healing qualities whether you indulge in the spring water or not. One of the things that I very much appreciate is that the area is clearly dominated by people with an artistic temperament. It is happily lacking in most of the cookie-cutter franchise businesses that populate most other tourist areas.
I was there last March, my wife and her friend returned in July and I plan to return to take advantage of the beauty of the fall.
I think that it is a special place. If you like modern hotels, they greet you on your way into town. If you are like me and enjoy lodging with a little more character, you might look into the Basin Park, The Crescent Hotel (on top of the hill!), or the many quaint B&B;’s that dot the hillside.
http://www.eurekaspringschamber.com
The way that I like to go is to bring a good book and plan very little except to stroll around the town at my leisure, check out the many charming shops, and enjoy their restaurants. (Ermilio’s is good Italian!)
Here are some pictures and a link.
http://www.eurekasprings.com
Rich
One of my themes that I invoke on my show a lot, is getting outside, into beautiful surroundings and re-charging your batteries. I just had an especially good vacation and I thought that I would share it with you because I know that lots of you would enjoy it as well.
I like driving and this was a road trip of just under 1500 miles and 6 days. The time was the last week of April. The destinations; Smoky Mountain National Park and the Biltmore Estate. It is around 530 miles to Gatlinburg, Tennesee where we stayed in an excellent little chalet for three days. The hills surrounding Gatlinburg are dotted with chalets and mountain cabins.
The “downtown” area of Gatlinburg has many hotels and lodges. http://www.gatlinburg.com/ I can definitely recommend our chalet. It is run by Mountain Laurel Chalets. http://www.mountainlaurelchalets.com/ It was beautiful, clean and neat. It had a kitchen, DVD, Cable, hot tub and a lot of other goodies.
We used this as our base for our explorations of Smoky Mountain National Park. (http://www.nps.gov/grsm/) Since this was our first time in the park, we did all the basic tourist things. We didn’t get off the beaten path. There are many, many excellent trails to hike and the car trip into Cades Cove was exceptionally beautiful. There was a big wildflower festival going on when we where there and the place was full of people enjoying the very green, very scenic national park.
We left the park going south over the pass and went east on the Blue Ridge Parkway at Cherokee. The Parkway was an unexpected treat. The mountain terrain was different than the park and color from all the blooming trees and wildflowers was amazing. It is 87 miles at about 35mph. to Asheville, North Carolina and the famous Biltmore Estate.
The Biltmore was built in 1895 by George Vanderbilt and is a vast estate modeled after European royalty. It features a castle-like home, gardens, farms, horse barns and a deer park. http://www.biltmore.com/ . I enjoyed our visit there much more than I had expected. The tour of America’s largest privately owned home was extremely interesting and you followed an easy self guided tour through just about every area of the home.
The highlight of our trip was the extraordinary stroll through the Azalea garden. (see pix) We happened to hit it at the peak time and it is the most beautiful garden that I have ever seen. The colors and smells were amazing and I am already thinking of going back this same time next year. We also enjoyed a great buffet at the Deerpark. The Biltmore is very well run and administered with class and taste. It is a special place.
My aim for this trip was a low key, very scenic, spiritual experience and that is exactly what occurred. If you are looking for a relaxing, rejuvenating experience, you might want to try it. (If you haven’t already!) Rich
