Today was the first day of the Camino Edmonton, a light-hearted 5-day walk through our river valley via the network of pedestrian and multi-use trails available. I’m writing more indepth about it for a forthcoming magazine article, but thought I’d endeavour to capture each day in a poem.

Day 1: Soft

sand underfoot
cleft between ancient
dunes sweetly cloaked
in tall grass

tamarack green
shoulder to shoulder
along the right-of-way
and paler tips of spruce
lemon sharp and fresh
on the tongue

poplar seed, dandelion
salsify, small marsh grasses

pine needles
become hummocks
home for smaller people
we thrum above their living
rooms down among roots

wild roses, dappled
in shade, festooned
with bees and ants

one half robin’s egg shell
wild blue beginnings

it’s easy to walk
with these burdens.

Today’s plant: wild rose, symbol of our province. the delicate cool pink petals refresh the tongue, while bees and ants dine on her pollen. Come autumn, rosehips provide a time-honoured source of food fit for surviving winter. 

Photos by Gunnar Blodgett.