In the Hills: A Ride for a Friday Afternoon

 Up in the hills a fog lingered; not the deep, settled fog of the morning, but an afternoon veil hiding only those things more distant. The day warm on the sunny hillsides, cold in the shaded canyons. A skink, all body and tail, basked in the middle of the road until I disturbed its wakeful slumber. Further along, a smaller lizard ran in my peripheral vision, edging the dry grass at the side of the road. Elsewhere a grasshopper, left over from those longer days of summer, sprang with weary legs into the air and away like the speeding seasons.

Where the ground exhibits the artistic hand of wind, scoured into patterns of barren plains and rocky fields, I stop for the view (one of several such stops) down along one of Cobal Canyons' long straight arms, to where it disappears below the Good Red Road, merging with that arroyo's main appendage. It is not a bad day to make such stops for views, either distant or near, the color of the sky, patterns on the ground, the sun splashed color of sycamore leaves, pine needles and fading mist.

Have a great weekend y'all. If you're up for such things, the Ride Around Pomona rolls in the morning and, once again, there are afternoon and evening races at the Velo Sports Center including the 3rd round of the SoCal Madison Cup. And it that ain't enough, the Encino Velodrome is also hosting their annual December Swapmeet - I've made some fine purchases there in the past but, unfortunately, will not be able to make it this time around.