I went for a bike ride because I’m on Spring Break and I felt like going out and doing something under the beautiful sunlight.
I pedaled over the 101 freeway via the pedestrian bridge and then down Harbor, crossing over the estuary bridge into Oxnard.
After the Oxnard sign, I saw the sign for McGrath State Beach.
I have lived in Ventura for over 1 year yet I’ve never been to McGrath; it’s always been a sign along Harbor and I assumed just a wee patch of beach for surfers–probably nothing much to it, I thought. Just fenced off and lonely.
No time like the present. I turned my handles into McGrath and followed the curved road to a ranger booth (the ranger and I exchanged waves hello), and then to a little wooden gazebo with plaques warning about Poison Ivy and teaching about endangered species. It was so well preserved and reminding me of a story I had read by Ray Bradbury called A Sound of Thunder. Don’t step off the beaten path when you go anywhere in the wilderness because there’s always the chance that you’ll affect something in the future.
If you haven’t read A Sound of Thunder, you should.
I came to a designated path, stepped off my bike and down the path–I was in awe and amazement at what I was greeted with.
I walked. This space reminded me of Virginia Beach and brought to the surface those sweet-tea memories of traipsing over those wooden boardwalks that lead to the Atlantic shore; except this time I was wandering away from the beach and over protected patches of ecosystem. I rolled my bike slowly and softly, plucking one ear bud from my ear so I could hear–nothing in particular, just wanted to become aware of the cars rushing on Harbor, communication between birds, maybe a little bit of a rustle of leaves as the wind sighed.
The wood turned to dirt and I walked, and I came to a little square, courted by a couple of wooden benches that were spray painted with graffiti. Yet it could not ruin this space.
It’s like Rome.
If you’ve ever been to Rome, maybe you understand that regardless of the overlay of graffiti in that city, there’s this allure and delicacy. With eyes closed and a little imagination, I see the world that existed well before you and I split skin lips to enter this world.
It was an amazing April 12th in Southern California. (Speaking of splitting skin lips, Happy Birthday, Sonnie Rajsombath!)
McGrath
Starting point
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