A Highland Hike in the Blue Ridge

by Gail Davidson

A HIGHLAND HIKE IN THE BLUE RIDGE

You whisper

as I trek the sandy trail 

upwards,

scramble over boulders

and scrape my knee,

follow the switchbacks until calypso blues

come into view.

My gaze sails the contours of distant peaks 

like wave swells

blue-green,

blue-gray,

blue-white

sea foam spilled

onto a frothy canvas sky.

I feel you in the cool of the wind,

this Eden perch where

fresh firs and five blueberries cluster,

the sunlight above me more expansive

than the thin, daring rock cliff beneath my feet.

Views are breathtaking

as I look down—

down there, is noise—

down there, they are—

but I cherish 

our private audience.

You, too, bled at the knees

and hugged the incline

just to reach us,

to share through the ages

Your glory

and the wonder

of this weathered Appalachian ridge,

to bridge

a distance and a valley,

empty

no more.

GAIL DAVIDSON

Gail Davidson lives on a country road with her family in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. She enjoys everything outdoors, from gardening to strolling beaches to hiking the heights. A previous stay-at-home mother and secondary English teacher, Gail plans to publish her first collection of poetry in 2025, bundling 25 years of writings about faith, motherhood, travels, life stages, and creativity.  She was over the moon to have some poems first published in Calla Press online literary journal in 2021 and debut print journal in 2022. 

Follow her on Instagram @gailmdavidson for personals and poetry reels.