Landscape, Poetry, Samsung Galaxy S5
by Patrick Jennings

Obscured ~ Pic and a Word Challenge #49

Obscured Path, White Lake Trail, White Lake Grasslands, Okanagan Falls, British Columbia, Canada
I follow the obscured path
Tall grass licking my legs
Tickling the spokes
Going “teedle teedle teedle”
While handlebars cut a swath
Parting a bow wave in the ocean of grass

It’s like swimming through a sea
Of stems and raspy leaves
The stiff breeze wrestles up a wave
Which rolls across the grassland and trees
A moment of cool in the sun roasted air
Which clings to my lips, dries my lungs

This is the ride I’ve been seeking
Four days out and the last before home
Gentle enough, with broad vistas
A trail embraced by nature
Not without its taxing climbs
And exhilarating descents

A ride of simple pleasures
And more than a little sweat
A meandering circle of overgrown trail
And wooded shade
Pedalled in quiet solitude
Connected to everything

Obscured Path
White Lake Trail
White Lake Grasslands Reserve
Okanagan Falls
British Columbia, Canada

Taken during travels, 2016

Last week we shone the light on Darkness This week? Explore the obscured, or find some other theme or insight in this photograph of a barely-there trail through British Columbia’s arid grasslands.

The Pic and a Word Challenge is a weekly creativity prompt offered Sunday mornings.

Each week I provide a photograph of mine along with a single word. The challenge? Use the pic and/or word as points of inspiration to create something — a photograph, a painting, prose, poetry, fiction, non-fiction, longread or just a few words. You are welcome to use these two elements (photograph and word) literally, thematically or metaphorically. If you create both images and words, all the better.

To participate:

  • Use any title you like
  • Your response can be words and/or an image
  • You may use my image in your post, or any image you have created
  • Place the challenge’s Pic (if you use it for inspiration) and Word prominently in your post
  • Mention that you are responding to the Pic and a Word Challenge
  • Add a link to this post in your response

To help us find your response, you can also:

Each week, I’ll list the previous week’s responses at the end of the new challenge. I may also share some on my social media: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, etc.

Last week’s challenge: Darkness
Light through the Autumn Colours, Over Lynn Mansion, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada
Darkness ~ Challenge #48

The word for last week’s Pic and a Word Challenge #48 was Darkness, along with this photograph of light streaming through the Autumn colours in Burnaby, British Columbia.Four enlightened responses this week. Thank you! =)

I explored darkness quite a bit myself this past week. It’s a theme I like to immerse myself in, from time-to-time. Find more on the Darkness tag page.

View all the Pic and a Word Challenges on the Pic and a Word Challenge tag page.