Trading Photos

Tonight Marian came over, and we traded photos from our weekend at Slovenský Raj & Spiš Castle.  So here are a few more pics from Marian's perspective……….

The sign at the beginning of the trail looked innocent enough ---- LOL!!!  

Soon we were hiking right up the creek bed in between the rock canyon walls, trying to keep our feet dry by stepping on rocks, walking on logs, etc.  

We just kept trying to stay as dry as possible as we zigzagged over the creek to any areas without running water.  

We were glad once again to have our Mother's Day / Father's Day gifts to one another along --- the pair of hiking sticks that we share!!  :-) 

Even at first it wasn't always easy going, negotiating over fallen logs and rocks through the canyon.  

Our balance got better and better as we went across logs instead of through creek water!  

Here we are looking up at our first encounter with the many ladders.  Our initial reactions were --- really???  If it were in the U.S.A., this place would have been shut down because of potential liability lawsuits!!  But then, with so many other people there also doing the trail, we figured it had to be do-able!!   :-)  

Looking back down at where we had just climbed from.  

Tim emerging from the trail through the rock peep-hole!  

And finally the trail widened out at the top, with easy walking up to the summit after all the ladders next to waterfalls and walk-ways over chasms!  

Everyone always gets their photos taken by the signs at the summits of climbs, so here we are after safely finishing our Suchá Belá ascent!  YAY!

'Back at the ranch' - literally - since we stayed at Ranč Podlesok!!   We still haven't seen any real bears despite many reports of bear activity in the Tatras lately, so this wooden bear will have to do for our pictures.

Day #2 of our Slovenský Raj hiking trip with Susan and Marian.  

At Tomášovský výhľad ("Viewpoint") - WOW!!!  

Lots of great views -- I always like to look and see how far down it is at the very edge, and then maybe throw a pebble down there.    But very carefully!!   :-)

The following is kind of a recap of an email we recently sent out to our American Lector group here in Central Europe.  We hope you will continue reading below, even though you've reached the end of the pictures in this post!!   :-)      Just some thoughts about our time serving here……..

We visited Slovak Paradise (Slovenský raj) for the first time a couple of weeks ago, and we were awed by the beauty of nature there.  Our two hikes were the two most popular trails, and the contrast between them made us think about destinations and journeys - in life as well as on hikes!  

The first hike was on the famous Suchá Belá trail, which involves many ladders, bridges, chains, and elevated wooden walkways, as hikers follow a creek up the mountain, sometimes climbing straight up metal ladders right next to waterfalls and walking across deep gorges on wooden slatted bridges with no hand rails.  The terrain was beautiful all along the way, with many surprising twists and turns through the forest and canyons.  After our exhilarating climb, we reached the top, where we saw……a sign saying "Suchá Belá"….. that's it, just the sign on a post and trees all around and no view at all from the top!  It was a bit anticlimactic.  So, we laughed a little about that, but we were incredibly grateful for such an amazing journey all along the way!!

The second hike was the Tomašovský view trail, which was just a pleasant hike on comfortable trails through the woods.  There were a few scenic overlooks and some pretty wildflowers along the way, but nothing nearly so spectacular as on the previous day's hike.  It was mostly just normal woodland scenery.  This seemed rather ho-hum after the thrill and excitement of traversing the Suchá Belá Gorge!!  However, once we reached the destination, there were some incredibly beautiful and breath-taking panoramic views of mountain vistas and valleys.  It was absolutely awesome!!  

It really did strike us that life can be like that.  Sometimes, every day brings new excitement and challenges as we head towards some goal, but in the end we realize it was actually the journey itself, not the destination, that was most important and meaningful.  And at other times, it seems that we just plod along through the endless succession of days and events, but in the end we realize that something great has been accomplished, and we've reached our goals through persistence and dedication along the way, 'normal' as it may have seemed from day to day.  

It just seemed to us that these two hikes were like life parables for us.  Our roads lead in many directions, and our journeys are varied, but perhaps we should keep in mind that both the journey AND the destination have the potential to hold beauty for us and can provide life lessons for us.  We should never miss out on one because of the other!  

We hope that your life has provided you with journeys filled with beauty, joys, and blessings.  We also hope that you can look back at the 'big picture' and discover that despite challenges and setbacks, and perhaps even some tediousness, you have reached destinations that are fulfilling.  To our friends, family, colleagues, and students who may be reading this, we thank God for the opportunity to share in your life journey.  It has been a great blessing to us to feel connected with each of you, especially during this two-year sojourn of service in Slovakia. 

Meanwhile, enjoy every minute of life that God has given.  Our loving God is along life's trail with us, each step of the way, and by relying on Him and seeking His will, we will surely continue to find ways to serve Him.  

Along the trail - staying out of the water!! 

Climbing up alongside a beautiful waterfall.

Mountaintop views!!