Last Saturday, my boyfriend and I hiked the trail known as the Stairway to Heaven, near Vernon Township, NJ.  The day was sunny and cool, in the low 50’s – a great day in spring for a hike!

The Stairway to Heaven is a 2.6 mile trail, part of the Appalachian Trail. It is filled with boulders of various sizes and many of these form the rock stairs which give the trail its name, the Stairway to Heaven.   We met a lot of hikers, and some with their dogs!, going up and coming back down the trail.  On the trail, we encountered a man and woman, who I greeted with a smile and a Hello!  The man smiled back and said, “You are a happy person.”  And I said “Yes! Happy to be hiking in the great outdoors!”  He said, “I can tell from your smile, you get it, and it shows!.”  Indeed, I was in great spirits, even though hiking up and down a trail filled with boulders is very challenging. I was motivated because Spring is here and people feel safe to go out, begin to move beyond the pandemic, and embrace life anew!

Todd and I climbed to the top of the trail and were rewarded with a view from “Annie’s Bluff.”  We saw below us the Heaven Hill Farm across the road from the parking lot where we parked our car.  Cows grazed the field, and a boardwalk runs through the farm, connecting hikers to a continuation of the Appalachian Trail. From our viewpoint, we could see the expansiveness of Vernon Valley.

Thank God for Saturday, a beautiful day in the beginning of April, when Todd and I were able to take advantage of the good weather to head outdoors, go for a nice hike on the Stairway to Heaven trail, and enjoy our time taking in the natural beauty that God created.  Days like Saturday are the kind we can all appreciate because they are life affirming and renewing, and a sign of the coming of the Season of Resurrection.

Shared by Doris Kwong