雨のあとの山道

Mika had wanted for some time to try walking a mountain path in the morning, and Aya had also wanted to take lots of pictures at least once.

Ken has climbed that mountain twice, so he shows them on a map the places where the path is hard to follow.

The night before, it rained, but by morning the weather had become quite good.

Even so, because wet stones are slippery, her father said, 'On steep paths, you'd better walk slowly.'

Aya and the others meet in front of the station, buy drinks and rice balls, and then get on the bus.

When they get to the trailhead, the air is much colder than in town, and they can hear birds close by.

The path at first was wide, but when they go up a little, there are more trees, and it becomes harder to see their footing.

So that she will not fall, Mika walks holding her pole firmly.

Because Ken sometimes turns around for them, Aya can follow along without worry.

When they drank tea at a rest area on the way, they could see white clouds drifting away beyond the valley.

Aya has been busy lately and had not been exercising much, but she feels that she has become able to walk longer than before.

When they reached the small lookout at the top of the mountain, they had planned to take pictures together, but because the wind was strong, they decided to rest in a wide place a little lower down.

The rice balls they ate there were very good, and Mika smiles and says, 'I want to come again in a different season too.'

On the bus ride back, all three became a little sleepy, but Aya thought that she would increase the time she spends walking in daily life so that next time she can also go to a farther mountain.

When she got home and took off her shoes, her legs were tired, but her heart had become strangely light.