This morning I had planned to take my normal morning walk to the parks by the river, playing Pokémon Go as I usually do while walking. This morning there is a new quest line in the game, and when I was at the Owen Rose Garden where I usually turn around and head back home I saw that the tasks I needed to do to advance the quest line both involved getting more walking distance in. I decided to head down to Skinner Butte Park to get some of that extra distance, but as I was approaching it I started thinking about how the park is named for Skinner Butte but I rarely go up on the butte itself, instead sticking to the paths by the river, and couldn’t shake the idea that I should head up there today.

There’s a nice trail with switchbacks so the climb isn’t super steep.

I decided to go to the south overlook because I had never been to that side before. There are some nice viewing balconies that let you look out over the city.

Since I was already up there, I decided to head over to the west overlook, too.

Since it took me a while to head up and back down (and tired my legs out a bit with the extra exertion over my regular routine) it was later in the morning than it usually is when I started heading home. Here’s a photo of some geese hanging out in the river in a place where I usually only pass when it’s too dark for smartphone photography.

Even though it took a bit longer than my usual walk I feel good about heading up there this morning.

Walking