Kafka short stories and Malibu Creek SP at sunset

OK, enough people signed up to actually schedule this hike! Dave R. pointed out that the reading--short stories "In the Penal Colony" and "The Hunger Artist"--is just too light and easy. Thus I will add the Gabriel Garcia Marquez' story "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings." It's worth talking about the stories together. There is a picnic table at Century Lake that makes a nice spot to share refreshments and talk about bleak depressing existential stuff AND the wildly wonderful and comic masterpieces of Kafka (and that other guy).

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These stories defy description. If you can read Kafka auf Deutsch please DO SO! Same with español for Garcia Marquez. Then you can enlighten us all regarding translation errors and impress the frogs and crickets with your rolling Rs and gutteral Gs. You can find these stories everywhere: online, in your old box of junk from college, anthologies, that great public institution where they have the books to lend out. You know, that book lending place thing. If you want portable e-files, e-mail me and I will send e-them to you. As with all important works, copyright laws do not apply. The premise of our little hiking salon:

1. Read some work of literary merit you’ve always wanted to read.

2. Go to a beautiful trail you’ve always wanted to see.

3. Hike with friends, have a stimulating discussion in a beautiful spot while the sun sets and enjoy torturing your brain cells as much as you enjoy executing them.

The work: Just read the stories. They are so much more modern than the crap the publishing (qua entertainment) industry pumps out now it will make your brain gasp with orgasmic delight. Great works can be read again and again, so even if you’ve read them in school or years ago and want to read them again, please join us. We will respect everybody’s opinion and encourage all participants.

The trail: This easy hike on fireroads with a few meanderings onto single track trail starts by Mulholland Highway and goes over one or two small hills. We will walk by some smelly but accessible porta-potties 30 minutes in, visit The Rock Pool, do our best Chuck Hesston imitations ("get your leaves off me you damn dirty poison oak!"), scale a little spot around the climbing wall if we're up for it, and take a fire road over the hill to Century Lake where there is a nice spot to talk about literature, enjoy a refreshment, enlighten your fellow hikers with your trenchant literary observations, or just throw little stones and pondtemplate. The total distance will be around three miles with a few hundred feet of gain/loss. The mountains around Century Lake remind me of West Virginia. At times they are so gorgeous in a certain slant of light on a [fall-ish] afternoon that you will think you have landed on some other planet, perhaps inhabited by peaceful and highly evolved primates... and you will feel like the invader who dropped in on this highly evolved and peaceful society. This is on State Park land and no dogs are allowed. Please use the comments section of this page to communicate, quote Kafka, ask questions, make snarky remarks, complain about doglessness, all the usual chatter. The entire route back is on pretty big trails/fire roads with no steep sections so your body won't get hurt nearly as much as your brain on this one. We should be back at the cars by 8 or 8:30 in the real velvety dark, depending on how deep the discussion goes or how good the refreshments are.

The extras: Wine (discretion warranted; ranger justice Kafkian) and cheese are optional. I will bring some snack to share as well as cups and utensils. Any snacks to be shared are quite welcome.

Please bring your own water, flashlight, sit pad if desired, and appropriate hiking attire. A hat and/or jacket (which works as a sit pad if desired) might be useful after sunset. It can get chilly.

We should arrive at Century Lake well before sunset at 6:54pm and hike back after the fireball falls into the sea and the horrid crushing blackness descends. It can get very dark on the trails so please BRING A FLASHLIGHT or headlamp. You will be responsible for yourself and are encouraged to get lost in Kafkian dreams, but not to get lost in MCSP.

Disclaimers: Mountains are deadly dangerous and nobody should go near them. Hiking can lead stress fractures, blindness, hip pain, edema, exploding joints, shin and earlobe lacerations, vampirism, and utter debauchery. Nightime is infested with wild beasts too terrifying to mention. There actually IS quite a bit of poison oak near the more watery parts of our route but it rarely jumps into the trail and the leader may choose to point it out. As always check yourself for ticks after hiking and don't stray far from the safety of the group. Look at all the holes in this mountain. It's like the swiss cheese!

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Kafka