A winding path heads into the forest……Discovery and surprise are so often the best part of a hike (or any journey). One of the minor peaks on my list of Bay Area Summits was the high point of Lime Ridge Open Space in Walnut Creek. It didn’t seem promising; the hike began in an empty lot of a sprawling housing development and followed a drainage ditch uphill along rutted cattle paths to a grassy grazing area. It was a hazy day and all in all a rather mundane effort. Even the partly fenced-off summit was unexciting. Making a quick descent I veered off the south and saw this path curve away from the main trail. Finally some trees. A few steps forward, quick framing, and a completely different scene emerged … unexpected of course, as it always is.