Celebrate National Poetry Month by Writing Hiker Haiku

by Charlie Wakenshaw

In uncertain times, we can count on nature to hold steady and help us feel grounded. In spring, nature announces itself in a thousand small ways: Birdsong accompanies the alarm clock in the morning, fiddleheads unfurl and buds burst open.

Celebrate Poetry Month 

The coming of spring also happens to mark the start of National Poetry Month, when art and nature intersect. We invite you celebrate with us and experiment with a poem or two of your own. 


See where poetry can take you. Photo by Natalie Dagley. 

Nature and poetry have always been compatible, especially here where many great poets have turned their eyes on the Pacific Northwest for inspiration. Engaging with poetry this spring, whether reading it or writing it, is a great way to stay connected with the calming force of the outdoors. 

Whether you tote a journal with you on every hike, regularly pontificate on the nuances of the villanelle, or put a little extra flare into your trip reports, we can all benefit from a poem or two right now.

Write your own poems

As the great outdoors temporarily shrinks to our backyards and neighborhoods, take time each day to capture your thoughts in a poem to see your world transform in creative new ways. If you stop on your neighborhood walk — even for two seconds — and ponder some magical sight, be it big or small, grab a pen and get writing. 

Reading by the River. Photo by McKenzie Carlson. 

Writing haiku is a great place to start with poetry. The haiku is a traditional Japanese poem, typically involving images from nature. It has three lines, each with a given number of syllables, 5-7-5, like this:

First, five syllables
Second, seven syllables
Third, five syllables

Not sure if “bivouac” is two or three syllables? Nobody knows, so just go with your gut. Some rules are meant to be broken, especially when it comes to poetry. You can make your haiku be whatever you want it to be. 

If you like poems that rhyme, make your haiku rhyme. If you buck at the sing-song sound of rhyming poems, by all means revolt and go freestyle. If alliteration is your thing (like all those S’s in the previous sentence) then do it — if cute word play makes your skin squirm, (whoops, did it again!) then don’t.

Share your haiku!

So, the next time you head out for a neighborhood stroll, bring a pen and some paper or just memorize your poem and whisper it into the wind. (No one’s watching.)

We would really love to see what you come up with, so write your haiku down and post it in the comments below. We might feature your poem in an upcoming issue of our member magazine!

We'll also be selecting one poet from the comments at random on April 10 to receive a copy of Turn Around Time: A Walking Poem for the Pacific Northwest, the new epic poem by local author David Guterson and published by our friends at Mountaineers Books.

Ideas to Get Started

• Write a haiku about an unusual plant you see on a neighborhood walk.
• Search through trip reports until a photo inspires you. Write a haiku about it (or start with the photos below).
• Pull out a hiking map, close your eyes and point anywhere on the map. Open your eyes and take note of the first word you see. Include this word in your haiku. 
• Think about your most memorable hike and write a haiku about it. 
• Write a haiku about your favorite piece of gear.
• Write a haiku consisting only of one syllable words.
• Consider making a habit of it, and set the goal of writing one hiker haiku per day (or week) for the entire month of April.
  

Photos are a great way to spark ideas. Clockwise from top left: Elisabeth Britt, Ananthatejas Raghaven, Kristopher Ebbert, Louise Kornreich, Angela Downard.