I sit in the cool grey morning at the base of waterfall. We are embraced by the forest’s soft canopy, the waterfall and I. It’s just us and the sulphurous smell of decaying plant matter, the raucous shouts of crows in the woods, and the faint twittering of a warbler in the overstory. The waterfall is tall, 125 feet high, with rivulets pouring down lopsided stone slabs. It’s as if the earth itself is endlessly moved to tears by its…
I am a nature nerd and one of the things that I long to see more than anything when I am out exploring the woods are woodland turtles. Woodland turtles have become scarce over the last few decades due to habitat loss, collisions with automobiles, and the pet trade. The two main woodland turtles found in the northeast are the eastern box turtle and the wood turtle, both of which are listed as species of concern on the MA endangered…
I just went outside to empty the ash bucket from the wood stove. It’s early evening and a light mist clings to the air as a storm approaches from the east. Without knowing why, I found myself transfixed for several minutes staring at nothing in particular. My eyes looked blankly at swaths of rust and honey covering the hills. The wind growled through the trees and golden leaves trickled down like snow. They didn’t come straight down, but lingered weightless…
It’s mid morning on the beach and the ocean is unbelievably calm. A gentle breeze tousles my hair while I sit listening to the ocean breathe. The soft waves spill onto the satin sand with a sigh. Then a deep inhale sweeps the water back homeward. The light shimmering on the surface shines like a thousand gleaming fish. An osprey slices the surf, plucking its prey with turquoise-tinged talons and then disappears over the dunes. This morning I saw four…
Cape Cod in autumn is a magical place. Perfect weather, gorgeous beaches, glimpses of wild nature, and best of all, no crowds! I spent the weekend camping in Nickerson State Park with my three aunts, and needless to say, we had a wonderful time. I decided to stay an extra night on my own, and the park is nearly deserted. My company this evening was a precious cottontail rabbit who chose to forage near me as I ate my dinner. …
This past weekend, I travelled to my home state of New York to attend the DEC sponsored Becoming an Outdoors Woman program in the Adirondacks. The program offers dozens of classes in outdoor skills such as hunting and fishing, map and compass, how to preserve food, reading the landscape, and much, much more. There are four sessions (so you pick four classes) throughout the weekend. I took classes in Adirondack ecology, field dressing, taxidermy, and tree identification. It was incredible…
I’ve been camping and doing nothing in particular in northern Minnesota for the last week. It’s been a long time since I’ve travelled without a plan or itinerary and it feels really refreshing. I have a pretty low key life in general, but it often feels clenched and tight like a balled fist. What a relief it is to let everything go. I love the sense of freedom on the road. An alternate reality presents itself. I quickly forget about…
The desert is sparkling with bouquets of wildflowers in shades of salmon and sunshine, striking violet, soft white, and rich velvety red. Each day I notice a different kind of flower stretching toward the vast open sky, flourishing in the warmth of the sun with a flash of ephemeral beauty. It’s miraculous to witness these blooms springing out of the dusty, dry soil. I’ve been in southern UT for the past week, camping in and near Capitol Reef National Park. …
Watching birds in the ocean yesterday, I was struck by the connectedness of all things – the ocean, the sand, microbes, plankton, fish, people, all of it. I became aware of the universal consciousness, the divine thread that binds us all together. I watched the shore birds fluttering in the waves searching for fish and I thought, “Their life is my life, their suffering is my suffering, their pain is my pain, and their death is my death.” We are…
Last night while I was sleeping, I woke up very suddenly feeling exhausted and depleted. I felt strangely filled with an innate sense of knowledge and I thought to myself, “This is how the earth must feel.” I was so surprised by the clarity of this sensation even though there was some part of my logic-seeking brain that thought, “Don’t be ridiculous. The earth can’t FEEL anything.” In actuality, I think that is just the part of my brain that…