Today is the last day of camp and we are packing away all of our things. As the space we take up shrinks down to a small lost and found, we start to get an image of what Camp Myrtlewood will feel like when all trace of us is gone. As I discussed in my workshop on memory this session, our imagination often starts with the most vivid senses, usually sights. So we might think of the empty field, the hollowed out Lodge, or the couches of Forest Dell in a reasonable orientation. But the most striking change that comes to camp as we all leave is often the sense we ignore the most, which is sound.
Camper Lucy lead a workshop this session where participants sat in one spot and logged what they observed for 20 minutes. Each participant’s list was enormous, but as lists got compared they noticed that only a few key things were commonly observed and that most of the noted observations were unique to the viewer. This is the amazing power of being outdoors. Imagine yourself indoors and you may have a harder time with this exercise; Wall, rug, tile, photo, piano… but then you notice yourself having to stretch it; book #1, book #2, spice bottle #3, coffee mug #4.
It has been observed by smarter people than myself that being outdoors is good for our nervous system, but we are left speculating why that is. My contribution to the conversion is that it is a grounding experience to be pummeled by uncountable stimuli with which our brains can no longer pretend we can understand it all, or observe it all, or think about it all, leaving us with no option other than to just be and feel. However, in order to just be and feel we have to shield ourselves from stimuli, and most of that stimuli is sights and sounds. But if you were to imagine yourself now with all of camp departed, you are lying in the grass staring straight up, most of what is left is the sounds.
The main thing you will hear is wind and trees. It’s actually maybe a couple winds and tens of thousands of leaves, but your brain will consolidate it into one soft hissing static. So if you peek through that, you will get to the real song of the forest: the birds! I had spent a bit of time familiarizing myself with bird calls of New England just before camp, so I was very excited to start figuring out what lives at Camp Myrtlewood this year. The following is the list of species that show up at various times.
Stellar’s Jay
Stellar’s Jays are very rarely seen but too often heard. They have this ripping/tearing type of caw that is echoed through the often numerous birds repeating it. It’s not a pleasant sound, but it’s among the most common bird call you’ll hear out here.
Western Wood Pewee
These birds are incredibly cute and always look like they are smiling due to some light coloring on their beak. These birds are usually the one’s you’ll hear as the first bird in the morning. Birds kind of work on time schedules like this. The Pewee’s call is basically saying “Pewee!” but more in a way that is like “Pewee! Why did you have to go and do that?”
Chestnut Backed Chickadee
There are chickadee’s in most corners of the US. Out here in New England we have Black Capped. As you get closer to Florida you have the Carolina Chickadee. And in the PNW you have these more rugged kinds that look like they have a little viking coat on. As such, they don’t have any of the sing-song-y calls of those out east. They have the classic “chick-a-dee-dee-dee” where the the “chick-a…” are chirps and the “dee!” is a raspy nasally caw.
Chestnut Backed Chickadee Call
American Robin
Robin’s are everywhere and we see them often. They are brave, adaptable, and love hopping around in the grass. Their calls don’t stand out so much as they don’t have much of a pattern, but once you hear them you recognize them. Their calls are undoubtedly in the background of your everyday life. I like to describe their calls as “charps” like lower pitched chirps.
Brown Creeper / Cedar Waxwing
So I’m lumping these two together because despite them being two very different birds, the sounds they make are fairly similar. It’s this kind of very high piercing tone, the kind that resembles a really high pitched feedback of a microphone at a concert that makes the whole room block their ears. The only real difference is that a brown creeper is usually alone and waxwings hang out in groups. You can usually also look up and see a brown creeper hopping around the bark of a tree if you hear one.
Pileated Woodpecker / Northern Flicker
There are times when you are outside and all of a sudden you hear this bird call that make you sound like you are in a jungle. This is usually some sort of woodpecker, and at Camp Myrtlewood it’s usually a Pileated Woodpecker or Northern Flicker. Both have a sort of “kek-kek-kek-kek…” sound. Pileated is usually lower and more consistent. Flicker is higher pitched and varied. If you get to catch a glimpse of either of these, they are BEAUTIFUL.
Red Tailed Hawk / Red Shouldered Hawk
At various times, you’ll hear a loud “keeeeeer” or “kee-yer” that sounds like a some impressive bird of prey. You look around and can’t find them. Then staffer Heron tells you with a little smile on their face that it’s not actually a hawk and is actually just a Stellar’s Jay playing a prank on some squirrels.
Stellar’s Jay imitating Red Tailed Hawk
Stellar’s Jay imitating Red Shouldered Hawk
So as we leave camp behind, all these sounds hang behind. It was interesting to be so tuned into all these sounds this camp session. I’d walk around, hear an interesting call and then ask a camper “did you just hear that?” and they’d be confused at what I’m talking about. This is such a demonstration of how good our brains are at sorting out incomprehensible information. Most of the time, this is very good for us. However, for most of my life I’ve been frustrated on hikes about my tendency to look down and not around. “You are in nature! Take it in!” I would try to remind myself with a slight tinge of guilt. I started teaching myself to identify the sounds of the world around me and now I can’t help but look up!
–Christian Holden, Advisor