I still find temperate rainforests so eerie. They seem possessive of light and yet repel it. The tones in the rainforest are saturated with greens, reds, and browns- blue is not very present.

Our university program spent the weekend up north on the island at a cabin that slept approximately 20 souls. We arrived, armed with whatever provisions and beverages we chose. I brought a bathing suit, despite it being mid-October, because rumors that people jumped in the lake had reached my ears.

I don’t know these people well. We’re together for two years but that hasn’t stopped me from not knowing these folks in any real capacity. That quickly changed as we gathered around the campfire, eating hotdogs, kielbasa, and asking each other questions and drinking what we’d brought. The caretaker told us about the black bears that had been frequenting the area and we were grateful they had not been seen in the last few days.

The cabin was cozy, full of conversation, and new people. I did jump in the lake sometime after sundown, and it was blissfully cold. I wanted to stay in the water for longer. We all eventually crawled into the loft and zipped ourselves into our sleeping bags.

I woke up at 7 am. I couldn’t sleep. I didn’t want to get up but there wasn’t a point to lying there awake in the now-warm cabin. I grabbed my boots and camera, hat and scarf, and went outside. It was raining, a steady drizzle, but the thick canopy meant that I didn’t get as wet as I could have once I entered the woods.

The woods were so quiet. The amount of vegetation paired with the rain meant that I couldn’t hear very well. When I stumbled upon the clean, glowing white skeleton of a young male deer, I realized I shouldn’t be far into the woods alone, especially without bear spray (I left mine in Montana, and have not purchased any here yet). I took a couple rolls of film in the woods, the low light no doubt making some of them shaky and unsure. I meandered to the dock,

Getting back to the cabin, we made an enormous breakfast and started the second day. Unfortunately, I had to go back to the city, and regrettably packed my sleeping bag and campfire-smelling clothes. What a good, odd, fun 18 hours.