This morning was our first at the Peñas Blancas field camp, a 50 meter2 tarp-covered clearing within “Dracula Youth Reserve,” the site we have been fundraising to protect through Reserva all year. Raised above a nearby stream (our water source while at camp) and 20 meters below a recovering pasture, our field camp provided the perfect combination of running water, elevated clear space for drone flying, and breathtaking views of the surrounding pristine cloud forest.
Read MoreAfter staying indoors for over six months because of the Covid-19 Pandemic, I could hardly believe my eyes when I opened them on our first morning in Carchi. Callie, Pearson, Javier, and I had each been given our own rooms in the beautiful wooden construction of Casa Dracula, a luxury that we would only have for this first night of our expedition.
Read MoreWhile our first day got off to an early start (5 am departure from Quito), it took until the early afternoon before it fully settled in that I was actually in a foreign country again. After all, trips to the grocery store had become rare in 2020, let alone expeditions to far off lands.
Read MoreWhat does nature mean to me? What doesn’t nature mean to me? Nature is my everything. Nature is my sanctuary, my playground, my study, my place of physical and mental rebirth, my place of infinite knowledge and discovery. Nature is my second mother. Nature is where I was raised, where I was nurtured, where I learned the way the world works, and where I found myself in some of the greatest moments of living so far.
Read MoreThis particular drama starts with an ant. Or does it start with a mushroom—or is that where it ends? For cyclical mother nature, ends and beginnings don't really exist, and so I will start where I like, and that is with a spore.
Read MoreA good night’s sleep in proper beds meant that Callie, Carter, and I awoke feeling refreshed on Friday, ready for our long drive back to Quito. But the general mood at Dracula House that morning was different to what it had been previously—Javier was tense, keen to get us out of Carchi province as early as possible to ensure our journey wasn’t compromised by any more blockaded roads or intensifying political demonstrations. We hurried to eat breakfast and gather together all of our belongings—clothes, camera kit, and all—that were strewn messily about the place.
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