Nature Journaling: More Than Sketching
Does the idea of sketching in a nature journal fill you with anxiety? What comes to mind when you hear the term ‘nature journaling’? For most of us, a nature journal brings thoughts of perfectly sketched or painted landscapes of beautiful mountain vistas with perfect birds and flowers spread through its pages, right?
However, drawing, painting, and sketching are just one way to record your interactions with nature in your journal. Let’s take a closer look behind the scenes of nature journaling!
Why Keep A Nature Journal?
While there are probably as many reasons as there are people keeping journals, here are just a few of the more compelling reasons to make nature journaling a regular part of your life:
- Sketching practice — many people using nature journaling to improve their drawing and sketching skills
- Identifying species — keeping a journal can help you learn to identify wildflowers, fungus, trees, birds, . . . you name it.
- Observational skills — looking at something long enough to record details of the way it looks, how it smells, or what it sounds like has the side-effect of sharpening your skills of observation
- Deepening your connection to nature — This, for me, is the very best reason to keep a nature journal!
The Role of Sketching and Painting in Nature Journaling
Even though there are many more ways to interact with your journal, sketching certainly has its place. I urge you, even if you think you can’t draw, to take a stab at sketching in your nature journal from time to time. The practice of looking at something long enough to try and draw it — to capture its details, forces you to notice things that you otherwise would have overlooked.
For example: I was recently sitting on a bench sketching a landscape. A tiny, fluffy, tan seed landed on my shirt. I have seen these and similar seeds floating around, all my life. They are ordinary because they are so plentiful; but since I had my journal and pencil in hand, I decided to sketch the little seed. As I looked closely enough to draw it, I noticed this tiny little hook-like projection at the bottom. Huh, I’d never notice that before! It makes perfect sense — this seed flies around and ‘hooks’ itself onto another plant, a bird, a dog, . . . and spreads this plant far away from its parent.
What plant did this tiny seed come from, I wondered? I made that notation in my journal next to the seed and finished drawing the landscape. I intended to do some research about the little seed at some point. Then one evening I was watching a rerun of NCIS and there was the seed! It stuck in my mind because of the sketch, and I learned that it was the seed from a sycamore tree.
The moral of this long story: when we draw things we are unfamiliar with and write about them, they stick in our brains. The more we learn about nature, the more in love we become with her!
Nature Journaling: Beyond the Sketch
Don’t want to, or can’t draw? Or perhaps, you just aren’t in the mood to sketch. No worries! Words can be a powerful way of nature journaling and making those important connections. Sketching tends to keep us locked into a visual connection as well as a scientific, observational mode; so we may miss other important things going on around us.
Take out your journal — close your eyes for a few moments. Use your other senses! What can you hear? Birdsong? Can you describe that song with words or letters? Is it melodic, trilling, harsh? Now open your eyes. Can you spot the bird that is making the sound? Try to identify the bird.
Repeat the same exercise using your other senses. What can you smell? Turn a rock or piece of bark around in your hands. What does it feel like? If you are certain about the identification of a plant — taste it.
Record all of your findings in your nature journal. Write a poem, . . . or a song. Here’s a great exercise — how would you describe a particular bird or plant to a blind person? They still have 4 senses! It’s not as easy as it sounds — give it a shot!
Play around with your journal. Have fun. Make nature journaling your ‘happy place’. Go beyond the scientific observation. Feel the nature all around you. Get to know her on multiple levels! All of these fun exercises will absolutely deepen your connection to nature and with yourself.
Helpful Resources
Need a little help identifying what you find in the field? There are tons of available resources out there. Check your local library for guides on identifying everything from mushrooms, wildflowers, birds, mammals, trees, . . .
In the field, Cornell University has a plethora of free resources on birding. Try their eBird and Merlin apps on your phone to help you identify birds and their songs in the field. eBird lets you track birds that you’ve spotted and in turn helps track bird migrations and bird counts. Find eBird here. Find eBird and Merlin apps at your app store.
Make sure to check out this post for a list of supplies and also the mental health benefits of nature journaling.
