Wild, Authentic, Beautiful.

Some of the most beautiful moments in the jungle are those where its fragility and wildness reveals itself. Two of those such moments for me are rainstorms and sunsets. In these moments the jungle displays its colors and prowess in a magnificent spectacle that enthrals the senses. As it is the dry season, I have only been here for one rainstorm but it was incredible. The rain begins in a distant drizzle that sounds like the wind in the leaves. The noises are so similar in fact that one night I woke up to the sound and thought it must be pouring outside just to find it was nothing more than the wind. When the rain really starts it is though a tap has been turned on. It comes down in great sheets and runs off the roofs and leaves like a waterfall. The day it rained we were all sitting in the main station when it started, the spider monkeys close by on the roof. Stephanie told me they know when it is going to rain hours before it does and they like to come close to the station to take shelter. The rain in the jungle makes everything feel greener and opens all the senses at once. We rushed outside and danced barefoot, making our way towards the river. The smell of the earth was so intensely organic and alive and the air was crisp. It took no more than a minute to be completely drenched, my hair dripping down my back and mud between my toes. We made our way to the bank of the river where there is a big rope net to sit on and we watched as the water churned and brought waves to the bank. The surface of the water looked alive, like it was crawling with a million tiny creatures as the raindrops pierced the waves. 

The other moment that brings me a similar sense of vitality, one that happens far more frequently though its frequency does not diminish its beauty, is the sunsets. The sun sets over the river here, right where we can watch from the rope net. The sunset is an entire show here, with many spectacular acts. It begins as soon as the sun begins to dip in the sky around 4:30 pm, illuminating the canopy in a warm golden light. As the sunbeams begin to drop and enter the forest from a lower angle, rather than shining from straight above as they do in the day, new sections of the jungle are illuminated. Places that have been shaded by the broad leaves and thick overstory find themselves pierced with softer rays of golden light that make the leaves glow. Around 5:20 we make our way to the river and climb into the net to watch the main act. The sun sets quickly, slipping below the canopy on the opposite bank and sending brilliantly colored rays across the sky. The glowing jungle sparkles along the riverbank and the flowing water glitters right back. Hues of pink, purple, orange, and blue paint the sky in magnificent pictures that shift with the minutes as the light continues to change. By the time it hits 5:30 the sun is gone, leaving only the echoes of color across the sky. Bats begin to flutter above, taking advantage of all the bugs who emerge once the sun has dipped past the horizon. Their dark bodies dart quickly around us though it is never enough to quell the swarms of mosquitos who flock viciously towards us and chase us away from the riverbank. It is the price of watching the show as the riverbank at dusk is just about the worst the bugs can get and no layer of clothes or amount of bugspray can stop them. The grand finale waits another few hours before revealing itself, allowing a sufficient intermission for dinner and to hide from the bugs. The finale is the stars, the most spectacular I have ever seen by far. Growing up in the Rocky Mountains, going backpacking in the Indian Peaks Wilderness, I thought I had seen just about the best stars. Turns out they are nothing compared to here, where the hundreds of miles of wild jungle drown the ever-encroaching light pollution that is infiltrating nearly every wild space on earth. Here it feels that if you were to shout into the vast expanse of the sky it might just echo back to you. That if you stretched out your hand you just might be able to touch them, to swirl your arm through the milky way and draw new constellations with your fingertips. We watched a meteor shower one night from the top of the water tower – floating above the forest and its wild sounds and feeling so close to the vast expanse of space I felt transported as if to another dimension. 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

•