Naturalist Essay

My walk consisted of going from my apartment on Southport and Fullerton down Fullerton to the Quad, through the Quad and back down Belden back towards my apartment. The walk down Fullerton had small amounts of “green” areas. There were some trees and spots of grass but not as much as I encountered later. Walking through the Quad there was a nice open lot with numerous trees and a lot of grass. The walk back down Belden had alot “green” coverage. I enjoyed the larger trees scattered around the sidewalks and next to luxury houses. There was grass along the whole walk between the street and sidewalk. There were large trees along Belden that I didn’t see on Fullerton.

The walk got me to notice more about my surrounding area but not much. I normally would walk to class along Belden because it is a quieter and more scenic view than walking down Fullerton.

When I walk along the “greener path” I feel more relaxed and comfortable. I get out of the frantic of everyday life and can relax.

On a daily basis I interact with nature because of its impact on my mood. I enjoy looking away from the buildings and concrete to the trees and other natural organisms.

I think my walk was more like Kuo’s article. I feel that nice homes of Lincoln Park contributed to a sense of communityI felt. There were kids playing outdoors, neighbors conversing, and I felt very safe. Muir’s article reminded me of when I travel to my cabin in northern Michigan, where I really enjoy the outdoors and relax in the beauty surrounding me there.

The first writing I read by Kuo talked about how “greenness” of an inner-city neighborhood can have a positive effect on the community. The article talked about how more trees and grass would lead to more active kids, less civil disturbances, and the residents to feel safer in their own community and numerous other benefits. The second article by Muir talked of the beauty of nature. The man went on an overnight hike into the canyon and he talks of the beauty of nature.

Naturalist Essay

Courtney Carlstrom

Environmental Science Paper

Every morning I try to go for a run outside if weather permits. I have a five-mile route both downtown and in Barrington (the suburb I live in) in which I try to do six days a week. Because I was home over the weekend, I chose to write about the route in Barrington. I can not even count the amount of times I have ran this route, however, I have never really noticed my natural surroundings due to the fact that my ipod is usually blasting. I also tend to get lost in my head and thoughts while I run. I thought it would be interesting to look at something I am so immune to in a different aspect, which is why I chose to write about this specific route. I left my ipod at home, left my house, and began my run.

My warm up is a walk down my street, I live in the town of Barrington where homes are average sized, and houses are relatively close together. There are many trees down my street and the grass on everyone’s property is well kept. I thought about how Kuo made the connection of trees and a friendly neighborhood. I would say that my neighborhood is relatively friendly. I saw kids playing outside while on my run, which was another thing that Kuo spoke about. The scenery that consumed the majority of my run was homes, trees, grass, and flowers. There is a pond in Barrington that I ran passed as well, however, it is not very large. It was nice taking notice of my surroundings and really just appreciating the area I live in while I was out for my run.

After I cam home from my run I thought about how I think about nature and how nature interacts with me on a daily basis. I looked in my backyard and saw an arrangement of bushes, trees, and even still flowers (at this time of the year). I realized that when I wake up in the morning, the fact that I wake up to such a beautiful area is something that automatically puts me in a good mood. I really began to appreciate how lucky I am to live in such a beautiful town as far as nature goes. I know that when I am active outside, I am generally in a better mood than when I stay indoors.

Growing up, we lived by the Fox Lake, so playing games with the other neighborhood kids are memories that fill my mind when referring back to my childhood. Being able to enjoy the outdoors is something that almost shaped me growing up. I thought about how my life would be different if I did not have the privilege of being raised in an area surrounded by well-kept nature. I think the perspective I have on live in general would be different and less creative. I almost feel like a child who can’t play outside or at least enjoy the view of a natural landscapes life must be dull or sad. Just having the ability do to things and be active outdoors is something that has presented itself throughout my life and how I have always interacted with nature.

I think that my interaction with nature was more like the writing of Kuo. For some reason, I kept making references of his study while on my walk. I immediately connected the smile on my neighbor’s faces to the trees and green area. I would say that my experience was more similar to the writing of Kuo than Muir. I found Muir’s writing to be descriptive more than actually looking at the social effect that nature has. Overall I thought it was extremely interesting to take a moment and reflect on how my natural surroundings affect me and the life I live.

Naturalist Essay.

Although this assignment required us to embark upon a 45-minute nature walk, I decided to extend my usual 20-minute commute to work in the Loop to a 45-minute nature commute. I walked around my block – observing the modest variety of trees and flowers that flourished the neighborhood. And as I boarded the brown line heading towards the Loop from the Armitage stop, I analyzed how the amount of greenery digressed from a mildly flourished northside neighborhood to a metropolitan madhouse of toxic emissions. Before the Sedgwick stop, there were still a couple of quaint parks here and there that accommodated a lush garden or collections of trees, however, after the Chicago stop, there were mainly massive herds of cars and office buildings. I departed at the Quincy stop in the heart of noise, light, and garbage related pollution. Usually I don’t have the time to notice vast difference between neighborhoods. This past weekend, I went home to the suburbs. Although the suburbs of Chicago are still extremely bustling and populated with
Overall, I felt that my nature commute was somewhat of a combination between the informational, scientific writings of Frances Kuo and the naturalist, artistic writings of John Muir. On one hand, Muir adhered to a more philosophical approach to observing nature. In addition to his creative observations of nature, Muir also stated that “there is an all manufactures of Nature something essentially coarse which can and must be eradicated by human culture” (Muir 27), which encouraged the interaction of human culture with Nature. On the other hand, Kuo focused on the relationship between urban communities and the presence of trees in a more concrete method as opposed to Muir.
In saying this, I learned that it is necessary to observe your environmental surroundings from more than one perspective. And in turn, human culture can and must maintain a relationship with Nature in order to contribute to the health of our biological and social ecosystem in Chicago.

Naturalist Essay

I chose to walk near my house at a local park for my nature walk. Behind the park there is an area where there were railroad tracks a while ago but not it is just trees and bushes. There is an entrance to the area with trees that I went through which led me onto the old railroad tracks. I walked through this area and it felt as if I wasn't any where near a city anymore. There were a lot of trees, bushes, and grass. Some parts of the area even had flowers that I had not seen before. It was also very quite in the area because it wasn't close to any main streets and not much noise from the neighborhood was heard from there. The entire walk was very peaceful and relaxing because not only did I get away from the city but there was silence which was very relaxing. When I walk around my neighborhood, which is rarely, I tend not to notice all the ways nature is involved in the environment. The main thing I notice is the houses and the cars but when you pay attention you see all the things around the house and in public areas. I like being outside in nature because it helps you relax and forget about many of the worries you might have. Usually when I go back home overseas to Montenegro I spend a lot of time "in" nature because our house is on a mountainside away from the main cities. It is very calming and relaxing, because I do things that I probably wouldn't do if I was in a big city, such as explore the outdoors. I think we all interact nature on a daily basis. Everyone breathes and trees help that greatly. We also have a small garden in our backyard and the vegetables that grow there are eaten by my family and me. I think my interaction was more closely related to Muir, because during my walk I just tried to lay back and relax while taking the beauty of nature in. It was very peaceful and the area I walked through didn't have a lot to do with the town I live in because it isn't very visible from the neighborhoods and many people don't even walk through it. Kuo's writing seems to look at the affect of nature on neighborhood's and seems to have a more scientific point of view. Both writing's work but it depends on how you look at nature while you are outdoors which helps you relate to one or the other.

My nature walk

During my nature walk I took a closer look at the nature around me. It was still in an urban setting, and little did I know that there was still a fresh, green environment surrounding me. There were no exotic plants or animals, no tall forests, but there was old trees with character. I walked down Halsted, Armitage, and Belden. When I was thinking about where I was going to take my walk I had thought of this man made lily pond that is the most relaxing, get away place in the city, and on my way I had thought that its not the nature that had intended to ponder. It was made by human hands, and the nature on the three streets I chose were mostly already there before we came in, or placed themselves. Because I do not watch the trees or nature when I walk to get some where. But I looked very closely today. When I woke up I took a good look at the huge maple which I never do. I know its there and its pretty, but its beautiful! I have never taken a second to enjoy it, and I am glad I did today. I noticed that there were a lot of trees with character and flowers that I didn't think were possible to grow in Chicago like hibiscus flowers. Im not saying that it was the first time I saw the trees outside, but it was the first time that I took it in and appreciated it. I love nature, I enjoy it no matter where I am. My room is full of it, my garden is my meditation spot, I just can not get enough of it, and its great because I'm constantly surrounded by it. I believe my walk was more of Muir's interacts because I mediated on it and I went into a state of peace. "Muir valued nature for its spiritual and transcendental qualities." (Wikipedia). The two naturalists differ, but I agree with both, because Kuo says that if there is nature in communities and neighborhoods then there will be less of a crime rate. I agree because I believe that nature is soothing and is a companion to humans. Muir believes strongly in conservation of wilderness like as he did for Yosemite Valley. They both have amazing ideas and studies and I agree with both, but I feel like my walk has more to do with Kuo's writing.

Naturalis Essay - Katie Fraser

Katie Fraser
ENV 101-102
Sept. 20 2009
Naturalist Essay

For my nature walk I chose to walk from my neighborhood, Wrigleyville, to North Avenue Beach. I walked east on Waveland to Halsted, then walked south on Halsted till North, then walked east again towards the lake.
Along my walk I was exposed to many different elements of nature. While walking through my neighborhood there was grass that lined the sidewalks as well as many trees. This continued while walking through Lincoln Park. I also passed Oz Park which is a large area of grassy fields. When at the beach I was exposed to the sand and water of the lake shore. Even while walking down the more urbanized part of Halsted I was exposed to elements like the sun and wind. Originally, I intended just to walk down to the lake from my house, which would have given me little differentiation, since there is no beach or many dilapidated buildings, so I am glad I changed my route so I could experience many different settings.
While on my walk there were a few things that significantly stood out to me, that I may have missed on any normal day. One major thing that I noticed was how much it was beginning to feel like fall. I took a greater interest in the colors of the leaves on the trees around my house and I noticed many more of them on the ground. I also noticed how early it got dark as I made my way back, and how while it was a warm day the temperature dropped drastically at dusk, which happens around fall. While at the beach, I also took note how it was still such a beautiful day to be outside, but that there was a bitter sweetness to the day as it was most likely the last beach day of the year. It was fall, as the sun didn't stay very high for very long and offered less heat while up.
I also took more notice of the drastic change that takes place on Halsted. While walking from Wrigleyville to Lincoln Park many streets are lined with trees and grass. Eventually one will run into Oz Park, which is made up of fields as well as playgrounds and baseball fields. However, after Armitage till about North Avenue, there is hardly any of this. The streets become more worn and there are significantly more buildings. These buildings also look more rugged and beat up. This remains until one hits Old Town, which is right at North Avenue. I actually passed a playground that was all on cement and thought about how different it was from the one a few blocks north at Oz Park.
While at the beach I took much more notice to the trash in the beach. While it is generally a well taken care of beach, I did find cigarette butts, beer caps, and glass in the sand. From a glance, the beach looks taken care of, but upon further inspection one can see that it isn’t. When I pass the beach I generally don’t think about the trash hidden underneath the sand, I usually just long to be lying out under the sun enjoying the last few rays of summer. I found that this remained true even when I was aware of the trash. With the trash in the sand, I still thought about how fortunate I am to live in a city that offers such beautiful lakeshore community property for its residents.
I enjoyed this walk because I generally don't think too much about the nature around me. The most prominent way I view the nature around me is in the weather. The weather affects me greatly as I use public transportation and walk places. I have a love/hate relationship with it. While I like it to be sunny and warm, I curse when it’s too hot because I get sweaty and my hair gets messy. I also dislike it when it rains, but enjoy the coolness it offers. I like when it cools down, but I always wish I could slow the coming of winter. I can say, however, that during the summer and the first few weekends that I have been back in the city, and it is beautiful outside, I often feel guilty for sitting inside. I try and make myself go for a walk or at least sit outside. This summer especially every spare minute I had would be spent outside if it were nice. Since I worked a lot and wasn’t able to be outside as much as I wanted to, I would often sit in my back yard and read if there was no other way to be outside. That way I could at least catch the last few rays before the sun set after work, or I could be outside without having to go to the beach alone. When I moved back I began to take my roommates dog for walks in order to be outside. I enjoyed being able to be outside this Saturday, when I did my walk, because I didn’t want to feel as if I was missing out on one of the last summer days.
When I actually am immersed in nature, that is go outside because I want to spend time outside, my feelings about nature don’t necessarily change, but my emotions do. I tend to be a lot more relaxed. On those gorgeous sunny days when I sit in the quad and listen to music, or take a walk, I feel like I’m the only one experiencing the moment. That the day, and the sun, are all mine. I feel as though I am savoring something special. Some moment of my life, whether it is soaking up summer vacation or just one more moment of my life in Chicago, it’s something that will stay with me, something I can be nostalgic about come fall.. I am happy and relaxed, and feel as though I am truly thinking and living rather than getting bogged down by things I feel I should be thinking about or should be doing. It is a healthy way to forget.
While I would classify my interactions with nature as more of a Muir perspective, this particular walk matched Kuo’s writings more. Kuo discusses more about the social aspect that trees and nature can bring to a community. I found this to be very true in my neighborhood. Kuo uses trees as an example of a entity that a community can revolve around. While the area I live in does have a good amount of trees for a city neighborhood, and they do play a part in the social aspect of Wrigleyville, I don’t think they created the community. I view Wrigley Field as one of the main reasons that Wrigelyville has such a strong sense of community and feeling of safety. However, because of this sense of community, trees, bushes and grass were planted, which only furthered this feeling of a “defensible place,” as Kuo says.
Since my neighborhood has nice grassy areas, many people are out on the weekends, or nice days, running or jogging. I see the sense of “casual social contact” (p4 Kuo) that Kuo talks about when people run with their dogs and others stop to pet them. There are brief interactions simply because one cannot ignore all the people around, especially during Cubs games.
Kuo also dicusses how bringing trees to neighborhoods makes residents feel like it is a shared space and they have some part in it. Thus, they want to take better care of it. I see this with Wrigely, as no one wants to be the person who vandalized the field. I also see this sense of protection that Kuo claims trees bring. He says that once the space feels communal, people often tend to be more on the lookout for strangers. I see this in my neighborhood because many people are out late at night too making it harder for strangers to do harm, and the field is constantly being monitored.
I also saw this when I was on Halsted. The area that I walked through that had very few trees, also seemed to be an area that wasn’t taken care of. The buildings seemed more run down, I mentioned the concrete park, and it was definitely an area I wouldn’t want to be in after dark.
Kuo’s writings wouldn’t generally correlate to how I view nature, as I have mentioned before. His writings were a in-depth look at other studies done about how trees impacted neighborhoods, and then a discussion on what that means for urbanized areas. This piece was more scientifically based and from a more logical place. Muir’s writings were very much from an emotional place. Muir writes with a literary style, very narrative like, where he describes vivid nature scenes and the his reactions to the world around him. He isn’t picking apart individual pieces of nature and studying the effects, like Kuo, he is exploring the grandeur of it all. Yet, both paint an equally interesting picture of the effect nature can have on human beings.

nature walk

I chose to take a forty-five minute walk around my apartment in Lincoln Park. It was an opportunity for me to familiarize myself with the new neighborhood and encounter “nature”. While I was on my walk, I passed several trees and patches of grass but nothing too spectacular. I also saw shrubbery and a small tomato garden. One apartment had a little flower garden that was filled with exotic flowers. While I was taking this walk, I noticed that there were many stores and apartments but a few number of trees. My neighborhood had a couple flower and fruit garden, but besides the few gardens in people’s yards, there were none anywhere else. The roads and sidewalks were surrounded by a couple grass patches and/or rock patches. The article really opened my eyes to urban “nature”. When I think about nature I picture fields of flowers and forest filled with trees. I imagine a serene and beautiful place. However, when I am outside “in” nature, I get a reality check. I realize that the images I have can only be seen in certain places. I also realize that nature has changed and that it is slowly but surely diminishing. In urban areas especially, the beauty of nature that I imagine in my head is very much different from what I see everyday while walking to class. I interact with nature when I run at the birds that are sitting in a bush, or when I play at a park. Nature interacts with me on a daily basis by the weather outside. Sometimes the weather will be nice and sunny and other days it’ll be dark and rainy. I also interact with nature on a daily basis when I breathe. The trees and plants create oxygen for me to breathe in and my body creates carbon dioxide for the plants when I breathe out. Nature and I interact in many ways that I don’t even know. However, there are times when I interact with nature in bad ways. An example could be when I liter or when I pick flowers. I destroy nature and prevent it from doing what it needs to do. I believe my nature walk described Kuo’s writing because he describes nature in urban areas. I have witnessed firsthand what green space can do for people. I live in Naperville, IL and both my neighbors and I have yards and we have come to be good friends. I do believe it is because of the yard and the activities our families do outside that allows for us to interact with one another. However, in my apartment in the city, there is no yard or green space, and this has prevented me from getting to know any of the neighbors. I do not talk with any of them and I have no opportunity to really interact with any of them. The walk around my neighborhood helped me to reflect on Kuo’s writing about the importance of green space. The difference between Kuo’s writing and Muir’s writing was that Kuo describes and proves the importance of green space and nature in urban areas. While Muir is writing about a beautiful scenic environment. He is telling a story, whereas, Kuo is writing a research paper on the benefits of green space. It is two different writing styles and both authors are talking about two different environments. However, they both are talking about nature and the positive things that it brings to the earth. Overall, the readings opened up my eyes to nature that I had never really considered. I learned a lot and am now more observant when walking to class.