The bog monster

OK, so this is a crazy picture. Let me explain....it all began on a field trip to the bog in the afternoon. I love the bog, and if you have never had the opportunity to squish through one of these amazing worlds of land, water, and vegetation you are missing out on an experience. Bizarre other worldly plants and animals and an undulating carpet of moss rippling under your feet and floating on the water. Carnivorous picture plants and sticky sundews waiting for hapless insect victims. Your toes sinking into a wet carpet of springy spaghnum moss and peat. Frogs croaking and just maybe, one of the local eagles soaring up high above the fir trees ringing the opening in the forest around you.

This is a shot of one of my favorite and most eccentric students. Orin, who has a knack for going over board and diving in head first. No pun intended here yet. On the way to the bog, stepping through dense tangled swamp forest and sucking holes of mud Orin stepped in all the way up to his thighs and decided to go all the way. Handstand face first from into the muck. Too much fun, this guy makes me laugh out loud and truly lived up to the legend and mystique of the bog monster. I settled on this one because the image was just too bizarre, though you should have seen some of the others too....oh my

Squish, squash we go. Undulating on a sea of moss. Getting muddy and wet up to our eyes, diving head first into ecology. And it suits me!