Are You Afraid of the Dark?

“To go in the dark with a light is to know the light.
To know the dark, go dark. Go without sight,
And find that the dark, too, blooms and sings,
And is traveled by dark feet and dark wings.”
– Wendell Berry, To Know the Dark
 
   When I started leading night hikes for middle school students, I didn’t realize the extreme reactions I would get when I confirmed we would be walking into the woods without a light. Most of the students were completely terrified, with the majority of reactions being a horrified look on their faces or a “heck no, I’m not doing that” from the more outspoken of the crowd.

   Eventually I started to think about how I could introduce this idea in a more gentle way, which led to me starting with the above poem (thanks to a lesson plan from the Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center in Minnesota) and asking the students for their real thoughts and feelings about walking in the woods at night without a light. Almost every student said they felt really scared, especially of being “attacked by an animal.” Being that most animals are quite afraid of humans, this was unlikely, but it always made me think, why are we so afraid of being attacked by something in the dark? And if we had a light, would that really protect us better from a potential attack?

   It turns out we may have good reason to be naturally afraid of the dark. We are creatures that rely on our sight to take us through the world, and being left without this sense can be quite unnerving. Many people fear the dark because they believe they cannot see, but our eyes do actually have the ability to adapt to the dark. As soon as we step into darkness our eyes begin the process of helping us see better at night. Our eyes are made up of two types of cells, cones and rods. Cones help us see color and detail, and rods help us see our world in black and white. At night, we aren’t able to detect color and fine details in the same way, but our rod cells adapt wonderfully in low light conditions, giving us the ability to see more of the world around us.

   It’s important to note that although hiking at night with a light can still be fun (did you know some spiders have eyeshine?), our vision will not adapt in the same way in the presence of white light (although red light does preserve night vision). Light is responsible for the breakdown of an important chemical in our eyes called rhodopsin. In the dark, this chemical regenerates and assists with our night vision.

   The nocturnal world of nature is mysterious and exhilarating! Many critters in the Poconos only come out after the sun goes down. At the right time of year, you might see bats in action, which are arguably some of the coolest and most important animals on the planet.* I can also say from my own nighttime adventures that hearing an owl call from a nearby perch is one of the most hauntingly beautiful sounds I’ve ever experienced. For proof of the cool stuff that happens after the sun goes down, take a peek at some of our awesome video footage of the animals we see in the Tannersville Cranberry Bog after dark h​ere!
   You can also learn a lot about the ways eyes adjust to the dark and even how our eyes “play tricks” on us at night. Try these fun activities outside after dark with some friends to help you understand! (Activities adapted from Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center Night Hike Lesson Plan)

1. Ghost Face – A few minutes into your night hike after your eyes have started to adjust, stand face to face with a friend. Stare into their face and count to 30. If it’s dark enough, you’ll notice their face will start to twist and warp, giving them a ghostly appearance. To make it go away, try looking at them using your peripheral vision.
2. Crayons – As mentioned above, human eyes aren’t great at seeing color at night. Take a couple of different colors of crayons with you for your hike. After some time spent in the dark, take out the crayons and try to guess the colors! Once you’re back in the light, see if you got any right.
3. Candle Stare/Pirate Eye – Try this one at the end of your hike, before getting back into any light. This will show you just how well your eyes have adjusted to the dark and how easily light will ruin your night vision. You will need a flashlight or you can use a candlestick and matches if you prefer. Close one eye and put your hand over that eye to keep out all light. Keep this one eye covered for the duration of the activity. Light the candlestick or turn on the flashlight, and stare at it for 1-2 minutes with the eye that is not covered (you can tell a story in the meantime). At the end of 1-2 minutes, turn out/blow out the light. Open the eye that has been closed, and wink back and forth between the exposed eye and the covered eye. You should see a significant difference in how well you can see out of both eyes. 

   Still feeling unsure? Just know that I’ve even been able to convince teenagers that night hikes are “pretty cool” once they tried some of the activities above and experienced some of the mysteries of the dark.  I hope these activities and this information spark your interest in a night hike. I truly encourage you to explore the natural world after dark. If you’re brave enough to “go dark,” try to do it on a familiar trail when the night is clear, maybe even with a full moon. Fresh snow on the ground makes the world even brighter! You’ll be amazed at how much you can see.

*For more on bats and how cool they are, check out www.merlintuttle.org and the “Chiropterology” episode of the podcast,“Ologies,” by Alie Ward!

References

1. “How long does it take for our eyes to fully adapt to darkness?” by Dr. Christopher S. Baird. Accessed from: https://wtamu.edu/~cbaird/sq/2013/08/09/how-long-does-it-take-our-eyes-to-fully-adapt-to-darkness/
2. “How Eyes See at Night.” Accessed from: https://coopervision.com/blog/how-eyes-see-night
3. “Night Vision: Rhodopsin Seeing in the Dark!” Accessed from: https://cimioutdoored.org/rhodopsin/
4. Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center Night Hike Lesson Plan. Accessed from: https://wolf-ridge.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/lesson_wolfridge_night_hike.pdf

-Josie Bonham-Marino, Environmental Educator