June 2025: A Night Under the Stars

Hear me out: tents are little hotels you can take anywhere.

In this month’s issue:

• I’ve been asking you to go outside. And now, I’m asking you to sleep there, too

• The summer solstice is once again upon us. Here’s how to celebrate

• Connect with your inner ogre to find these carnivorous plants

Plus a few other nature notes.

Like clockwork, summer has arrived. Frankly, if there were any time of the year I could skip writing an issue of Outdoor Humans, it would be June. With the longer days and warming weather, it’s easy to find yourself doing something outside without my monthly list of helpful ideas. (But I’m so glad you’re here!)

Yet, I find summer is such a rush, rolling out from May’s graduations and barbecues, packed with vacations, birthday parties, and adventures until September surprises us with its return. Before you know it, you’ve spent the entire season moving from place to place without much relaxing time under the sun. So in June — which just so happens to be National Great Outdoors Month — I urge you to be slightly intentional with your time by booking a few regular moments out in nature.

As a moderately Type A person, I thrive on a schedule — but I’m not saying you have to pencil “go outside” in your planner. Intentionally interacting with the outdoors for some people may mean taking a weekly 2-mile hike. For others, it’s spending twilight around a fire pit after a long day of work and shuttling children to camp. Perhaps it’s quiet morning tea on your front porch, or remembering to consistently refill your hummingbird feeders, or spontaneously pausing to watch goofy teenage squirrels claw around a tree. Reading outdoors in a cushy lounge chair while your children scream in the background, or challenging yourself to identify a new backyard bird each week count, too.

Whatever way you choose to connect with nature this summer, my hope for you is that it’s meaningful and gives you a little breather. Life’s hard enough for so many of us lately, and you deserve a summer that helps you shine.

How to Spend One Really Great Night in the Woods

I love camping. I’ve tried to pinpoint what exactly about it makes me return to the woods over and over again. Is it enjoying the quiet mornings when you roll out of your tent for a cup of tea, just listening to the birds as they greet the day? Maybe hiking all afternoon and returning back to camp for a hearty stew? Or sitting around a glowing fire well into the the night, feasting on dessert?

Perhaps it’s feeling one step closer to being a true Baba Yaga-like creature of the woods. Or, it could be the snacks, which have a perpetual hold on me. Big shrug!

Sometimes camp is deep in the woods, sometimes camp is a manicured campground. There are pros and cons to both types of camping locations, but generally, camp variety is a good thing.

I know camping’s not for everyone. I get some looks when I meet new folks who are shocked at how much time I actively spend in the woods or trying to get back into them. It reminds me that not everyone has had a great experience sleeping in a tent. What about a redo?

June kicks off The Great American Campout, an annual summer campaign started by the National Wildlife Federation back in 2004. It’s a simple idea: encourage people to go camping for one night to see what nature has to offer. They might just fall in love with the woods and turn into stewards of the land themselves — or at least have a greater appreciation for the outdoors.

Listen, I’ll be honest. It would be a lie to say every camping trip I’ve ever been on has been amazing (cue the montage of soaking wet tent and sleeping bag in the Smoky Mountains, forgotten bug spray in the deep woods, a nearby camper leaving their RV generator running all night, and a camping companion forgetting all the food). But going out there gave me a chance to really see the Milky Way in complete darkness, to experience the thrill of butterfly swarms in the backcountry, and the sense of achievement that came with launching my own bear bag high up in a tree despite being 5’0” and generally unathletic.

Things that are both cute and sort of crazy: camping with babies and camping with pups. Both are possible, both are very fun. It's just about knowing something will not go as planned, and that's okay.

Intrigued but hesitant? I say go for it. And to support your interest in testing out your new camping hobby, I share with you five tips for having a really great night in the woods.

1. Venture out close to home. You don’t have to go far to have a good time. Prepping for a night at camp can be a little overwhelming — you’re finding a sleeping bag, planning meals and packing a cooler, and learning to set up a tent. Keep it simple by staying within 30 minutes of home. This gives you more time to get your campsite set up just how you like it before the sun goes down, and if catastrophe strikes, you can always leave!

2. Keep it simple. Seriously. Don’t get bogged down with a Pinterest board. There are a ton of lists out there that will have you pack everything under the sun into your car for a basic overnight camp. Start with the essentials: shelter (aka a tent), a way to make a fire, bug spray, a light source, and food and water. Build from there. (Some beginning campers don’t even cook at camp, and you don’t have to either — pack sandwiches or pick up a pizza.)

3. Understand that a raccoon will be there. I’m going to be honest with you: there will be at least one raccoon, and it will attempt to steal something. Bags of marshmallows are a top choice. What does this mean for you? Keep food items locked away in your vehicle (never in your tent), and avoid leaving trash out. Because it will be torn open and strewn everywhere come morning.

4. Be weather aware. In the days leading up to any campout, I’m watching the weather. At this stage of camping, I tend to go despite rain or uncomfortable temps, though I’m not at all suggesting that for first-time campers. Getting soaked or sweating profusely on your first camping trip does not typically inspire returns.

5. Always have dessert. This is a non-negotiable. Camp dessert is a lil treat that is possibly the best part of the experience. Plus, a good dessert fixes everything that goes wrong: a fight with tent poles, grumpy kids, and getting back to camp late after a too-long hike.

You’ve got this, Outdoor Humans! Let me know in the comments how your first camp goes!

Three more ideas for spending time with the natural world this month

1. 🫙 Make a jar of mulberry jelly. Check out my guide for harvesting mulberries this month, which includes a beginner-friendly jelly making recipe. Your taste buds will thank you.

2. 🌞 Honor the sun’s longest day. The year’s longest day for the Northern Hemisphere arrives June 20, bringing with it the astronomical start of summer. A few ideas to celebrate: a yoga-inspired stretch, watching the sunrise align with Stonehenge (no flights required), or watching twilight slip away around a fire pit.

3. 🥾 Put some respect on that trail’s name. Spend June 7 on a favorite path or new-to-you trail in honor of National Trails Day. Visit the American Hiking Society to take the official pledge to leave each outdoor space you visit better than you found it and participate in a local trail maintenance event. None near you? Take a trash bag along on your next adventure and do your part.

🌼 Catch me in my swamp era. Common bladderworts (Ultricularia macrorhiza) are putting off showy pink, yellow, and purple blooms this month. You can wade out into ponds, streams, marshes and other aquatic spots to find these widely distributed North American natives. Bladderworts are carnivorous plants that float along the surface, where their small trapdoors snap up tiny organisms such as mosquito larvae within 1/460th of a second. Internal enzymes break down their food to fuel them as they await their next victim.

🦌 Out, damned spot! Lady Macbeth wasn’t talking about white-tailed deer fawns, but you may utter her sentiments this month when trying to spot them. These adorable little ruminants are typically born between late May and early June, bedding down to hide in early summer before “flushing” out later in the month to run and eat with mom.

🪲 It’s your time to shine, bugs. More than 200 species of June bugs (Phyllphaga spp.) plague North America, flying into windows, doors, and you beginning this month. Known for being particularly bulky and clumsy fliers, adult June beetles don’t bite but can be annoying as they tumble around after dark, often confused by artificial lights. But it sort of makes sense, considering many species of June bugs live underground as larvae for up to three years before emerging as adults.

🔥 Wildfires are taking their toll on forests. 2024 was a record-breaking year for forest loss according to researchers at the University of Maryland and World Resources Institute. Their study shows the planet lost about 18 soccer fields of forests every minute last year, and for the first time in known history wildfires were the leading cause (knocking agriculture out as the top problem). What does this mean? Losing more forests could permanently change ecosystems, and with fewer trees to absorb carbon dioxide, climate change may progress even faster.

One last thought for the month

Camp Gear: To Splurge (Or Not)

When do you drop Big Dollars on camp gear? I’ve been asked this a lot, and truthfully, considered it quite a bit myself. As someone who’s been through different stages of camping — from tween Girl Scout, to broke college backpacker, to tiny pop-up camper owner — there’s no solid answer on what you should and shouldn’t splurge on when it comes to camping gear. That’s mostly because everyone has their own camping preferences and needs. When I was 20, sleeping on a thin, second-hand (read: free) backpacking mattress was great (at 35, I cannot believe I was once that ache-free). My 20-year-old self would similarly gasp that adult Nicole recently spent $40 on a camp dishwashing system. But when it came to making that purchase, I weighed out these thoughts:

1. How often will I use this? How long is it going to last?

2. Will this make my time at camp easier or better?

3. What’s another alternative?

I love camp cooking, but I hate doing dishes. Our last system — the good old two-bucket system — was okay, but the collapsible buckets leaked and flexed, didn’t fit well into our gear storage, and were generally a pain. This new setup I considered nested together, included a dish drying rack, and even had a strainer to separate food particles from gray water. Was it more than I wanted to spend? Absolutely, but considering my family and I camp all year long, and often for a week or more at a time, doing dishes two to three times a day… I decided the splurge was worth it. And you know what? When I delegated the dishwashing task to someone else at camp last week, it seemed like they had a much easier time. Those specialty camp can openers, however? Don’t spend extra money on those. Just take pick up one at the dollar store.

Comments from Real Life Outdoor Humans: Read This Book!

Last month’s “Watercolor Wilds” issue encouraged you to explore watercolor painting as a meditative way to connect with nature even when trapped indoors. I’m happy to hear many of you have either been inspired to take up a brush, or have experience doing so. Reader Sylvie L. had a lovely recommendation to share:

A great book to read on this topic is “The Zen of Seeing” by Frederick Franck, which describes drawing/art as a means to really see and connect with our world.

Franck’s 1973 book is a mix of art, meditation, and a call to exist fully in the moment, and I’ve added it to my TBR pile. Thanks, Sylvie!

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That’s it for this month’s edition of Outdoor Humans. As always, keep your wits about you, and go the heck outside.

Nicole Garner Meeker

Art notes: This month’s feature photograph is of Smithsonian Institute Secretary Dr. Charles Doolittle Walcott and Mrs. Helena Walcott as they camped at Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada in 1909. Modern camping require such an extensive setup nor scientific research for your voyage into the woods, but who am I to stop you if the inspiration strikes?

Have a nature question? Your inquiry may be published and answered in a future issue of Outdoor Humans.

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