The Sun Is a Compass: A 4,000-Mile Journey into the Alaskan Wilds

Moving at human pace solidifies his connection to the land.

He’s a study in contrasts, a rare person who sees little conflict in owning many identities at once.

Even social media and Internet platforms have changed how we do our work, adding millions of observers around the globe and providing sample sizes much larger than anything a single study could achieve.

Observation can guide us to wonder. It’s also the foundation of all scientific inquiry. Without observation, we have little hope of understanding an individual, a species, or an entire ecosystem.

four thousand miles of roadless, trailless terrain through a landscape

E7, the bird whose satellite track revealed an impressive 7,396-mile nonstop flight, didn’t attain fame because she did anything particularly unique for a bar-tailed godwit, but because she showed us how remarkable the usual can be.

Bulls and lone cows often hang back, deferring risk to the gangly youngsters and their travel-weary mothers.

The certainty that comes from being loved.

The idea of worrying about only as much as I need to for today, or tomorrow, has finally taken hold.