Wilderness travel presents an endless sequence of settings, each with a unique combination of landforms and ecosystems as a laboratory for studying the myriad interrelationships of ecology and natural history. The hiking itself becomes a continuous process of observation and synthesis. Ecosystems transition from one to another as the trails traverse various terrains of differing slopes, aspects, and elevations. Every short stop, whether an unplanned rest, or a specific point of interest, provides an opportunity to explore and observe the surroundings. Longer breaks, such as for lunch, enable a more thorough examination and discussion of our observations.
Campsites provide even longer periods for studying and experiencing a location.
Often we will set up a base camp in a special setting for an extra day or two of exploration. Learning activities are unique to each ecosystem encountered. Whether old growth conifer forest, mixed woodland, oak savannah, chaparral brushfields, dry grasslands, wet meadows or rocky ridgecrests, each setting serves as a location for lessons of observation and examination of the various ecoloqical niches and their floral and faunal inhabitants. The S.W. Oregon and N.W. California region is renowned for its chaotic geology, diverse landforms, and the resulting complex mosaic of numerous different ecosystems. This situation provides many areas of ecotonal edge where these ecosystems merge, creating rich zones of diverse habitats and relationships.