Having traveled through the bumpy backroads of Belarus, we arrive into the Naliboki Forest completely obtuse of what the days will bring. It did not take long for the animal spotting to start as mid-way through the forest we spot two hares. Our hearts started to race, we saw them for a few seconds and at a glance they were gone. 20 minutes after our spotting, we arrive at the Naust Eco Station.
At first glance, it was what I expected, a wooden hut in the middle of nowhere but as the bus continued, past what I believed to have been the only building, I was positively shocked. It was a rather large plot of land with three, soon to be four, building. Planning to never wash my hands after shaking Vadim's hand, I stepped out of the bus and there was our hero. It was the first time I got to see the person Mr. Smalley would constantly speak so greatly about. As planned, I shook his hand and moved towards the building we, the boys, would stay at. Having barely opened the door, I was welcomed with the smell of good food (sorry, it is indescribable). I rush to throw my stuff onto the floor and make sure I am the first at the table. The moment I have been waiting for came and passed so quickly. After dinner, we unpacked our stuff and that was the moment I got to take in the moderness of the station in. Its interior was very cosy and I saw no problem with calling this place "home" for the next four days. We were also orientated on safety but what stood out to be was the high probability of seeing a snake. Vadim made it seem like we would see at least one snake on a daily basis. He instructured that when we see a snake then we should continue doing what we were going to do. I was completely shakened. Ironically, enough we never saw a snake. Advised to go to sleep at 22.00, I was not sure what the rush was until I found out that we had to wake up at 4.30 am (I would soon find out that this was not that bad).
Day 1:
Getting a night's worth of sleep, I pursued to make it out of bed and into the kitchen. Same as dinner, breakfast was indescribable. Filling my mouth with the final bites, I moved towards Vadim's car. In the car, Mr. Smalley handed me his CoolPix P900 and I felt a sudden responsibility of not being able to miss out on any animal spots. I was extremely attentive that morning but the camera didn't seem to want to follow my plan of action as the focus was all over the place. Getting the situation under control, we drove for a solid amount of time before I was able to make my second spot of the trip. I got to see a moose cross the road which I sadly didn't get on tape. However, what I did get on tape was capercaillies in their natural habitat. They were beautiful animals that made clicking sounds. The spotting did not continue for long as we stopped to go on a walk.
We were at the scene of Fabien Bruggmann's famous shot of a wolf. It took him a week of camping in the Belarusian winter in order to get a shot that we would get out of the warm car on the third day of our trip. We began walking through the woods and I started noticing plastic bottles here and there. I was surprised about finding rubbish in such an isolated location. I thought that people who go to the forest are aware and interested in nature and would not litter. However, it was explained to us that the forest is open to the public. Mrs. Pettersch took the matter into her own hands and began collecting the trash. Having filled up the bag, we asked Vadim whether we will be returning back this way and whether she could leave it there. His answer was "Yes" and we never returned.
We progressed deeper and deeper into the forest where Vadim would show us his camera traps. Vadim said that he is able to keep track of all of his 40 camera traps scattered around the forest but I did not understand quite how. I would never be able to remember where I put tiny cameras in roughly 100 square kilometers of forest.
After a rather short walk, we jumped into the vehicles and drove to the area where we would walk next. This time the walk seemed a lot longer but also a lot more fun. We got to walk through swamp! Whilst planning for this trip, I imagined that swamp would be the only terrain we would walk on. After all, Mr. Smalley told us that Vadim does not like to take the easiest of paths. It was a lovely experience that I am looking forward to having again. Our legs about to fall off, we made it past all the swamp and wolf tracks and finally arrived at the cars. I would have never thought that I would be this happy sitting in a car. Once everybody jumped into their car, we were on our way back to the field station.
We had lunch and some downtime. I did not see the need to use it as a time for sleep. Couples of hours passed and we were on the road with a new plan. We were going to a beaver lodge where we would hopefully see a beaver. We were dropped off by Vadim and expected to see him again at 20.30. We sat down on a cliff overlooking a beaver lodge and waiting there for one hour. Nothing happening, we concluded that it was too early and decided to go explore the marsh. We were more successful exploring the marsh. I got to spot the tail of a beaver and we saw several ducks. We ended up finishing the skull of an elk which we packaged and took with us. Returning to our cliff, we sat down and waited for one and a half hours. There was no action and complete silence on our half. A cool thing was zooming into the moon using the P900. Time past and it is was getting darker by the minute. Vadim came to pick us up half an hour later than predicted and we were off to the field station. The day had nothing more to offer and so we slid into our beds. We wanted to maximize our sleeping time before the earliest rise of the trip.
Day 2:
Half awake, I found myself getting ready to spot some bisons. We did some driving before arriving at our destination. Sleeping in the car, I lost sense of time. I woke up to a stunning sunrise with bisons in the foreground. It was unbelievable seeing such grand animals in nature. I did not think that we would actually end up seeing them. At that, they seemed to not escape as long as we kept our distance. Wow, what a start to the day it was. After that, I made sure that I would keep my eyes open at all times. We observed the bison for half an hour and then we were off to the Old Growth forest.
The roads seemed to only get more bumpy as we moved further into the forest. A thousand bumps later, we arrived into what I called "Storkland." There was a stork nest on each of the Old Growth trees located on the open field. I've seen a stocknest before but never in such an abundance. It was astonishing how long the wingspan of a stork actually is. There color was also so pure that they camouflaged with the clouds. The habitat of the storks was not considered an Old Growth forest because it didn't have that many Old Growths. As a result, Vadim showed us a proper Old Growth forest.
The visit to the Old Growth forest was not only filled with interest but also history. Vadim explained to us how the vast holes in the ground were used as trenches during World War I. The thought of us standing in a place where a war was fought a century ago gave me chills. What if I were to step onto a land mine? I of course asked this question to Vadim and he assured me that it was safe. The journey through the forest was short lived as we turned back one kilometer in. I found it frustrating how tiredness took over me and hindered me from future exploring the forest. We took the cars to a nearby lake. It was early for lunch and so we took a walk along land that was supposed to have been a boon for the Soviet Union's economy. Mr. Smalley told us how the Soviets restructured the land in a way that would provide it with adequate water for agriculture. After having done most of the work, they realized that the soil wasn't very fertile and all that work was for nothing. The cropland fell victim to a common theme in the Soviet Union: failure.
Killing off time for an hour, we were ready to have lunch. It was the first and last time that we would have lunch out in the field. Lunch was delicious as usual. After lunch, we moved back towards the field station. That was not all for the day.
After a few hours of rest, we were off again. Vadim was going to perform his prominent wolf call. We traveled to two locations in total. Vadim would use speakers to mimic the sounds of a pregnant wolf in hopes of hearing a territorial call back. Sadly, we did not end up hearing anything but the recording of the wolfs was so realistic that I got goosebumps. The darkness did not make it better.
Day 3:
Early starts no longer bothered me. I seem to have built an immunity for five to six hours of sleep. It seemed that the early we wake up the better our spotting was. This also applied to Day 3. Day 3 most have been the most action packed and fascinating day of all.
We began our day with a drive to the open field. Mr. Smalley taught me that you may not have the camera on while we go through the dirt roads but once we enter the open field you must. That is because the animals are unaware of your presence until you enter. During the entrance, you get to see the most unique of animals that you usually wouldn't have because they are so shy. On the field you get to catch animals off guard and are able to capture them on camera. Beside seeing elk and foxes, we got to see one of the Apex predator of the forest: the wolf.
It had been a slow descent. We were careful and as quiet as possible in order to not scare it away. We would approach and it would just stand there. The wolf was curious and was doing what we would do: observe. I would have never thought that we would end up seeing a wolf given how aware and shy they are. When I was younger, I would always think that the wolves were roaming the forest for their prey: humans. I would avoid walking near or in the forest alone at all costs. It was a true weakness of mine. However, as it turns out, wolfs are more scared of humans then humans are scared of wolfs. It takes time, that I wouldn't be patient enough to wait, in order to spot a wolf in the wilderness. Yet, we got to observe a wolf from a relatively close distance without alarming it to run out of our sight. That had been the climax of the trip and I was ready to go home. We had seen so much that I thought there wasn't anything that we hadn't seen. We got back into the cars and continued our journey to location at which we would hike.
On the way, we saw a few peculiar birds such as the Golden Eagle. During the hike, we photographed ourselves on top of a abandoned beaver lodge. It felt rather unstable. We got to roam through more swamp and saw more dugouts. This time, the dugouts were from World War II. After being enriched with new history, we undertook the journey back to the field station.
In the field station, we ate lunch and we were getting ready to give back to Vadim's family. Prior to our trip, we had weekly meetings during which one of the topics was gifts for the family. Each of the students and teachers prepared a gift to give to a certain member of the family or for the family as a whole. We invited the entire family into the dining room and their reactions were priceless. It was interesting seeing how an item brought so much joy to someone. It was like a second New Years for them. I would never think that the items that I got for them would hold such a value. I was thinking that they would enjoy the books I bought but not to point that they would engage so much with it and would not stop reading until they finished the book.
Filled with new energy, we went on a walk to a nearby pond. The walk was well-fitting and considered a lovely evening stroll. We got to speak with one another which was a rare occasion. After half an hour, we arrived at the pond which was had marsh floating on its surface. It was really cool because we were able to interact with the terrain. You could jump onto the marsh and the whole group would move. We were able to create a tsunami on the pond. I got so engaged with fooling around with the interactive space that I fell into the water. It was completely my fault because I underestimated the thickness and stability of the marsh. I challenged myself to walk on it without my feet drowning in the water. It did not go according to plan as my entire leg was drowned into the pond. It felt like my feet were trapped in an aquarium. Walking back with wet feet, I tried to make it back to the field station as quickly as possible.
Day 4:
Tears in my eyes, because it was the last day, we tried to make the most of the day before we would get back onto the bus to Minsk. The last day was no exception, it was another early start. I was again responsible for video coverage during the car ride. As we were taking the corner, there stood a moose right in front of us. I had the camera ready and pressed the "record" button. Unfortunately, it was so dark that the camera was unable to capture the moose. That got me slightly ticked off.
However, after an unfortunate event comes a fortunate event. We rode the car to one of many Naliboki Forest marsh lands. As we were walking through it, the sun was rising. It was one of the most scenic sunrises I have seen in my entire life. The sun was of a reddish color and the sky surrounding it was orange. It was an astounding site to see. We made our way to the tip of one of the swamp paths and back to the vehicles.
We passed by the open field where we ended up seeing nothing. Afterall, what else was there to see? I felt that we had seen everything the forest had to offer. We returned back to the field station where we packed and were getting to depart. We had our last lunch and then it was time to say "goodbye."
Thus that concludes the trip to the Naliboki Forest.
Assigned Questions:
Q. How did the observations impact what you know?
A. When it came to the Naliboki Forest wildlife, I was completely obtuse. I would look up online the species that roam the Belarussian forests but would never feel confident about the results. Now, I am able to list the specific species that live in one of Belarus's forests as I was able to see them with my own eyes. Additionally, Vadim, who has been studying the forest his entire life, was able to tell about species that we didn't see. I found him to be a lot more trustable then some random website. Now, I have a more accurate knowledge of the species that inhabit that Belarusian countryside. As a result, for my online course, which requires local species data from time to time, I am able to draw more accurate conclusions. I would never think that a Belarussian forest could be so fruitful. I have heard great things about the wildlife but would often approach it with skepticism. Now that I got to see the animals with own ideas, I have become a firm believer of the idea that Belarus is filled with wildlife. The problem was that I have lived in areas of civilizations which animals are scared of approaching. That is probably why I have never seen any wildlife species besides, on occasion, a dead elk on the road. I knew that they existed but did not know the shear amount of them. Even though we never had evening lectures, I felt that I took in a lot of information that I wouldn't otherwise be able to get my hands on.
Q. What kind of plan can be created from the new knowledge benefits your or others in the future?
A. Ending all human activity in the forest would be my initial thought but this would clearly be possible. That is why we should the address the more specific issue of poaching. Illegal hunting of endangered wildlife has become a prominent issue that needs resolvement. Poachers make an income from selling the fur, leather, or bones of an animal which is in high demand and therefore is very profitable. On a large scale, this issue can be resolved with the enforcement of laws. Laws that limit or ban the trade of endangered species. If found guilty of breaching the law, there will be appropriate penalties such as jail sentencing or fines. Another solution could by spreading awareness about the issue. Commonly, an issue may not be considered prominent because people simply lack knowledge of it. That is why, people who know of the issue, should take the matter into their own hands and lectures others. Education is a tool that will teach people to make better purchasing choices, persuade them to act, and will decrease the demand for endangered animal goods. With a decrease in demand, poachers are likely to make lesser of a profit and give up on the market as a whole. Last but not least, there is another suggestion for cutting off the demand for these kind of goods. Just like "smoking kills" is written on a cigarette box, similar messages should be conveyed on animal-related products. For example, on the packaging of a Lynx fur it should be written "there are only 9500 lynx left in Europe. That was one of them." This would make the customers more aware of what they are purchasing and will likely prevent them from making the transaction.
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