Sit Spots

Week of October 26, 2025 – November 1, 2025

by Anna Stunkel, Environmental Educator

Have you ever found a spot in nature where you like to sit for a while and observe your surroundings? Maybe you take a rest on a fallen log or rock, sitting still until small flocks of feeding birds approach as if you’re part of the surrounding trees. Or perhaps you stop by the shore of a pond, watching turtles climb onto a log to sun themselves. Sometimes we return to the same spot through the seasons, watching how leaves change and flowers bloom. Naturalists refer to these places as sit spots, where you can sit quietly, just observing and appreciating the world around you. A sit spot can be in any habitat, ideally where you can easily notice changes in nature and where you feel comfortable pausing for a while. If you return to the same spot at least once a week and commit to spending about 15 minutes there, you may be surprised by how much you observe.

As a kid, one of my favorite sit spots was in my grandparents’ backyard. It bordered an edge with many shrubs and wildflowers, and also had a nice view of a pond. I spent many hours sitting at their picnic table, watching, and listening. In winter, Bald Eagles often stopped by the dead trees on the other side of the pond, and one time I even watched them feed on a deer carcass. Baltimore Orioles nested in the cottonwoods every year, and I watched them fly up to their hanging nests. With a little patience, chickadees would visit and eat sunflower seeds from my hands. I enjoyed sitting and listening to the many sounds as dusk fell, like Coyotes howling, Barred Owls cackling, and a chorus of different frogs. 

It is wonderful to share the outdoors with our family and friends, but visiting a sit spot alone is also a great way to connect with nature. We all need this time to quietly recharge now and then, learning to patiently use our senses and notice what’s happening around us. You may choose to meditate at your sit spot or write and draw your findings throughout the seasons in a nature journal. Our mental health benefits from slowing down and making time for sit spot visits.

Here at Baltimore Woods, many benches along the trails provide a perfect opportunity for sit spot observation. Some of my favorites include the bench overlooking the beaver meadow on the Harrison Trail, the bench near Boulder Brook on the Boundary Trail, and the bench next to Phillip’s Pond. If you find a favorite sit spot on the preserve, let us know what you observe there!

We invite our members to enjoy a weekly blog written by our naturalists. Every blog will be uniquely different but always inspired by nature. We may share a memory from a recent hike at The Woods or teach you about an animal or plant that lives on the preserve. No matter the topic, we will be sharing with you our passion for nature and celebrating the connections we all have to the natural world. Each blog will be connected to a weekly set of activities and ideas to help you put nature in your hands, even if you’re at home!