Sawtooth Association

The Alpine Examiner

July 6, 2025

Naturalist Blog

Getting to the heart of what matters in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area

Where the Streetlights Stop

The Milky Way over Redfish. Photo Credit: Shannon Scott Photo contest submission to SIHA.

 

I like living where the streetlights stop
Where I can see down from the mountain top

Where the roads changes hues from blue to black
Where a sharp turn might send you off a sudden switch back

I greet the night under unfettered stars
Only lit up by Jupiter, Venus, Mars

I watch as the Moon waxes and wanes
The whole night sky my personal window pane

There’s no noisy traffic that drums, hums and haws
Just the hawks and owls with their excited midnight calls

The moths flutter skyward, all looking for a mate
Illuminated by Luna, they’ve planned the most perfect date

The Bats EEK out, ready to stretch their wings
They know with no certainty what adventures the night will bring

The coyotes cackle by, like a band of good-old-boys
While they prowl the night in search for some new toys

We’ve made impacts to the land, that much is for sure
But here the sky’s pristine, which is what I adore

There are some people who’d see this space lit up
Clearly, the Milky Way has never filled their cup

It’s been a year in the woods,
not touched by artificial light
And I couldn’t be more grateful
Without a single streetlight in sight


Cush is a 2024 returning naturalist who spent this last winter teaching elementary students in Southern California. On a clear night you can find him star gazing and listening for owls in the SNRA.