Sounds of Sleeping Bear Dunes: Beavers at Otter Lake Artwork

Nature Is My Jam

If you’re like me, then you love the sounds of nature. From the dawn chorus of birds that rings in the start of another day to the howl of coyotes in the dark of night, these sounds ignite curiosity, excitement and a deep appreciation for our planet. You’re listening to Nature is my Jam, a show that explores the rich kaleidoscope of nature sounds and the art of capturing pristine audio in remote wilderness locations. Hello. I’m Darrin and I document the hidden corners of the world through sound, filmmaking, and photography. Each week, I will take you along with me as I create natural soundscapes. We will discuss how I record these sounds, but the star of each show will be nature itself. A high-quality audio immersion providing a brief respite from your hectic day. Subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode and I look forward to continuing this conversation with you soon.

All Episodes

Nature Is My Jam

Sounds of Sleeping Bear Dunes: Beavers at Otter Lake

November 11, 2022 • Darrin Wassom • Season 1 • Episode 23

I would like to thank everyone that has donated or otherwise supported Nature is my Jam by liking, following, sharing and/or subscribing to the podcast. Your support goes directly to creating future episodes and allows this podcast to be ad-free and 100% listener supported. Your kindness means the world to me and I hope you might feel inspired to explore the natural areas where you live.

Welcome to episode 23 of the Nature is my Jam podcast! As always, I’m happy to see you again and can’t wait to share this episode with you. The weather here in northern Michigan has been unseasonably warm, with temperatures in the low 60s (around 15.5 Celsius for the rest of the world). The leaves have fallen and we would normally gear up for the first big snow of the year, but Mother Nature has other ideas. Fall is my favorite time of year so I’m not complaining! I went to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore yesterday to hike the Otter Creek Loop, which is part of the Platte Plains Trail. It is a roughly 5 miles (8km) loop that meanders through gently rolling hills and takes you along the creek and all the way around Otter Lake. Besides completing the loop and getting in some miles, I also wanted to find some sounds to record.

As I was entering the last section of the trail, I noticed some signs of beaver activity so stopped to inspect. I could see recent chew marks in several saplings and what appeared to be a slick mud slide down to the creek. I assumed this to be a sure sign of one or more industrious beavers, so I came up with a plan to record them working. Knowing my presence would likely dampen their enthusiasm, I quickly configured my gear to record overnight. I would come back the next day to see what sounds I captured. The trail is fairly popular, so I have to believe the beavers are used to human presence, but I always do my best to maintain a respectful distance.

When I returned, I was happy to see there had been additional activity overnight. To my complete surprise, they worked the area immediately in front of my gear and gave me a gift of some amazing sounds. Thank you, beavers!! This might just be my favorite recording of the year. I have several hours of their activity recorded and will do a longer edit over the winter. However, because I’m so excited about capturing the beavers, I want to share this clip with you on the podcast right now.

As always, I welcome your thoughts and hope you enjoy this episode. Thanks again for your continued support!

Recording Summary: