What is Nature Journaling?
One of the things that I love about Nature Journalers, in general, is that nobody seems too caught up in definitions. That means that nature journaling has significant overlap with everything from plein air painting to scientific field notes or keeping a personal diary. Pretty much nobody is going to tell you that you’re doing it wrong.
So, with that caveat, nature journaling tends to focus on the natural world. In my view, people are nature too, which means that if you want, human observations are as in-bounds as taking notes on lizards, and human-built structures are on par with bird’s nests or ant hills. We use words, pictures, and numbers to record observations, questions, connections, and explanations.
If you go out into the world, notice things, flex your curiosity, learn things, and make a record of it somewhere, as far as I’m concerned, you can already call yourself a nature journaler.
The power of sitting down with a notebook and making those observations on paper (or digitally – people do that too) is that it helps you slow down, pay closer attention, notice more, and keep track of questions so you remember to look them up later… or leave them hanging as a delightful natural mystery.
If you want to learn more about Nature Journaling, I would highly recommend checking out the many free videos about art and journaling created by artist, educator, and naturalist John Muir Laws.
About the Yosemite Nature Journal Group
Unlike soccer or volleyball, you don’t need a team to go outside and nature journal… BUT having company is SO much fun. In a group, we benefit from each other’s eyes and ears to notice things we might otherwise have looked past. We benefit from each other’s knowledge, curiosity, and perspective. And we benefit from shared enthusiasm and interest.
The Yosemite Nature Journal Group organization works on something like a book club model. We choose our meeting spots collaboratively, wander off to nature journal – either separately or in small groups, and then return to share insights and observations. In some book clubs I’ve been in, one person is assigned to take the lead in guiding the conversation – either with some questions or extra information about the book – but everyone comes with their own ideas to share as well. That’s the role I see for a monthly prompt – it’s an invitation to explore a particular perspective. And as with any invitation, it’s perfectly acceptable to decline. In just the beginning months, I’ve already managed to ignore my own prompt when I got swept up in something I was curious about that didn’t quite fit.
I (Theresa) got really excited about nature journaling in 2023 after connecting with John Muir Laws (aka Jack) and the Wild Wonder crew. They said, if you want to be part of a local nature journaling group and one doesn’t exist where you live, just start one. They said, among other things, that you don’t have to be a brilliant artist or poet or an experienced naturalist. Set a date and time and get the word out. And so, here we are!
A Note About Kids
People of all ages are welcome and encouraged to join us for Nature Journaling. However, we are also a relatively independent lot, so if you’re a minor with an interest in participating, please bring along a responsible adult.
Regular Meetings
We currently meet on the first Wednesday of each month from 5-7 pm. Whoever is present gets together at the end to choose the meeting location for the next month. These details are posted on our website. If you’d like to get on an email list to have that information conveniently sent to your inbox, please sign up.
Field Trips
We also organize field trips to locations that might not fit our evening schedule. These field trips don’t occur on a regular schedule but will be posted on this site when they are planned. Again, if you think you might be interested, please sign up to get our infrequent email updates.