On Wednesday, October 4, my class and I went on a camping trip to the DAR State Park in Goshen, Massachusetts. We had no school for three days! Soon after we arrived, we went canoeing. The water was still, and the peaceful, relaxing sound of the paddles as they slid through the water could have lulled an angry bear to sleep. The changing leaves reflected wonderfully on the water, making a scene that even I, a budding artist, probably could not paint. Back at the docking beach, we saw a snake curled up on a rock. I almost stepped on a wasp’s nest trying to get a better look. The next day we went on a hike and saw baby snapping turtles playing on the shore, and a duck that constantly followed us all the way to the boat launch! At night, the full moon edged every tree, fern, leaf, and rock with a brilliant light that made everything shine so brightly that it made it seem like daytime. But we had to return to our tent soon after it was dark. We invented a password for our tent; each tent had its own password. I slept in two tents so I had two passwords. We slept very little the first night. We scared ourselves at least twenty times. Every single noise sounded suspiciously like a bunch of bears. It was a relief to get up, do chores, and have breakfast. I will always remember the way it was when we woke up in the morning: the cool, brisk air filtering into the tent, the loud birdsong ringing cheerfully through the tall trees, and the chipmunks scampering through the fallen leaves, their little tails waving. I will also remember owls hooting softly in the night, and coyotes barking sharply in the distance, and the brilliant shades of red, coral, vermilion, orange, and yellow reflections in the shimmering water. I will not forget that camping trip in a hurry; I just hope that we can do it again.