One of my favorite parts about walking the beach at night for turtles is when you reach the end of a stretch and have to wait for a while before you walk back the length of the beach. It is then that you can lie on your back in the sand, listen to the waves, take in all the scents of the night on the sea breeze and watch the stars and let your thoughts wander till you perhaps doze off for a little while….herein lie some of the short, sweet pleasures of night beach patrols…

(Painting of Tortuguero Beach by Deirdre Hyde)