Take a coastal hiking trail to a secret beach, unfurl the umbrella, shovel and rake. The mystery of why we like to go into the sea alone, the air conditioners eroded by saltpeter and the watermelon on the family table. Summer invites you to enjoy hundreds of moments during the day, but when the sun goes down, it awakens another world of lights, sparkles and a nature that offers new ways of immersing yourself in the unknown. The following nocturnal experiences confirm this.
But first, a spoiler: for the northern lights we will have to wait until autumn.
Sometimes, the starry sky uses the mirror sea and various beaches in the world are filled with blue flashes at dusk. It is the phenomenon known as Sea of Burning, produced by a bioluminescent bacterium that is activated depending on the currents, the waves and its impact with the rocks. A nightly show played in places like Vaddhoo Island in the Maldives, the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica, and yes, Spain too. Galician coastal enclaves such as the Cíes Islands, Ons Island, Corcubión or Cape Fisterra become more dreamy in the summer months, when high temperatures favor the appearance of these microalgae. Of course, respect for the environment and, above all, patience, since these phenomena can be very random.
It is curious to think that in a city as summery, with neon lights and go-go discos like Torrevieja, there is a back room swollen with nature. It is the promise of the various night routes that take place in the city of Alicante through the Lagunas de La Mata natural park, famous for hosting one of the largest pink lakes in Europe as a result of salt activity. Especially when the moon looks, the walks through this Mediterranean oasis reveal its high ornithological value to be discovered while guided by a flashlight.
There are places where it is possible (almost) to touch the stars. One of them is the archipelago of the Fortunate Islands, especially La Palma, a biosphere reserve whose heights reveal shortcuts to the universe. At 2,400 above sea level, the Roque de Los Muchachos Observatory overlooks an ocean of clouds where, on clear nights, the bare sky reveals thousands of stars and bodies. Considered the first Starlight reserve in the world, La Palma is a celebration of nature and defense of the sky under a single pretext: the right to contemplate the best skies.
The so-called bubble hotels are here to stay. The world of glamping displays accommodations fully integrated with the environment that act as their own extension of nature, especially at night. There will be no shortage of proposals, although one of the most recommended is found in Gredos Estelar, a hotel located in the vicinity of the town of Navatalgordo, in Ávila, where a sea of pines and chestnut trees invites you to turn off the lights, look at the sky through the roof and let a blanket of stars wrap you up.
Some natural miracles deserve to be discovered by surprise, like the best luck of fate. The green ray or "Rayleigh scattering" is one of them. This optical phenomenon is a green reflection caused by the refraction of light as it passes through the Earth's atmosphere, which is why it is only possible to see it just before sunrise or a few minutes after sunset. Not all the people who set out in search of this flash found it, but if you are on the north coast of Spain and communities like Asturias or Cantabria, be sure to look at the sky after taking a bath. Just in case.
In the Highlands of ancient Ceylon there is a 2,243 meter peak where all the butterflies on the island are said to die. Also, the place where Adam left his mark after falling from heaven. Although if you ask the Buddhists, they will tell you that the footprint is that of his teacher, the Hindus assure that it belongs to Shiva and the Muslims to Muhammad. Adam's Peak brings together all the religions of the world and invites you to start a nocturnal pilgrimage that leaves from the town of Dalhousi around 3 in the morning to ascend through 2,500 steps that are overlooked by flower garland stalls and khottu vendors. in order to reach the temple on the summit before dawn. The reward: a sea of clouds worthy of nirvana... or paradise.
In Spain, fireflies have been threatened for years, although it is possible to spot them in inland areas of the Valencian Community or the province of Huelva. In any case, if you travel to Tokyo this summer you can play it safe and stay at the Chinzanso Tokyo, a hotel that contains its own garden - Chinzanso Garden - where every January a specialized team introduces the larvae that will produce a fascinating light enchantment starting at the end of May. A small urban oasis with echoes of one of the great classics of Japanese cinema, the unforgettable Grave of the Fireflies.
When we think of safaris, the Masai Mara Game Reserve is one of the first places that comes to mind. A set of ecosystems and iconic species that reserve some secrets for nightfall. After sunset, some predators such as hyenas take the opportunity to hunt, resulting in a secret spectacle to watch through a night safari. This typology is carried out only in private areas of the park itself where there are hardly any tourists and conservation policies are more efficient, so the ultimate sustainable experience is assured.
The night reveals a new map of sounds and sensations in the great forests of the world, and a good place to discover it is the Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Reserve, in the Costa Rican Sierra de Tilarán. As night falls, the rainforest whispers a different song and vibrates to the sounds of the olingo, similar to the raccoon; while the flashlight reveals the presence of stick insects camouflaged among the vegetation or huge tarantulas that, despite their threatening appearance, are harmless.
Beauty is fleeting and sometimes only lasts one night. It is the poem that characterizes the Queen of the Night, a kind of flower that is preserved in the Tohono Chul botanical garden in the state of Arizona, which includes various desert plants. This cactus is preserved in various specimens whose flowering takes place between the months of June and July, so if you travel to the heart of the United States on these dates, do not hesitate to consult the agenda.
