It was ten o' clock at night and still light. Jay (Bev's husband) and I were sitting quietly around a campfire on the edge of a small lake in a remote wilderness area of northern Canada. It was July, and the northern latitude gave us daylight until 11:00 p.m. We were the only two people camped on the lake; in fact, there was no one else in the entire valley. Imagine our disbelief at hearing what sounded like large rocks being thrown into the lake. Closer scrutiny revealed the large rocks to be a beaver slapping his tail on the surface of the lake, loudly demonstrating his alarm and displeasure at having us camped so close to his home. The following day, we located his stick and mud lodge along the shore line. On subsequent evenings, we would crouch behind the lodge and take photographs as the beaver family emerged to gather leaves and twigs from the quaking aspen along the shore. This was my first encounter with beavers. They are interesting, comical animals, and I enjoyed putting one in the context of surprising a rather solemn neighbor - which also allowed me to play with unusual perspectives! - BD