While I don't go camping anymore, I have no problem with the wilderness at night. In fact, I usually love it. Interesting animals come out at night, and as long as they don't have me trapped in a spider-infested camper in the middle of the pitch dark woods without a rifle or cell service, I'm perfectly content.  Out in Minnesota, sometimes my uncle Wes and I will stand on his front porch and howl into the night. Occasionally, we get a response from isolated packs of coyotes prowling around nearby. We'll also see bats pass by the house and firelight, and sometimes we'll see deer and coyotes trotting across the fields against the moonlight. 

The Milky Way stretches across the sky above our farm every night. Sometimes we'll spend hours just staring up at the sky. Other nights, we'll keep a fire going from sundown till dawn. I've never spent a whole night up. By 4 am, I'm literally falling asleep standing up no matter how many Mountain Dews are in my system, so I'll go into the house and crawl into bed until breakfast is served at grandma's. 

Around the fire, everything from important family stuff to true scary stories are shared. Wes likes sharing his knowledge about local native american stories and legends, and has a habit of going on political rants. My uncle Wade almost always has some new crazy story to share. My aunt Stacy will bring up the paranormal and other weird things she and the family have experienced. And sometimes I'll talk about life in the city which usually turns into a rant that everyone agrees with. Surrounded by family and friends around the fire is far from lonely, and I miss that whenever I go back home.