Sounds of the Forest: Free Downloads of Nature Sounds

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken many things from us and restricted others, including the chance to travel and enjoy certain natural wonders. The Timber Festival, which celebrates forests and trees in the United Kingdom and around the world, was one of many events canceled because of the virus. Its organizers responded with "Sounds of the Forest", a public and open archive focused on collecting and compiling sounds from forests and similar spaces.

The goal is no longer even to travel to another country or visit a different province. Around the world, COVID-19 is interrupting much simpler actions, like getting in a car and driving 10-20 kilometers in any direction to enjoy nature. We've talked endlessly about grabbing a camera and going out to capture images, but the cycle of openings and closures puts that and much more on hold—unless we explore alternatives.

For example, the Timber Festival is an event dedicated to celebrating forests and trees. The 2020 edition was scheduled for early July, but cancellation became inevitable. What does it offer instead? a project called Sounds of the Forest (literally "The sounds of the forest"). It is an open archive with an interactive map that stores sounds of forests from around the world. You don't need to install any additional software: click on the region you want to hear, and the sample will load immediately.

In general, the sounds are relatively short (one minute), but the best part is that you can download them from SoundCloud without restrictions. If you want to share sounds from a local forest or park (one you can access easily), the process is very simple. On the page they recommend using a native app on your smartphone (like the voice recorder on Android) and taking a photo of the place, then completing the form with the data.

The map has dozens of entries to explore, and as expected, most are in the United Kingdom. However, nothing prevents us from jumping from one region to another, choosing samples, and downloading copies for offline playback, filling our surroundings with the best of natural sounds.

Official site: Click here