It's wonderful to watch as children learn from grandparents and other senior adults around them.

My father and then my scout master taught me something that I find is almost a lost art: seeing in the dark. I hadn't thought about it until reading your post.

The human eye is an amazing tool, if we'll just let it adapt to the dark. Except on the darkest nights, hiking at night is easy. Sure there are times and locations it can be dangerous and lights would be required.

Back in the spring I canoed the Kings River in Arkansas -- at night. We NEVER turned on a light until we opened the truck doors after the float ended after six hours on the river. We didn't launch until after sunset. Not being able to see in the standard sense certainly heightened the other senses -- especially hearing.

A few years ago as a chaperone on a fifth-grade overnight trip to a natural science center, the staff took the students on a flashlightless night hike. A couple of the children were absolutely hysterical because the lights were off. They had NEVER been outside in the dark and were absolutely petrified. They could not overcome what the adults around them had taught them: dark = danger.

I"m not saying to not have lights. But the size, long-lasting LEDs, and utility design have made using lights at night easy -- even when it's not necessary.