我们在火博体育北部森林的夏天

每年夏天，火博体育 可持续发展办公室 gives two students the opportunity to steward 火博体育的北森林. This summer, Michaela Bonforte and I were lucky enough to be hired!

The North Woods is 150 acres of forest right on Skidmore’s campus. 它有五个特点 hiking trails as well as a whole ecosystem of unique flora and fauna. 火博体育的学生, faculty, staff, and community members often visit the woods to hike, run, walk their dog, host 一个类, do research, and so much more.

As the North Woods stewards, it was our job to manage the woods. 这条小路很复杂 maintenance, removing invasive species, and hosting community events within the forest.

Over the past two months, Michaela and I accomplished a lot. 我们拉了5000多个 individual invasive plants, removed dozens of fire pits, cleaned up environmentally-damaging litter, maintained trails to keep them safe, hosted six community events, updated trail signage, and taught young children in summer camp about this special place.

Some of our favorite moments from the summer were leading "hike and s’mores" events and building a bug hotel (a structure that attracts insects and gives them a safe 住宿地点). A slight detour from the woods, we also helped 社区花园 Manager Eli Hersh harvest the bounty of food grown on campus. 

I have always enjoyed hiking and spending time in nature. 北森林管家 position was perfect because it allowed me to turn what I love into a summer job. As an environmental science major, the position was also important as it gave me hands-on forestry and ecosystem management experience, something I would not have gotten in 一个类.

As for Michaela, the North Woods has been an integral part of her time here at Skidmore. So for her, serving as a steward was about giving back to the woods so that others 能像她一样享受这个地方吗.

Michaela and I also learned a lot of valuable lessons this summer.

Michaela realized how much time, effort and community engagement goes into taking 照顾好步道网络. For her, it was rewarding to see her work help preserve the important ecosystem and support the community’s relationship with it. 

For me, my biggest lessons came from two Skidmore retirees – Bob Jones and Jackie 唐纳利. Jones, a local history expert, taught us about how the North Woods has changed 随着时间的推移. 唐纳利, a naturalist, taught us about all the different plant species.

The North Woods is such a special place that adds so much value to Skidmore’s campus. If you haven’t had a chance to visit yet, we highly suggest that you do!

A few tips from the Summer 2018 North Woods Stewards:

• The red trail is great for a short hike.
• My favorite is the orange trail because of the scenery. 有一些火博体育 pine needles sprinkled on the ground and the historical spots along the way that make 它很特别.
• I probably spend the most time in an open area on the spirit trail. 非常适合 瑜伽.
• 这些小径不只是夏天才有的! Michaela recommends visiting the woods in the winter as the snow adds another level of beauty. In the winter, you’re also likely to see lots of animal tracks and even, on a clear day, a vista of Vermont’s Green Mountains.

If you do visit the North Woods, we ask that you help us protect it by following our rules and remembering to leave only footprints!