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Join us for a look back at a day in the life of first-year students exploring the Adirondacks (gallery above).

For incoming first-year students, there’s no better opportunity than the Environmental Studies Adirondack Experience. The unique program allows students to work with the same group of classmates as they take English, Adirondack ecology and environmental studies courses throughout the semester. Dr. Glenn Johnson, Dr. Donald McNutt, and Dr. Katherine Cleary are leading the applied learning experience this semester, giving students the chance to take what they’ve learned in the classroom and head out into Adirondack mountains for a series of eight field trips throughout the fall.

On Friday, Oct. 11, eight students hopped in vans headed for Tupper Lake. They met up with employees from the Department of Environmental Conservation and trekked through a wetland area in search of the endangered spruce grouse. With an antenna to help pinpoint the location of one of the male birds, students were able to see the spruce grouse up close. From there they visited the Spring Pond Bog Preserve where they hiked along the edge of a beautiful bog and learn about their surroundings from their professors. To end their day, they visited the Wild Center, and strolled along the Wild Walk, an elevated trail across the Adirondack treetops.