[caption id="attachment_11476" align="alignnone" width="300"]
Courtesy of Adriana Fragola[/caption]
Hiking through the beautiful terrain of the South Mountain Reservation (SMR) is exactly what the Ecology Club does during the beginning of the fall semester and at end of the spring semester. Hikes at the SMR are sponsored by the Ecology Club at Seton Hall and are completely free to students.
The Ecology Club has been participating in the hikes at SMR for the past three years, and students are encouraged to participate in the hikes. The hikes are guided by volunteers of the South Mountain Conservancy and they are offered during certain weekends of the month.
The purpose of the ecology hikes sponsored at the SMR is to immerse SHU students in the nature that surrounds them. The reservation is two miles away from campus, which makes it a convenient place to hike and explore.
If a student decides to participate in a hike, they should be prepared to dress for the weather. Wearing layers is recommended and hiking boots are suggested, but any type of comfortable footwear for the woods is acceptable.
Andriana Fragola, a senior environmental studies major, said during the two to six mile long hikes, the guides teach students about different elements of the park such as different tree and bird species, as well as information on the historic aspect of the park.
Additionally, the Ecology Club is very active on campus with promoting various campus initiatives throughout the year. The club promotes recycling and eliminating Styrofoam in the cafeteria as well as harvesting, planting and maintaining the garden at Seton Hall.
The club is holding a Harvest Fest in the garden on Oct. 27 at 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Fragola said that there will be carnival games with prizes, picking and planting in the garden, as well as a food truck with a specialized fall menu.
There will also be an Eco-Fest on April 22, Earth Day, when there will be many events and
giveaways.
The club also hosts a Rainforest Alliance certified coffee and chocolate tasting event in the spring semester, participates in marches and protests and fundraises to symbolically adopt animals from World Wildlife Foundation.
To join the ecology club or to learn more about hikes at the South Mountain Reservation, contact fragolan@shu.edu. The meetings are held Mondays at 8 p.m. in Mooney Hall 17.
Haley Zenna can be reached at haley.zenna@student.shu.edu.
Comments
