The Outdoor Pursuits at SUNY Cortland, located next to Bistro at SLC, promotes many different activities to students throughout the year. From rental gears to rock climbing, hiking, skiing, rafting and week trips, the program encourages and takes students to places where they can face new challenges, exercise, have new experiences and enjoy nature with friends.
To rent gear or to participate in the trips, students can sign up online or in person at the Outdoor Pursuit station. They are open on weekdays from 2 pm to 6 pm and 10 am to 1 pm on weekends.
The program counts with three trip leaders – Simon, Ashlynn Crasa, who is majoring in Outdoor Recreation and doing her internship at the Outdoor Pursuit, and Andrew Abrams, who is also the Outdoor Pursue Coordinator, and together, they are responsible to take students out on trips, help them with the gear and instruct them throughout the entire period they are together. The equipment/gear and transportation are always provided by the group, and students are not required to have any knowledge of the activity they choose to do for the trip leaders will teach everything they need to know prior to the activity and as the trip goes on.
“Every day it’s very different. I love working here. I love the students I work with, my colleagues, people who come on our trips, and the professional staff I work with, they’re great, very supportive. We really do have a great space to run some awesome trips here. It’s really about building up the program and trying to cater to a lot of different audiences, but it’s fun,” said Crasa.
In regards of the costs of the trips, Abrams explained that the price could go from five dollars to as much as $300; it will vary depending on where the trip will be located and whether it’s a free location or if there is a rental price for camping there. In general, they try to keep the price as low as possible, only charging for the gas and for the training the trip leaders received for that trip.
“We try and make it as easy for the participants as much as possible to enjoy the trip, because we want them to see the awesome areas that there are in New York and farther out,” said Abrams.
Some of the activities they have done so far this year include downhill skiing snowboarding in Smugglers Notch in Vermont, ice climbing, hiking at Tinker Falls, skating in Syracuse on Valentine’s Day, and cross-country skiing at Lime Hollow.
“I really enjoyed trying out this great experience!! I would not have been able to go without it being an opportunity through the school, and being able to go with my friends made it 100 times more fun!” – said Kaylee Mueller, a student at SUNY Cortland majoring in Early Childhood/Childhood Education who went cross-country skiing at Lime Hollow with the Outdoor Pursue group.
The next trip will be during Spring Break, from March 15th to 22nd, to Red and New River Gorger in Kentucky, where students will be camping, climbing the Whitewater, rafting, and doing a guided mountain bike tour. It will cost $350 with everything included.