The purpose of the Union College Outing Club is to provide an opportunity for students to spend time in the great outdoors and experience the natural world. Through these experiences, students learn about environmental ethics and practical skills that can be applied in other aspects of day-to-day life. As students, we spend most of our time inside focused on academic studies, but it is crucial to also go outside and experience what nature has to offer.
Union College is fortunate to be surrounded by three amazing state parks, the Catskill Mountains to the south, the Green Mountains to the east, the Adirondacks to the north. Additionally, there are numerous lakes and rivers nearby, which offer a vast wilderness to explore. We hope to offer as many students at Union College a chance to augment their academic education with an outdoor experience. We also offer to students the chance to escape the Union College Campus and Schenectady area. Often students find themselves with little to do in the Schenectady area, so we offer students the opportunity to relax in the outdoors and breathe some fresh air. These trips allow for students to unwind and we encourage students to remember that their time at college is to be enjoyed.
We reach out to our fellow students through events including backpacking, hiking, mountain biking, rock climbing, snowshoeing, climbing, and whitewater rafting. We are a very outdoor oriented club and nearly all of our events occur off campus in nature. Aside from the physical aspects, we strive to educate students on backcountry cooking, Leave No Trace ethics, and wilderness survival skills.
In 2019, the Outing Club saw an increase in the number of students participating in Outing events. Typically, we take between 12 and 24 students on each trip. By the end of the 2019 school year, the club had over 100 active members. We continue to reach out to all Union students and offer the opportunity to experience and learn about the wealth of the natural world.