What can a nature lover do to get her fix on an urban college campus?

Can you give us a hint about your location?

Or transfer to Cornell or U. Vt?

Oh, I have no desire to transfer. It’s not that much of an issue. I love my college.

I’ll PM you, Gail. I don’t really want to tell the world where I go to school. xD

I’m sure there are birds around. Maybe you can hang up a bird feeder in a tree somewhere near your dorm or on the campus and fill it up with seed, or, hang a couple hummingbird feeders, you can mix your own sugar water, 2 cups or so of warm water with about ⅓ cup sugar dissolved. :-)

@Coloma Oooh, that’d be nice! There were birds that lived in the ivy on the side of my old dorm. I’ll have to see what the situation at the new dorm is like and then decide what to do. Thanks for the great suggestion!

Listen to folk music. Whenever I listen to it, I feel like I’m in the countryside of France.

Where abouts is your school located? Once I know that, I can go on google maps and look for forests, parks, botanical gardens, nature trails, recreation areas, etc. then I can reply back on fluther.

@Michael_Huntington Haha, okay!

@Charles I don’t like to share my location online, but thank you for the offer. I’ll google those things myself. Thing is that I don’t like to stray too far off campus because it’s not the safest area, but I’m sure there are some good areas I can look into. :) Thanks.

Is there a conservatory or greenhouse on campus?

Build a creative terrarium or two, and/or make a few potted plant displays to tend to.

Get yourself a nature sounds CD like Thunderstorm and Rain. There’s lots of individual rain recordings in i-tunes, plus other really wonderful sounds like frogs and crickets and campfires. I’ve built a little library of nature sounds. They’re great to listen to with headphones when you’re going to sleep. Also, very nice, just to have on in the background, if you’re roomates don’t mind.

Find a fantastic photo and put it up somewhere that you will be able to see it when you are doing your homework. Like this redwood and fern forest or this Sunset in Monument Valley or this Snow in Yosemite

Get a couple of pine or cedar scented soy candles like these from Sweet Grass Farms

Get a big bowl and fill it with pinecones, or get a flat square plate and fill it with zen-like river rocks like these

Or get one of those tabletop water falls.

Sleep au naturel.

I make a point of going to the conservatory in February, at the peak of winter. Inside it’s warm and humid and smells so great I can’t even describe it.

Picture

Day trips to more rural areas. And while they lack the majesty of a fall-time forest, botanical gardens – not uncommon in urban environments have their offerings.

Ask your professors they may know some places. One of mine showed my this completely hidden enclosed garden with a great little koi pond. You had to go down to the basement, climb thru a window, but it was worth it.

Is there an Outing Club? I went to college in an urban environment and every sunday the outing club went on a hike outside the city. It was really great! If there isn’t one, I bet you could find other students who want to get outside and organize something.

@Mariah : The area is crawling with secret and not so secret gardens, parks, reservoirs with their own parks and large lakes. You can ask the campus police about security and safety. Check your PMs.

I don’t get the concern about not sharing the approximate location of the school. Doesn’t sound risky to me.
Not as risky as posting a photo of yourself online.

One online photo can hack your identity