Call for Volunteer Bloggers!

Have you visited the Forestry Outreach Center, attended a recent event, or hiked the Pinnacles lately? Do you have a story to share about an experience in the Berea College Forest, past or present? Can you provide insight into the flora, fauna, or history of College Forest lands? If so, we invite you to consider volunteering to contribute to this website as a guest blogger! Submit your post, including a photo or two, if possible, to Alison Adkins at Alison_adkins@berea.edu . We hope to be reading your story on this site very soon!  

by Jay Buckner
Posted by Wendy Warren The Center Volunteer

The Berea College Trace

by Chase Denny

The recently created Berea College Trace is self-described as the “thread that weaves together our history and our future.”

This thread is one that not only includes places to shop around, eat some wonderful food, and stay overnight in exquisite lodging, but it also includes various educational and recreational opportunities that are offered by the College. Read more “The Berea College Trace”

Posted by Kayla Zagray Uncategorized

A Time For Pause

By Michelle Berendsen

A Time for Pause

When the cold settles, the earth grows quiet.
When the cold settles, the world pauses.
When the cold settles, change happens.

The bear… wanting naught but food and slumber.
The grass… wilting and falling beneath the snow.
The lost animal… pining for its reunion with summer.

They know this is not forever.
They understand this is a time to prepare.
They feel the knowledge the earth lends.

Read more “A Time For Pause”

Posted by Wendy Warren Uncategorized

To Everything There is a Season

by Jordan Byrnes

Winter has arrived in Kentucky. The winter solstice is December 21st, but for me winter begins when the thermometer drops below 32◦, the last leaves fall, and sunset is around 5:00pm. The lack of sunlight, fresh air, and time outdoors can be disheartening.

Winter can be inhospitable, but I see silver linings. Every season is full of gifts and opportunities. Some of these are easy to identify and understand. The new beginnings of spring, the sunny summer moments of carefree living, the bountiful and colorful autumn harvest.

Others are not so easy. The violent storms that come when seasons change, the brutal heat of summer, or the bitter cold of winter. These require us to look beyond appearances to see deeper meaning.

Read more “To Everything There is a Season”

Posted by Wendy Warren Hiking OUTDOOR Students

Now Presenting: Brushy Fork Nature Coalition

by Chase Denny

There is a new kid on the block, folks! Berea College is proud to present the newly established organization known as the Brushy Fork Nature Coalition (BFNC). Student-led and student established group with the purpose of engaging students, faculty, staff, and community members. The BFNC plans to do this through opportunities that prove to be service-oriented, educational, and beneficial to the environment. The mission of the Brushy Fork Nature Coalition is to clean, maintain, and restore Brushy Fork’s Forest & Trails in order to provide an educational and recreational setting that offers students an opportunity to learn about the environment, wildlife, sustainability, and the outdoors. Berea College Sophomore Hunter McDavid is the founder and coordinator of the Brushy Fork Nature Coalition. Working alongside Hunter as the advisor for this coalition is the Forestry Outreach Center’s own Wendy Warren. This is an exciting development for nature lovers, those going into a nature related profession, and/or anyone that is interested in the beautiful scenery Brushy Fork has to offer. Brushy Fork is located right behind the Alumni Building at Berea College and is home to many beautiful sights

Read more “Now Presenting: Brushy Fork Nature Coalition”

Posted by Wendy Warren Community Hiking OUTDOOR

Why Are We Building a Bridge?

Chase Denny                                                 

Why do we ever build bridges? Sure, we build bridges to travel over water so we can take our fancy cars from place to place or so we don’t get our feet wet when we need to cross a creek. Although these functions are very helpful, I do not believe these are the most important uses for a bridge. Bridges can be so much more than some concrete or some wood we use so our hiking boots stay dry. Bridges connect places and more importantly, bridges can connect people. They can help establish entire communities from nothing or repair longstanding communities that are on the brink of falling apart. This is why we are building a bridge through our work here at the Forestry Outreach Center (FOC).

Read more “Why Are We Building a Bridge?”

Posted by Wendy Warren Community Hiking OUTDOOR Students

If a Tree Falls…

by Trent Powell

“If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?”

Of course! But even if people were around to hear it, they would never be able to understand what the tree was saying. Peter Wohlleben, forester and author of “The Hidden Life of Trees”, discovered that trees, much like many other living organisms, have a way of communicating with one another.

Read more “If a Tree Falls…”

Posted by Wendy Warren Community Students Trees

Neuroscience in Nature

Civilization grows at an exponential rate, and our technologies and influence over the Earth is ever evolving. It is astounding how different things were 100, 50, even 25 years ago. One large difference is our shift towards the comforts of living indoors, not just as a country, but as a society. In fact, as of around 2008, the majority of the world’s population (and 54% as of 2014) lived in urban areas. This is the first time in the history of the world that this has happened (UN 2014).

Read more “Neuroscience in Nature”

Posted by Wendy Warren Hiking Students