The St. Olaf Natural Lands: A True Community Asset

As part of my internship this summer, I’ve had the opportunity to spend some “unstructured reflection time” on the St. Olaf Natural Lands. The point of such reflection is not to necessarily have a goal in mind when I arrive, but to let my mind wander, and to write about the time I spend there.

Two weeks ago, four of my housemates and I all decided to go for an evening stroll through the trails that weave through the restored prairies and woodlands that surround the campus proper. Carrying a cup of hot tea, I listened to my housemates talk about their workweeks. We were all fortunate to have a former national parks employee in our midst, who pointed out invasive thistles on our right and helped us identify whatever bird species he could remember as we moved along. By the time we returned home, we all were remarking about how fortunate we were to have our own “nature center” in our backyard.

Over the past few weeks, I have continued to visit the natural lands sporadically, oftentimes ending up at the same bench overlooking a restored wetland after a good walk. I'm a little bit surprised at how unused the St. Olaf’s natural lands are in Northfield during the summer. True, Northfield does seem to have no shortage of beautiful outdoor areas to visit (the Carleton Arboretum being my personal favorite), but the St. Olaf Natural Lands provide a little something different than farmland vistas and city’s parks. They provide us with a chance to experience a totally unique aspect of the wild world around us. Unfortunately, I think sometimes people forget that St. Olaf College is a friendly member of the Northfield community and that its land can be just as much of a community asset as Ames Park or the River Bend Nature Center.

For those of you who haven’t yet checked out the Natural Lands, here’s a link to our website that describes them. http://www.stolaf.edu/academics/naturallands/

Visiting “townies” and students can find over 90 acres of restored woodlands, 150 acres of restored tall grass prairie, 15 restored wetland marshes, an extensive bluebird trail, and some good-old-fashioned biodiversity, just to name a few things. So, next time your out for a walk, or looking for a new form of summer entertainment for the kids, head to the natural lands. I guarantee you’ll leave feeling reenergized and refreshed.

More on the Natural Lands to come…