I loved my first experience hiking through Ithaca’s gorges; it made me realize how blessed we are to have such amazing works of nature right on our campus. My favorite part of the guided trip, led by Rose House Fellow Todd Bittner, was probably when we compared the gorge to what it looked like in the 1900s. The pictures that Todd showed us helped explain the changes that took place over time, for example, the flattening of the waterfall, new additions to the bridge, changing surrounding foliage, and added infrastructure of course. I also thoroughly enjoyed learning more about the history of Cornell’s founding, as it reminds me to always be grateful and will enrich my overall experience here. My wish is for more students to be aware and take advantage of the opportunities provided by the university to explore Cornell’s nature. An environment as grand yet calming as ours is difficult to find at most other college campuses. It is humbling to know that a natural masterpiece lies tucked away behind buildings but is always there to explore, and I appreciate how intricately woven our campus is with the natural landscape of Ithaca. Before this trip, I never knew that such a trail lived right under my nose.