The Binghamton University Nature Preserve

You can live in an area for over 30 years, and yet, barely spend any time in a prominent part that thousands live and work in.

For me, a thirty plus years resident of the Binghamton area of upstate New York, such a rarely visited area is Binghamton University, better known by many as SUNY Binghamton.  It is considered (by many) to be one of the top universities in the country.   Several cousins of mine who grew up on Long Island/Queens have gone there.

I used to go on campus once a year for an annual event, but, for years, the only time I have gone is when it is Parents Weekend, if I have a cousin in attendence.  This year, I did.

I've seen the campus grow over the years, with more and more buildings lining the campus.  Enrollment increases every year.  In some ways, the university has led the revival of downtown Binghamton, once a bustling city of some 80,000 people and now down to about 47,000.

But does it make me want to go back to college?  I can look at photos, and realize how much I have aged since my college years (in a commuter college in New York City, where there were no dorms and I lived at home).

Yesterday, my spouse and I walked down streets jammed with students, and their visiting families.   Being in crowds is not a favorite for me, one reason, perhaps, I left my native New York City. But I knew there were a couple of places I could find peace.

One was the Memorial Garden at the Fine Arts Building, commemorating the 15 alumni who died on September 11, 2001.

I gazed upon the memorial.

Later that day, with my cousins, I walked the marsh trail, one of several nature trails on the campus' Nature Preserve.  There, I took a couple of pictures of bidens, which are just now coming into bloom.  They are another member of the large aster family.

Bidens and bee.

I will feature a couple of more photos on Skywatch Friday.

Let me tell you something about the Binghamton University Nature Preserve.

In the late 1960's, what is now the Nature Preserve almost became ballfields.  The big word here is "almost", because it was saved for future generations.  Expanded in several stages, the preserve now covers 182 acres of living laboratory, and it's open to the public.  Trees include hemlock and oak. Here's a plant list. Mammals living in the preserve include white-tailed deer, beaver, coyotes, fox, mink, muskrat, bats, and porcupines.  Black bears visit, but do not live in the preserve.

I tend to ignore this wonderful resource of our area except once a year or so.  But Binghamton University has much to be proud of with this preserve - the greatest concentration of bird species in the Southern Tier of New York, and more. (Unfortunately, yesterday, it also seemed to have the greatest concentration of gnats in the Southern Tier.  I knew I should have brought bug spray.  Due to gnats, and the mud (I do have my balance problems), I decided not to complete the entire trail.

Perhaps I should become less of a stranger to Binghamton University, and come better prepared.

It is strange how I ignore the treasures in my area.

Do you?