These blissfully warm summer days are coming to an end, and before you know it, Syracuse University will be covered with a blanket of fresh snow. Before it’s too late, take advantage of the warmer temperatures and enjoy what nature has to offer at Green Lakes State Park.

Jenny Hale, a senior marketing and supply chain management major, said she has been enjoying the trails and nature at Green Lakes with family and friends for as long as she can remember.

“It’s one of the better state parks, I would say,” Hale said. “And I’ve been to a lot.”

Located just 15-25 minutes from campus in Fayetteville, N.Y., Green Lakes is an expansive 1,744-acre park containing two glacial lakes, called Round and Green lakes. The surrounding area is filled with forests and wildlife.

Park manager Jim Semar said that students who make the trip should take advantage of the numerous recreational activities available within the park. With trails for hiking and biking, lakes for swimming and fishing, and an 18-hole golf course, there are plenty of options to choose.

“We have a disc golf course – like a Frisbee disc course – that people love to come and play on,” Semar said.

For more adventurous students, the park’s hiking trails offer scenic views and an overall peaceful experience. Green Lakes has approximately 20 miles of hiking trails – which double as cross country skiing trails in the winter months – where visitors can spot different kinds of wildlife and a range of bird species.

Even if you aren’t the hiking type, Green Lakes has a trail that is short, flat and cleared of any overgrown plants or trees, making it easily accessible to any novice hiker.

“It’s not really hiking, it’s more like a path. It’s an easy path anybody can access,” Hale said. “You just walk around and there are canoes and kayaks you can take along the way. It’s really convenient.”

The trails offer many great views of the park’s two lakes, and from some points along the trails, visitors might even be able to spot parts of the SU campus on a clear day.

Due to the depth of the lakes and the way the sun hits them, the bodies of water do not mix during certain times of the year and therefore turn green, Semar said. The green color suggests there might be evidence of ancient plant and animal life somewhere in these lakes, according to New York state’s Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation website.

So, if you need a break from campus and want to soak up some sunshine before it gets so cold that you freeze while walking from one class to the next, take advantage of this local gem.

Said Semar: “You would never know that you were just 15 minutes from the Syracuse campus when you are here.

Published on August 29, 2013 at 1:41 am

Contact Katie: kjrichar@syr.edu | @ktjrichards