On Thursday, Jan. 14 and 15 students embarked on a chilly day spent in the woods at Round Lake State Park in order to gain information on local wildlife as well as native tree species.

The trip consisted of four stations: wildlife tracking, tree identification, animal pelt and skull identifications, and conservation awareness. Of the four stations, only the animal pelt station took place inside a heated space. Although, the animal tracking and tree identification were very active stations.

Students were outside from 8:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. with a 40 minute time period to warm up.  

Students participated on hikes to find different tracks, such as whitetail deer and beaver, as well as practice their tree identification and learn about several common tree diseases and how to identify them.

“I love taking field trips because it helps me understand everything I learn in class a lot more,” senior forestry student Braden Rudy said.

The forestry class often takes hands-on field trips in order to learn more about the outdoors. Teacher John Hastings opens the trips up to not only his advanced forestry class but also his ecology students.