My roommates and I did a lot of outings in the weeks after a cyberattack ended RPI finals prematurely. Among the places we visited were Kaaterskill Falls in the Catskills, June Farms, Washington Park in Albany, and Shelving Rock near Lake George. With other friends, I went to the Snow Hole on the Taconic Crest Trail (when there was still snow on the ground, in April), Indian Head and Mt. Marcy in the Adirondacks.
On the 22nd of May I graduated summa cum laude from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a Bachelor’s of Science in Electrical Engineering with a minor in General Psychology and a concentration in Power Systems. I received the Henry J. Nolte Memorial Prize for an outstanding engineering research or design project, and the Grainger Scholar Award for academic performance and future promise in the area of power systems, both from the Department of Electrical, Computer and Systems Engineering. It has been an incredible experience which felt like much more than four years. Like any epic journey, this one had its guides and supporters, including my family, the friends who kept in touch from high school, the friends I made along the way, the faculty of The Sharon Academy who awarded me a crucial scholarship, and all the outstanding professors who showed personal interest in every student’s success.
In the weeks after graduation, I reconnected with a couple roommates in Massachusetts, did some local hiking, stayed at Highland Lodge with my parents, and visited a friend’s cabin on Loon Lake.
Snowy twigs
Lingering snow in the Taconics in April
Snow Hole
On the Taconic Crest Trail
Mother goose
Goose protects her nest at Cohoes Falls
Cohoes Falls
Goose
Rabbit
Spotted in my yard
Lilacs
At Washington Park, Albany
Statues
One day, we wandered into the Albany tulip festival on accident
Honeybees
And grape hyacinth
Tulips
More tulips
Bumblebee
Empire State Plaza
Groundhog
At home in Troy. Name: “Kevin”
Rabbit
Also in our yard in Troy
Wild columbine
At Peeble’s Island
Roots
A tree that’s been completely undermined at Peeble’s Island
Deer
Blackbird?
In Waterford
Old Erie Canal
Running parallel to the active canal, in Waterford
Lock controls
At the lock in Waterford on the Erie Canal
Mule
By the Canal
Mist Rainbow
By Shelving Rock
Waterfalls
At Shelving Rock
Lake George View
From Shelving Rock
AMR Gate
In the Adirondacks
Frog
We thought this guy was a chipmunk at first
Waterfall
Near Indian Head
Old Dam
Near Indian Head
Rainbow Falls
Near Indian Head
Rainbow Falls closer
Cleft
The cut in the earth where Rainbow Falls descends
Plane
Seen from Indian Head
Indian Head view
Gothics?
From Indian head
Lower Ausable Lake
From Indian Head
Emo Cow
At June Farm
Tadpoles
Happy Goat
Scream Cat
At June Farm
Falls
At Kaaterskill Falls
Falls from behind
At Kaaterskill Falls
Marcy Dam
On ascent of Mt. Marcy, the highest peak in New York State
Distant mountains
Seen from the valley by Marcy Dam
Snow on the trail
In late May, no less! It was quite deep.
Me
On the ascent of Mt. Marcy, wearing shorts and microspikes
Cairn
Near the peak of Marcy
Almost there
3 of my hiking partners near the peak
Marcy Peak
Algonquin from Marcy
View of the second highest peak in NY
EMPAC Sunset
I took one last walk around campus before leaving Troy, and saw the sunset at EMPAC one more time.
15th Street Bridge
Luce’s Lookout
in Woodstock, VT
View from Luce’s Lookout
Abandoned chimney
At the Pinnacle, Lyme
Red eft
In Strafford
Orchids
In Strafford
Falls
In Strafford
Fox
In Strafford
Bridge and Archway
In Stockbridge, MA
Fire tower
In Stockbridge, MA
Ice Glen
In Stockbridge, MA
Inside-out cave view
Cows
In Lee, MA
Bedroom view
In Lee, MA
Farmhouses and Gathering Clouds
In Hadley, MA
Inquisitive robin
In Hadley, MA
Caspian Lake
From Highland Lodge
Highland Lodge cabin
We stayed at Highland Lodge in Greensboro, VT for a weekend.
Beach on Caspian
Highland Lodge’s private beach
Butterflies drinking
At Caspian Lake
Toad
At Loon Lake, New Hampshire, where I stayed at a friend’s cabin.
Fishing dog
At Loon Lake
Canoe and Still Water
Loon Lake
Bald Eagle
At Loon Lake
Ducks
Surprisingly, there were no loons to be found at Loon lake.
