Skip to Main Content
Skidmore College
Water Resources Initiative (WRI)

Winter sunset on Saratoga Lake

Field Trips

The WRI field trips immerse students in the human-water interactions that shape water discussions on both a local and global scale. Driving tours of the Saratoga Lake watershed and boat tours of Saratoga Lake itself help students better understand the social, cultural, and natural influences contributing to the controversies associated with a search for a new drinking water source. The first-hand visualization of the watershed is also critical to helping students develop creative and practical community-based research questions. An international field trip to the Valley of Mexico places our local water issues in a global context for students and helps emphasize the challenges facing many communities in water-stressed regions of the world.

Valley of Mexico

Valley of Mexico 1
Allison Stafford '06, Kim Marsella and Karen Kellogg in Mexico


Valley of Mexico 2
Karen Kellogg and Allison Stafford '06 looking at water systems in Mexico


Valley of Mexico 3
Students and faculty at water fiesta

Valley of Mexico 4
Students and faculty at water fiesta

 

Southern California - Salton Sea


Wildflowers of the desert ecosystem in Southern California
Wildflowers of the desert ecosystem in Southern California

One of the many irrigation canals in the highly managed water systems of Southern California
One of the many irrigation canals in the highly managed water systems of Southern California



Saratoga Lake Watershed

Saratoga Watershed 1
Molly Bergen '07 with Alison Barnes at the start of Fish Creek


Saratoga Watershed 2
Students and faculty on Saratoga Lake


Saratoga Watershed 3
Michael Ennis-McMillan navigating Saratoga Lake with students

Saratoga Watershed 4
Karen Kellogg and Adam Wallace '06

 

Southern California - Salton Sea


Kim Marsella, Bob Turner and Michael Ennis-McMillan walking along the shore of the Salton Sea
Kim Marsella, Bob Turner and Michael Ennis-McMillan walking along the shore of the Salton Sea


Bob Turner on Salvation Mountain
Bob Turner on Salvation Mountain