Since our return to campus for the Spring 2024 semester earlier this month, we have experienced single-digit temperatures and a seemingly continuous fall of snow that left our campus buried in snow, and our student population bundled up inside their dorm rooms to avoid the cold. The weather has gotten warmer this week, but we still have a decent amount of snow on campus. Although trudging through the slushy sidewalks and biting winter winds to get to your 8 a.m. class, or driving to Taco Bell on treacherously icy roads might not be the most enjoyable experiences, the snow provides an opportunity to partake in outdoor snow activities on-campus and locally that promise to bring entertainment and winter cheer. In order to determine what some of Andrews University’s favorite winter activities are and to provide readers with suggestions on where to partake in these activities, I took a small sample survey of students and asked about their favorite winter weather activities on and off-campus.
Tied in first place for favorite winter activities was ice skating and sledding. 30 percent of those I surveyed, such as Nate Miller (freshman, English, French, and music), said that ice-skating was their favorite outdoor activity, and an additional 30 percent, such as Olivia Hrovat (freshman, dietetics), said that sledding was their favorite. Tied for second place was 20 percent of those I surveyed, such as Lia Glass (sophomore, digital communications), who said that staying inside and watching the snow was their favorite activity. For third place, there was a two-way tie of 10 percent between students like Timi Olatunde (freshman, biochemistry), who voted for skiing, and students like Joshua Cardenas (freshman, architecture), who voted for having snowball fights.
Some of these activities, like sledding and having snowball fights, can be done on campus. In fact, all of the students who voted for sledding also voted for the campus sledding hill as their favorite spot to sled. The campus sledding hill is located behind University Towers and is an ideal spot for a fun afternoon of sledding with a group of friends! If you want to have a snowball fight, those can be conducted almost anywhere on campus, but I would recommend having them outside and away from uninvolved parties trying to walk to class. Although no one voted for making snowmen or snow sculptures, this would be a really fun activity to do with a group of friends if you want to stay on campus to have winter fun. Other activities like ice skating require a trip off campus to partake in. Those who voted for ice skating mentioned the John and Dede Howard Ice Arena in St Joseph or the Howard Ice Park in South Bend as their favorite spots to ice skate.
During the upcoming weeks and months that we still have snow, I encourage everyone to get outside and enjoy a fun winter activity with their friends and fellow students! Remember to bundle up, be safe, and have fun!
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.