Conserving Nature, Climbing Rocks: A Guide to Outdoor Adventures

[00:00:00] Brad Groznik: This is the Rediscover State College podcast. On this show, we talk to locals about how they were able to find their happy place in Happy Valley. I’m your host, Brad Groznik. Today we’re joined by Bridget White. adventure coordinator at Clearwater Conservancy. Bridget leads outdoor activities for the Greater State College community through Clearwater’s Centered Outdoors program and is also an avid member of the local rock climbing community.

[00:00:29] Brad Groznik: In this episode, we’ll explore how Bridget found her way back to State College, why she believes the climbing community is unique, and how you can get involved with outdoor adventures in the area. All right, Bridget, thank you for joining us today.

[00:00:44] Bridget Whyte: Thanks for having me, Brad.

[00:00:45] Brad Groznik: So, really would love to hear how you ended up in State College and involved with Clearwater.

[00:00:50] Bridget Whyte: So, my background is in environmental science and education. So, I worked a lot of jobs after college that were seasonal, moved around quite a bit. And my first time in State College, Was actually in 2018, I had an internship with Shavers Creek Environmental Center. Quickly got to know the place after then moving away to continue some of that seasonal work elsewhere.

[00:01:13] Bridget Whyte: I knew that maybe it was a place that I would eventually come back to. And so in 2021, came back to State College for the second time. I started working with Clearwater Conservancy. And really the reason I came back was because I knew I had that community here. I had some friends still in town and the place always felt, it just felt real.

[00:01:32] Bridget Whyte: Working in this field, you, you live in a lot of places and work in a lot of places that maybe are tourist towns or areas where you can guide and be a part of that industry. But this is a place that felt like I had that connection to the community for the first time, rather than just being someone at the, at the front of a group giving a tour.

[00:01:50] Bridget Whyte: I felt like I was actually a part of this community. So. I ended up back here again, and now I’ve been here for a few years now.

[00:01:56] Brad Groznik: Where did you grow up? I saw that you went to college in New York. Is that where you’re from?

[00:02:00] Bridget Whyte: Yes, yeah, I’m from Rochester, New York, and I went to school at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse.

[00:02:08] Bridget Whyte: Did my degree in environmental education.

[00:02:10] Brad Groznik: And it sounds like you were kind of taking these kind of seasonal works, and you said that State College, you know, kind of won out of the places that you were. Where else were you?

[00:02:19] Bridget Whyte: I did that first summer internship in Aspen, Colorado. From there, I worked back in New York in the Adirondacks.

[00:02:26] Bridget Whyte: And then Shavers Creek, so that first time in state college, so I was in Pennsylvania. That next summer, I was back in Colorado. I was working in Vail then. After that was Boulder that brought us into the pandemic after Boulder was back to state college where I am now. So New York, Colorado, and Pennsylvania is where I’ve been.

[00:02:46] Brad Groznik: I’m just really curious as someone who has worked in Colorado and Central Pennsylvania. What do the two have in common? What do they have differently? What does State College have that Colorado doesn’t? And then what was, you know, you mentioned a few things, but I’m just curious, like, what was special about State College that made you want to come back?

[00:03:03] Bridget Whyte: Obviously, the landscape is really different. Being able to work In the field that I do, Colorado is like, you know, the Mecca. It’s, it’s got the mountains. It’s got the views and my job specifically there. I was taking people on hikes. I was working as a guide. So I had the privilege to be able to see what a lot of people want to travel to that place for and be the person that got to showcase that and bring people into those areas and onto those trails.

[00:03:27] Bridget Whyte: So it is, it’s an incredible place to work if you’re sort of, if you’re in this field, but the place that I was, so I was, I was in Vail, I was working for a nature center that, you know, it partnered with Vail resorts, the forest service. It was a really great place to work, but being, and again, that sort of that tourist town, there was a lot of it.

[00:03:45] Bridget Whyte: That didn’t feel very real or genuine as someone who was there year round. And that’s a conversation a lot in this industry is like, If you’re working sort of in this work, you’re going to end up in places that people are just coming to visit and then they’re leaving again. And it’s hard to be the people that stay there full time year round.

[00:04:04] Bridget Whyte: So the difference between an area like that and Pennsylvania or state college here now is that there’s a bit more of that year round community. And I say that while kind of smirking, because it’s still a place where there’s so much of that turnover. We get students and then we don’t have students. And it does feel like that sometimes, like there’s, you know, the people that are here, the residents, and then there’s the students that come in and out.

[00:04:28] Bridget Whyte: But for the most part, it was easier to feel like I was. Touching down in a place that had more people with more roots, that was something that I think that I was really missing for those few years that I was in Colorado. There’s that difference in landscape, difference in job opportunities, because there’s a lot of, you know, outdoor recreation there, but when I started to feel like maybe I was, Turning back to like, I want to settle down in the place.

[00:04:53] Bridget Whyte: I think that moving every six months is something that’s in my past, but I was really looking for was a place where I felt like I could settle down a bit more having been here previously. I wanted to move back to a place. Rather than moving to a new place.

[00:05:09] Brad Groznik: Yeah. And you talk about roots and you ended up at Clearwater Conservancy.

[00:05:13] Brad Groznik: There’s not many organizations that have deeper roots in the community than Clearwater. Can you talk a little bit about, you know, how you found that nonprofit? Maybe talk a little bit about what Clearwater is and what you’re doing?

[00:05:25] Bridget Whyte: For those who don’t know Clearwater Conservancy, yeah, we’re a pretty rooted organization, been around since 1980.

[00:05:31] Bridget Whyte: Clearwater is a land trust. A lot of the work that we do is in both land and water conservation, so that can include Conserving land through conservation easements, working with private or public landowners, as well as then the water side of things. So there’s, you know, stream restoration working on riparian zones and riparian buffer stewardship.

[00:05:53] Bridget Whyte: Um, so a lot of the hands on work, but then centered outdoors, which is the program that I manage is the education and outreach efforts that brings the local community into the work that Clearwater does. So, obviously. Even just outright saying, oh, yeah, conservation easement. Not many folks might know what that is, but what they can connect to at 1st is a trail that they’ve been to before.

[00:06:16] Bridget Whyte: They’re going to go on that walk with a guide, or with some people that they know from the community, and they’re going to learn a little bit more about that place. And then maybe how it got protected in the 1st place and sort of bring that message back to clear water and the work that happens. I’ve been managing that program for a few years now, which has been really fun.

[00:06:35] Brad Groznik: So your title at Clearwater, if I’m not, if I’m not, if I’m correct, is the adventure coordinator. Yes. That sounds like a pretty, that’d be a pretty cool job title to have on a business card and talk a little bit about like what you do day to day and what you do at Centered Outdoors.

[00:06:49] Bridget Whyte: It’s funny, that’s actually a part of my spiel in the beginning of most programs and events is I’ll say my name and my title, and I know it’s the coolest title ever, get folks to laugh, but, I mean, essentially what that means is I’m a program coordinator, I coordinate the Centered Outdoors program, day to day wise, it changes with the season, so when we’re in our peak season of programming, what that can look like is, Being out at events, either guiding the programs and the guided walks or hikes, or at least serving as the host at events.

[00:07:21] Bridget Whyte: If we have. You know, an external facilitator or guide that’s at that specific location. So during our programming, our main programming seasons, it’s a lot of. Work out in the fields, engaging with the community myself. And in that off season, it’s really just a lot of the behind the scenes of getting that program ready.

[00:07:39] Bridget Whyte: So. You know, if we have permits that need to be completed for specific event areas, or, like, I mentioned, folks that we’re working with that are going to be. Guiding that programming or those walks throughout the season. It’s a lot of building relationships and connections. With other people in the community that are sort of in the fields and doing similar work, I think that’s something that happens really well here is that.

[00:08:04] Bridget Whyte: A lot of these outdoor and educational organizations know what’s going on elsewhere as well. There’s a lot of opportunities to do guided outdoor programming outside of Centered Outdoors, and so we kind of. Use that to each other’s benefits to utilize each other, you know, within our programming as well, which is great to be able to kind of have that support from the community too.

[00:08:27] Brad Groznik: Centered Outdoors just is such a great program and a great way for, for, for new people to stay college or people that are just getting to the outdoors to, to access it. You talked a little bit about, about these walks. Where are these walks? Who’s, who’s leading the walks? What, what can people expect if they show up to one of these walks?

[00:08:43] Brad Groznik: Centered Outdoors.

[00:08:44] Bridget Whyte: The model of the program is essentially sort of like a mobile program. We go out to different locations each week throughout the season. So for example, this year we’ve got 20 weeks of programming and we say that as our main season is summer into fall. And so again, we go out to new places each week.

[00:09:04] Bridget Whyte: So Last week, for example, we were out at Galbraith Gap. So the trail that leads you right into Rock Rock, it’s a really popular, you know, gateway trail into the forest. Those walks were actually just led by some of our Clearwater staff, myself, and our other adventure coordinator. And it’s on a trail, you know, there’s some rocky parts, there’s some gravel, some road.

[00:09:23] Bridget Whyte: So there was different terrain involved in those guided walks. And it was mostly focused on the local ecology. So we’re talking about. The stream we’re walking along, the trees that we’re seeing, the flowers and plants. But then, you know, flash forward to this week, we’re out at Talleyrand Park, which is a different terrain.

[00:09:40] Bridget Whyte: It’s paved paths, it’s in between, you know, a busy intersection with lots of folks passing through, and then the walks were actually guided by a local history teacher, Matt Maris, who works with local Historia, and we partnered with him to guide those walks because of the rich history of Belfont. We focused on sort of the historical side of things.

[00:10:05] Bridget Whyte: He tied in some water and natural history as well to that event. But for some locations, human history and impacts of things is more prevalent in that area. So we’ll lean into that a bit more. It’s a lot of variety in both. You know, the physicality of these different events and the topics that are covered.

[00:10:22] Bridget Whyte: So the idea is that we want it to be a little bit of everything for anyone. Um, that’s kind of the slogan of center outdoors is trying to make it accessible for all and making the outdoors for all. And so we really try to lean into that to make sure it’s. something that might be appealing to anyone. It seems

[00:10:38] Brad Groznik: like it’s a great way to learn about all these other organizations that are tangential to what you’re doing.

[00:10:43] Bridget Whyte: Yeah, it’s a big part of it too. A lot of the community asks.

[00:10:45] Brad Groznik: What are some of your favorite centered outdoors hikes or walks?

[00:10:49] Bridget Whyte: Alan Seeger comes to mind at first as being just one of my favorite places, you know, landscape wise. It’s an old growth forest. It feels that way. It feels old. It feels special. So I think just environment wise, that’s one of my favorite places to be in and to walk around myself.

[00:11:06] Bridget Whyte: But then in terms of, you know, when we’re connecting and partnering with other places, obviously, there’s a soft spot in my heart for shavers Creek. So, when we’ve done events out there and worked with those. Educators and staff that lead the walks, then I kind of get to pull back and almost be a participant myself and get the chance to learn again and see it in a new way.

[00:11:24] Bridget Whyte: And so. That’s always fun to, I think another local favorite probably would be mustard gap. I can, I can throw in a plug that Clearwater helps conserve mustard gap as well, but I think it’s a really great place just because it’s like, at least for me and where I live, it’s a really quick, just like, if you want to get your blood pump in, you can hike up, hike back down, super accessible.

[00:11:44] Bridget Whyte: So I think that’s a great trail to kind of have a bit more of a challenging hike really, really quick.

[00:11:49] Brad Groznik: If you work on campus or downtown, you can be a mustard gap in like 10 minutes, you know, go for a nice walk. That’s what we always say. Like, you know, on your lunch break, you could be out in the woods in the middle of the woods in like 15 minutes.

[00:12:00] Brad Groznik: Right.

[00:12:00] Bridget Whyte: Yeah. So,

[00:12:01] Brad Groznik: you know, you haven’t been here long. I’m curious, like, what surprised you about the outdoors in this area?

[00:12:07] Bridget Whyte: I guess it was a little bit surprising, but I got to know the reality of that pretty quick was exactly what you said of people understand that really well. I think even maybe before they move here, but once they move here.

[00:12:18] Bridget Whyte: How much of a place it is to have sort of that downtown feel and a city feel and having a downtown and having folks around, but in minutes, you’re able to be in a state for us and multiple state for us, you know, we again, really have the benefit of being this little pocket of a town surrounded by force and all side and a lot of outdoor space.

[00:12:39] Bridget Whyte: You know, maybe I didn’t even know that too much when I came here that 1st time. And maybe even didn’t appreciate it too much because I know what I, you know, I wasn’t driving around a lot. I was pretty busy with that internship, but I think that moving back here again, and now being more long term in the space, I do take more opportunity and take advantage of the fact that.

[00:12:59] Bridget Whyte: You know, I can have that social life of, you know, people in community, but then within minutes, you know, run away to the woods. If I need to

[00:13:06] Brad Groznik: Just shifting gears a little bit, what has been your experience as a young professional in this community.

[00:13:12] Bridget Whyte: I think being a young professional in this area can be difficult sometimes because.

[00:13:16] Bridget Whyte: The age that you are, uh, maybe you’re relating to grad students or students, um, you’re kind of a part of that transient community, just age demographically. And so you might feel like you’re part of those communities that are kind of always shifting. Sort of in this gap in between of, you know, you’re not a part of that younger audience that.

[00:13:35] Bridget Whyte: Is coming in and also leaving, but you’re not maybe a part of that audience. That’s a bit above you. That’s sort of really settling down those roots and starting families. So I think being a professional can be somewhat difficult in that way, trying to find those pockets. But I’d say on the flip side of that.

[00:13:50] Bridget Whyte: And something that kind of relates to this whole topic is how do you then find that community and find something that does feel a little bit more rooted and settled to do that in the outdoors is really then a solution to that being a part of a group or a part of a sport that’s very prevalent in state college I think is an easy way to feel a little bit more rooted when everything else kind of feels like it’s shifting a lot.

[00:14:14] Brad Groznik: like outside your day job, how do you interact with the outdoors or what sports are you interested in?

[00:14:19] Bridget Whyte: I got into rock climbing about like six or seven years ago at a previous job. It has stuck with me now through all the places that I’ve been to and was a big part of the community that I found again when I was first here in State College and continued to be when I came back.

[00:14:35] Bridget Whyte: I started working part time helping out with some of the youth programming at Climb Nittany, which is the climbing gym in Bolzberg. And through that position, I found a huge community. So I’d say the rock climbing community here is one that has Really helped me to feel like I have a home here in State College and to kind of make me feel like I have those roots, you know, the easier ways to get outside, which is just simply walking out my door and going on a walk is still something that I value.

[00:15:02] Bridget Whyte: Incredibly. It’s a little less cumbersome than having to, you know, get your gear together for a rock climbing trip, but nonetheless, it’s just as important to just like, walk out your back door and find a place to go on a go on a walk and go on a hike. So that’s super important. Yeah.

[00:15:15] Brad Groznik: So it is totally easy to go on a hike, but if somebody wanted to get into rock climbing, like how do you get into rock climbing locally?

[00:15:24] Bridget Whyte: I would say starting with Climb Nittany. It’s a place that really caters towards families, there’s youth programming, it’s meant for all ages and all skill levels, so it’s a great place to get started if you’re really starting from square one.

[00:15:37] Bridget Whyte: From there, it’s something that you can do for a while. I mean, there’s all ages, like I said there, and that really means skewing towards the other end too that it’s a sport that you can almost do, you know. It’s a great opportunity for that socialization and community you could find here.

[00:15:52] Brad Groznik: Outside of the gym, is there rock climbing around this area?

[00:15:55] Brad Groznik: How far is it? Like, what’s, what’s it like?

[00:15:57] Bridget Whyte: Yeah, there is. There’s some, um, outdoor opportunity too. There’s bouldering areas, which is, you know, where you would just be able to find a rock, bring a crash pad, mats, and you don’t have to have all the other gear of, you know, Setting up ropes and things. So that’s something that someone could do even a bit more solo.

[00:16:15] Bridget Whyte: But then there’s also places to do some sport climbing as well. Donation Rocks is a place that is pretty well known and really well taken care of and maintained. By organizations out here, so being able to kind of connect those 2 is a really great opportunity to start off in an indoor area and indoor gym and then learn how to take that opportunity outside again.

[00:16:37] Bridget Whyte: That’s something that climate. And I think does. Well, folks from the climbing gym sort of connect people with where there’s opportunities to climb outside and how to do that. So there’ll be. Um, sort of like workshops you can sign up for where you can learn how to, you know, get the gear, get the skill and knowledge to take what you’ve learned at an indoor gym and do it outside locally and connect with the people that do it locally.

[00:17:00] Brad Groznik: we’re going to enter our segment called how to do the thing where we ask you to briefly lay out for us three actionable steps on how to do the thing, or at least how to get started doing that thing. The thing in this case is connecting with the outdoors in the State College area. What would you say three actual steps our listeners could take toward achieving that goal?

[00:17:19] Bridget Whyte: The first thing that I think you want to do in trying to, you know, teach someone to connect with the outdoors is They have to sort of learn how to appreciate it on their own and do it in a way. That’s going to feel easy almost. So I think that finding that. Local and easy to use space that’s outside that you can get to, you know, is 1st and foremost, whether that’s a park nearby, there’s a rail trail nearby where you live, finding a space that.

[00:17:49] Bridget Whyte: Is going to be something that’s easy for you to be able to maintain a relationship to for myself. I’m right by the Penn State Arboretum. So that’s a trail that I can get to within minutes from my house and it’s. Something that’s grown into a really great connection with that area that I think that I wouldn’t maybe necessarily have if I didn’t live so close to it.

[00:18:07] Bridget Whyte: So finding that space that’s close to you geographically, I think is sort of. First and foremost, and starting to build a relationship with the outdoors. And I think from there, something that, you know, we promote with Centered Outdoors is, how can we build this into a routine for folks? Do they come out to an event each week with us or once a month with us?

[00:18:28] Bridget Whyte: I think building that connection to the outdoors into your routine makes it so it’s something that you naturally want to turn back to. If you are feeling stressed, you go for a walk outside. You’re feeling upset if you have An hour between meetings, if it’s something that you have naturally now started to do, it’s like, you can kind of build it into your routine and have.

[00:18:51] Bridget Whyte: Again, that relationship with it doing that, you know, I’ll kind of put that into number 2 is finding maybe people or places that have group events or community events that you can build your routine into. You meet up with folks that are going on a group ride once a week or a community hike centered outdoors for an option.

[00:19:11] Bridget Whyte: And then I think, for example, the rock climbing community, having a connection of. You know, we like to get outside and climb on these rocks, but to be able to enjoy it, we have to help maintain it. So I think the, the 3rd step would probably be, you know, finding a way that you can at least start to help.

[00:19:28] Bridget Whyte: Make a difference, or be a part of something that happens locally that, you know, helps that outdoor or natural resource that you’re trying to recreate on or with. You don’t want to necessarily have to turn your hobby into a job, but you want your hobby to be able to have longevity and to be able to do that.

[00:19:47] Bridget Whyte: We want to make sure these outdoor spaces. Can exist in perpetuity that they exist in a healthy environment that those plants and animals and those natural spaces are are thriving for you to be able to also recreate on them too. And so I think, like, that last action step would be maybe to connect with.

[00:20:04] Bridget Whyte: A an organization or a place that’s doing good work to kind of maintain those areas and that feels, you know, rewarding and fulfilling too. So I think it kind of. Comes full circle then and getting outside and really enjoying it and enjoying what it took to make that possible. That’s

[00:20:19] Brad Groznik: awesome. I love that.

[00:20:21] Brad Groznik: If people want to learn more about center doors, where should they go? We

[00:20:24] Bridget Whyte: have a website online centered outdoors dot org. That’s where all of our information is. You’ll see our events. Anything that we can offer in terms of gear and opportunities for our programming, everything will be listed out on that website there.

[00:20:39] Bridget Whyte: And if you’re local and have the chance to get out to places like Appalachian Outdoors, Shavers Creek, any places that we partner with, our Centered Outdoors Passport, it’s a physical little booklet that lists out all of our events for that season. So, check it out. Those are available, they’re free, and they are a way to kind of see what we’re up to, see new trails and places to go.

[00:21:02] Bridget Whyte: And that passport’s also, a digital copy is available on our website too, so. A lot of ways to connect with our program, to be able to check out what we do. Bridget,

[00:21:09] Brad Groznik: thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us. Personally, I just love hearing stories of people who aren’t from here, that, Come here and see something special.

[00:21:17] Brad Groznik: So I really appreciate you sharing that story. Thanks, Brad.

[00:21:24] Brad Groznik: Thanks for joining us on this episode of the Rediscover State College podcast. If you like what you heard and want to hear more, please subscribe to the Rediscover State College podcast wherever you listen to podcasts. If you want to connect with Bridget about anything we just talked about, or you have some thoughts about connecting with the outdoors in State College that you’d like to share with us, email us at hello at rediscoverstatecollege.com.