Best Backpacking / Mountaineering Colleges

Hello forum, I'm looking to leave the hated corporate desk for grad school. I'm armed with my handy lists of top mathematics grad departments, but more importantly: I want to cross reference these against the best backpacking locations!

What are the major universities, public or private, that are well known to be situated near the best or most mountains / backpacking trails / wilderness areas?

Preferably with all four seasons...

Thank you in advance!

Jon

Almost any school in the western US is within comfortable reach of good back country. Those in major urban areas (LA, Denver, San Fran) are a bit more inaccessible. Think northern locations if you want winter sports.

My favorite, and I am prejudiced because I am a graduate, is the University of Arizona, just a bike ride away from trail heads, with lots available just a bit further away. Gets a bit warm in the summer, but higher, cooler country is easily accessible.

Frankly, this should be a secondary factor in choosing your graduate school, well behind the presence of a competent, accessible faculty. Develop a list of good schools and see which ones are close to the outdoors. Grad school isn't forever.

I was lucky - the UofA was listed regularly in the top five in my field when I attended (way back in the Pleistocene).

I can't give specifics, but have you thought about going East, young man? I'm thinking West Virginia (Dolly Sods is beautiful, and I'm hoping to return there after it kicked my butt the first time.) North Carolina and Tennessee might also have some great backpacking.

Another thread indicated that Maine also has some pretty wilderness.

Just thought I'd toss a plug in for my side of the Mississippi.

I'll second what OR had to say. The quality of a graduate program is far more important than its location. I am an alumni of the University of Washington; both for my bachelors and my graduate education. I went there for two reasons: first because in my field it was one of the top undergraduate and graduate programs in the nation and second because I was a resident of Washington (the state, not Sodom on the Potomac) and thus did not have to pay out-of-state tuition. By happy circumstance, some of the finest mountaineering in the nation is located in the State of Washington and I took full advantage of it. But, it can certainly take a bit of time to get out of Seattle and into the mountains although the peaks around Snoqualmie Pass are not much more than an hour away.

It's been a long time since I was in grad school, not quite as long (but almost) since the hubby was in grad school, but I most definitely remember that there was very, very little time for extraneous activity, especially during the school year!

IMHO, pick the best grad schools to apply to and don't worry too much about location. On the other hand, if you go clear across the country and want to come back to where you started after grad school, it will be a lot harder--very few prospective employers want to pay interview travel costs and moving costs from a long distance. It does help, therefore, to go to school somewhere near the area you want to locate afterwards. Of first importance, though, is the quality of the school.

Before severing connections with your current employer, find out if they are willing to absorb part of the cost. Many have tuition reimbursement plans and they might be willing to let you work part-time. It might take a bit longer to get through grad school, but at least you'll have a job and no debt when you're done. In today's economy, that's extremely important!

Thank you guys.

Oldranger you cover a lot of ground with all western schools! I'm hoping for true 4 seasons, so relable snow (at the school itself) every single year. As you say, this would indicate northern schools. But that still covers a lot of ground!

Any specific suggestions for major north and west research universities within 1 hour or less of major hiking / mountaineering ?

Your point is well taken that this should be down on my list of criteria. Which is why I'm trying to narrow down the 'top 50 / 100' lists of math grad departments. That's a lot of schools to apply to! So I might as well start with those that offer an additional attraction!


@Glenn: I'm a salty old easterner myself. And thanks for the 'young man' as I just turned 40 this month. I hiked the AT in 05 and would certainly consider NE schools, or possibly more southernly schools near the Smokies and such. We walked by Dartmouth on the trail and ran into many of their undergrads on trail. A fantastic outdoors school, but it doesn't even appear in the top 100 math schools.

I'm hoping for some more suggestions to research.

Where else?

Actually, that was a little play on the "Go West, young man" theme from the mid-1800s - but looking at it from the perspective of my 60 years, 40 definitely qualifies as young!

Good luck choosing a school, and getting that degree. You won't regret the time and effort it takes.

Hi pika and thank u for the info on U of Wash Seattle. I take it that the school is in the heart of Seattle? Maybe you can help me with something ... ? I have this image of the PAC NW being always gray and rainy and never any sun. Standard cliches of highest suicide rate, seasonal affective disorder, etc. Is this just bad press?

I believe I addressed my approach to school selection criteria above concerning academics and reputation...

Hi oregonmouse and thank you for the selection criteria advice. I believe I outlined my approach concerning selection methodology above e.g. Academics and reputation.

Assuming your trail name means you hail from Oregon, I'd be interested on your thoughts to my question to pika above concerning the Pac NW ... ?

Well considered points about location e.g. Where i hope to settle and interview post grad. As well as approaching my present employer for funding. as well as the economy. I was thinking to avoid the following as it's a bit personal, BUT...

The easy thing first: there is absolutely nothing salvageable about my relationship with my present employer. In terms of priorities for them, they would consider funding me for grad school somewhere way down on the list past 'fire him.' But luckily the sentiment is 2 way: a fundamental reason why I am going to grad school is to change my 'career' / series-of-jobs-since-undergrad and (hopefully) never look back.

This also includes any geographic ties, so 'returning somewhere' after school is a non-issue. And also why the location of school is more important than it first seems: it will be a fantastic way for me to 'test out' an area of the country I'm already considering living.

NAU in Flagstaff reminds me of Boulder Colorado in the 60's.

One of their math professors, Harvey Butchart, did a bit of hiking.

I known nothing of their graduate programs, but University of Oregon (Eugene) and Oregon State University (Corvallis) are located very close to many recreational activities including Three Sisters Wilderness, Crater Lake, Deschutes National Forest, etc. Mt. Bachelor is a couple of hours away and is suppose to be a great ski/snowboard mountain. If you're into mountaineering, you have many of the Cascade peaks in Oregon, such as Mt. Hood, Three Sisters, and Mt. Bachelor. Both colleges are also within two or so hours of the coast.

As for Northern California where I live, Chico State has much to offer in outdoor recreation within an hour, with serious backpacking available three or so hours away in the Sierras and Trinity Alps. Humboldt State is right in the middle of the redwoods, and is within two or three hours of the Trinity Alps. There is a huge drug culture there though, and if you're not into that Arcata is not a very nice place to live.

You could look at schools in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming to consider proximity to Yellowstone.

Various colleges in central California such as Sacramento State, Fresno State, and UC Merced will provide access to the Sierras, Fresno State probably being the closest to Yosemite National Park.

As I recall, Butchart figured more-or-less prominently in The Man Who Walked Through Time?

Oldranger you cover a lot of ground with all western schools!

But he's probably correct, if you take it in the broad sense he meant it. California, Oregon and Washington abound in mountains and backpacking opportunities. Also true of Montana and Idaho. Arizona? Yep. Utah? Absolutely! Then again you can't forget Colorado and Wyoming, either. Both superb. Nevada also counts, mainly because any city large enough to have a university will be on the western edge of the state, making the Sierras easily accessible. I hear marvelous things about New Mexico, too.

I can't think of a western state where you'd go badly wrong, if you crave the chance to do some backpacking and mountaineering. (Unless you consider Nebraska as "western".)

I actually met Butchart back in the 60s when I worked near Flagstaff (Sunset Crater-Wupatki Nat'l Mons). He was a bit of an irascible character, but he knew the Grand Canyon backwards and forwards, more so that most, if not all, of the staff there.

But to get back on topic, when I think of "western schools," I think of departments that are strong in geology and allied fields, anthropology, plant sciences, and the like, but typically not math.

But then, what do I know about math and academic departments that teach it? I can remember breathing a big sigh of relief when I read the university catalogs and realized that no math was required.....

It would be interesting to know what schools west of the 100th meridian do have strong math departments - anybody outside Cal Tech?

Hey, don't diss Nebraska! It has some very nice country up in its northwest corner, right adjacent to the Black Hills of South Dakota. Not many tourists there, which adds to the appeal....

Did you know there actually is a Nebraska National Forest?

I did it again; this is a reply to the OP's question about Pacific Northwest climate! "SAD" (seasonal affective disorder): It really depends on the individual. A lot of us here in the Northwest get it off and on. Getting outdoors helps and so do bright lights indoors. It is pretty gray around here in the winter and we do get a lot of rain--mostly drizzle rather than downpour, although the latter occasionally happens. The winter days are pretty short at this latitude. We do have occasional "sunbreaks" (get out while they're on, because they won't last long) and every now and then a cold front comes through bringing a couple of days of clear weather (usually accompanied by strong east winds, especially here in the Portland area). On the other hand, our climate west of the Cascades in WA and OR is basically maritime and quite temperate. Snow at sea level is rare--you have to go up into the mountains to find it. One of the reasons I moved here was for the mild winters--I'd rather get my snow fix where I don't have to shovel it! By late February-early March flowers are blooming, not just in the city but often at low elevations east of the Cascades as well.

We do, however, have glorious summers. There may be morning fog/low clouds, but it clears off by mid-morning or sooner. If the midafternoon temperature reaches the 80's, everyone starts complaining about the heat! Most years (not all--last summer, when it rained almost every weekend, was an exception), there is no rain between July 5 and Labor Day weekend. Before and after that, there is still more sun than rain. The balance starts to shift in March or April and by mid to late May it's generally in favor of sunshine. Generally the fall rains don't hit until late October.

From Seattle it's a relatively short drive to the east slope of the Cascades where things tend to be dryer. Sometimes the snow over there is fluffier, too!

Just a warning about winter sports--in case you haven't heard of "Cascade concrete," that's usually what we ski on! Lots of snow, but high water content and constantly varying freezing levels can make life interesting.

For more info on the outdoor scene in the Pacific Northwest, check out www.portlandhikers.org, www.nwhikers.net (Seattle), www.cascadeclimbers.com

On a map, set a compass point on Missoula, MT (home of the UM) and set the compass itself to scribe a circle with a 200-mile radius. Sit back and look at the places that encompasses...don't overlook the Rattlesnake Wilderness at the city limits and remember you can make Yellowstone in an easy five hours. On the other hand, I don't know a thing about the UM's math department...

I've lived in 12 states and four foreign countries. I've visited another 30 and 9, respectively. And here, a half-hour east of Missoula, are the best summer's I've experienced anywhere, a few smoky days not withstanding. Warm to hot days, cool to cold nights...no humidity, no air conditioning required (a boon for an ex-Texas boy! ). And the winters are pretty decent too. Missoula itself falls a bit short of my particular airshed but it comes darn close.

But if you want to talk math...I remember way back when that Colorado State University had a good department and CSU is located in an OK place, too.

These personal opinions are heavily skewed by time and a decided preference for western Montana.
MERRY CHRISTMAS, y'all!

FB

Guys thank you for the input.  Let's try a second iteration.  Which of the following could I BICYCLE to the backcountry from?  Any which would laughably NOT meet this criteria?

U of Montana (Missoula),
Virginia Tech,
Colorado State U (Fort Collins),
U of Washington (Seattle),
NAU in Flagstaff,
U of Oregon (Eugene),
Oregon State U (Corvallis),
Chico State or Humboldt State (Northern Cal),
Sacramento State or Fresno State or UC Merced (Central Cal),
U of Vermont,
U of Virginia,
James Madison University (VA),
Stanford,
UCLA

I'm not familiar with all of the eastern ones, but definitely in the west you will need a car. "Close" in Western terms might be anywhere from 30-100 miles. The eastern ones with which I'm familar are also not close enough to major hiking areas to do without a car.

At Seattle or the two Oregon schools, what you want is a clunker-looking car, which is less apt to be broken into. Car-clouting at trailheads is definitely a problem here in the Northwest. I suspect it is elsewhere, too, although evidently not so much in the Rocky Mountain states.

Of the ones I am familiar with the location-
U of Washington (Seattle) - NO (Seattle is on the water)
Chico State or Humboldt State (Northern Cal) - Maybe, but it would be far
Sacramento State or Fresno State or UC Merced (Central Cal) - Sac-NO, Fresno-NO, Merced-a long ways, but Maybe (Yosemite)
Stanford - NO (Palo Alto)
UCLA - NO (Westwood is LA)

When I say NO, I mean within a reasonable period of time, like one day. You can bike to almost anywhere, given enough time and energy.

Montana State, Bozeman... far better climate and outdoor opportunities (and smaller) than Missoula...

I would agree with TomD re UCLA (DD is currently attending). Since I am the designated Arizona Advocate, I can say that NAU would definitely meet your criterion. The trail heads on the San Francisco Peaks are easily within reach, although it is an uphill climb. Two National Monuments also are accessible (Sunset Crater and Walnut Canyon) and the Coconino Nat'l Forest boundary comes right down to town. Oak Creek Canyon and the Sycamore Canyon Wilderness Area is within reach. although it is a bit of a stretch on a bike. If you are a serious cyclist, even the Grand Canyon is possible. Lots of other options as you range further, many far off the beaten path, including many gems on Navajoland.

Much of the winter is not bicycling weather, but is more appropriate for skis or snowshoes; I have seen forty below temperatures in Flag on at least three occasions and I recall a monumental snowstorm in the late 60s where all access to the town was cut off by heavy snow for about two days. Snow has been recorded in every month of the year. The locals say there is nothing between Flag and the North Pole except a barbed wire fence (alternative saying -"nine months of winter and three months of hard sledding".

The greatest thing about Arizona is that you can find a good climate almost any time of year by simply adjusting your altitude. Flag is up at the cool end of the spectrum. It is heaven in the summer compared to the Dante's Inferno that is Phoenix.

I was stationed near Flag for three years (Wupatki Nat'l Mon) and enjoyed it immensely. More gory details on request..

Hope this adds up for you....

Even putting aside my boring adulation of Western Montana, I'm gob-smacked that anyone would consider Bozeman's climate better than Missoula's. We shall agree to disagree and the curious can look up the data and watch the weather maps (hint: this region is known as the 'banana belt' of MT ).

As for biking to the backcountry... The Rattlesnake Recreation Area (which buffers the Wilderness Area) is truly just outside Missoula's city limits and one could walk or ride from campus with ease. At the entrance is a bike/hike path leading into the Wilderness Area itself where bikes are prohibited.

There are another half-dozen or so WA's within an hour's drive of Missoula.

You can't go wrong with Bozeman...it was a close second to my choice of home. Each town has it's own advantages and I'm envious of Bozeman's easier access to Yellowstone. But as with the UM, I don't know a thing about MSU's math department...

FB

My favorite college was Paul Smiths in the Adironadacks. I could no longer afford it, but what a beautiful place. Smack dab in the middle of the forest. I used a canoe more than I did a vehicle.

Thanks to all your insight, I'm getting a clear picture of Western geography!

Approaching this from a different direction, here is a subset of the 'top 100' math schools. THIS IS NOT THE COMPLETE LIST! I've removed the schools we've discussed already, and teased out only those locations which my (limited) knowledge of U.S. geography tells me are quite far from high country.

Can we safely say the following are beyond a bike ride from significant mountainous or hilly wilderness areas?

• Yale University (New Haven, CT)
• Cornell University (Ithaca, NY)
• California Institute of Technology (Pasadena, CA)
• Northwestern University (Evanston, IL)
• University of Wisconsin--(Madison Madison, WI)
• University of Minnesota--Twin Cities (Minneapolis, MN)
• University of California--(San Diego La Jolla, CA)
• University of Illinois--Urbana-Champaign (Urbana, IL)
• University of Maryland--(College Park College Park, MD)
• Duke University (Durham, NC)
• Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD)
• SUNY--Stony Brook (Stony Brook, NY)
• Pennsylvania State University--University Park (University Park, PA)
• Purdue University--West Lafayette (West Lafayette, IN)
• Indiana University--Bloomington (Bloomington, IN)
• Ohio State University (Columbus, OH)
• University of North Carolina--Chapel Hill (Chapel Hill, NC)
• University of California--Davis (Davis, CA)
• Brandeis University (Waltham, MA)
• Washington University in St. Louis (St. Louis, MO)
• Michigan State University (East Lansing, MI)
• University of California--(Irvine Irvine, CA)
• University of California--Santa Barbara (Santa Barbara, CA)
• University of Notre Dame (Notre Dame, IN)
• University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA)
• North Carolina State University (Raleigh, NC)
• University of Georgia (Athens, GA)
• Vanderbilt University (Nashville, TN)
• Polytechnic Institute (Troy, NY)
• University of Iowa (Iowa City, IA)
• Arizona State University (Tempe, AZ)
• University of Massachusetts--Amherst (Amherst, MA)
• University of Missouri (Columbia, MO)
• University of Rochester (Rochester, NY)
• Claremont Graduate University (Claremont, CA)
• Iowa State University (Ames, IA)
• University at Buffalo--SUNY (Buffalo, NY)
• University of California--Riverside (Riverside, CA)
• University of Kansas (Lawrence, KS)
• University of Nebraska--Lincoln (Lincoln, NE)
• University of California--Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz, CA)
• University of Delaware (Newark, DE)
• University of Kentucky (Lexington, KY)
• University of Oklahoma (Norman, OK)
• University of Tennessee--Knoxville (Knoxville , TN)
• Syracuse University (Syracuse, NY)
• Tufts University (Medford, MA)
• University at Albany--SUNY (Albany, NY)
• Binghamton University--SUNY (Binghamton, NY)
• Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland, OH)
• Kansas State University (Manhattan, KS)
• Lehigh University (Bethlehem, PA)
• Oklahoma State University (Stillwater, OK)
• University of Connecticut (Storrs, CT)
• University of New Mexico (Albuquerque, NM)
• Washington State University (Pullman, WA)
• Clemson University (Clemson, SC)

•

I can comment on some of these schools:

UCSB (UC "Surf Board") made the list! - good outdoor opportunities, although the bike ride for some of them is a bit stiff - the San Rafael Wilderness for instance. You have the beach, and the ocean. The Santa Barbara Channel approximates raw, screaming wilderness on a good day, believe me! Just across the Channel is Channel Islands National Park, no official wilderness, but very interesting country. The departure point for most is Ventura, which is an easy (under forty miles, and down wind) bike ride away, even for aging geezers. Hint: If you go there, consider going as an NPS volunteer - that is the cheapest and best way to experience the area (often true of other NPS areas as well).

New Mexico - Albuquerque is a fairly standard bleak metropolis, but Santa Fe and the Pecos Wilderness are not that far away, and that is just some of the good stuff in New Mexico. Definitely worth consideration.

Arizona State University - the "other" university (Did I mention that I am a U of Arizona grad? Phoenix is even bleaker and more sprawling than Albuquerque, but there is good country not too distant, but it is a bike tour (multi day, realistically, to get there) and it really good! Good rock climbing areas within the urban area. I never spent timein South Mountain Park, but it should be very nice in the winter for day hikes. Think hard about ASU. I promise I won't ask which university has the better math department.

Cal Tech, UCSD, Claremont - You could do worse, but the nice country is a bit distant, using your criterion.

I wonder if your bike ride criterion is a bit too strict. I was carless at the U of A for most of my time there, and I was always able to get plenty of outdoor time (perhaps too much!) There always seemed to be a way.

I am sure you will get interesting information with this approach. Good luck!

I'm curious why you are limiting yourself to biking distance? If that's just what you have decided to do, that's reason enough.

But this is just a thought. A small motorcycle would extend your range considerably. I have no idea what the laws are now, but when I was younger a motorcycle under 500cc wasn't even required to be insured in Florida. A little 300-400cc bike can cover a hundred miles quickly for a weekend trip and requires little maintenance.

PerryMK is right. Schools with close hiking opportunities are likely to have outdoor recreation clubs.

What distance is in bike range? I know of some guys that ride a little over fifty miles, climb Longs Peak, then ride home in a single day every year. That is NOT bike range for me, but might be for you.

I'd check on the outing clubs at the schools on your list. I notice, looking at the directory of the Intercollegiate Outing Club Association that this group has expanded beyond its original geographic location in the northeastern US (I even found Oregon State University there!). These clubs give you plenty of opportunity to carpool to more distant locations. You don't need to be limited by a bike.

I spent one year at Cornell University eons ago. There were Outing Club trips every weekend, ranging from dayhikes to local waterfalls (the countryside is almost as beautiful as the Columbia River Gorge out here) to weekend trips to the Catskills and Adirondacks, all over New England and a week-long ski trip to Mont Tremblant during January's semester break.

I do want to reiterate that as a grad student, you're not going to have very much time for this sort of activity! You'll necessarily be spending all your "school vacation" time doing your thesis research!

Your bike ride restriction is too much dude. Every school I've ever been at near any significant source of mountains usually has a gaggle of students in an outdoor club and a place to find/mooch rides to the mountains easily. so if you're within an
hour or two's drive to good areas I think you will be fine.

If there's busses you're even better.

First, thank you so much for the outdoor club link. That's an angle I had not considered.

The other items above are linked: 'why bike' and 'lack of free time in grad school.' I love to bike, but will in likelihood have a car in school (but not if I don't absolutely have to have one!). However, self-awareness of my own habits tells me that for me to take advantage of something, ESPECIALLY when my schedule is as crunched as it will be in grad school, it must be SUPER convenient for me. If there is trail and mountain within a 1 hr bike ride (say 15-20 miles or so) of where I live, I will get out twice as much as if it were 50 miles away. It's all about convenience and fitting it into a cramped schedule with minimal effort (e.g. travel time).

This thread is only a small part of a very large cross-referencing exercise: top rated math grad programs, most convenient mountain schools, average GRE scores in grad programs, Research 1 institutions. Out the other side I hope to draw a shortlist of 5-6 schools to apply.

It sure would be nice to have as many of them as possible within 20 miles or so of my spiritual center, mountains and trails, so that when I begin to lose hope I can easily recharge my batteries.

So far only 6 schools have been 'sold' to me by folks which meet this criteria (I haven't confirmed yet though):
• University of Colorado - Boulder
• Northern Arizona U - Flagstaff
• U of Montana - Missoula
• Montana State - Bozeman
• Vieginia Tech - Blacksburg
• Dartmouth - Hanover
•

Two interesting picks for me out of your list are Washington State University, which will be near good stuff, and interestingly Santa Cruz.. The Santa Cruz area offers lots of good opportunity in neat stuff around the california coast, and it should be easy enough to pick off the occasional ride across the valley to hit the Sierras.

Actually, Washington State University is out in the middle of the Palouse Hills, all dryland wheat country and private land, no hiking close by. I turned down a job offer there for exactly that reason.

I will admit that I have not read all 4 previous pages of answers to your post. So I may repeat what others have said. Have you thought about University of Utah or Utah State? Cannot get closer to great skiing. Centrally located for backpacking and biking. Mountains and deserts both. Only missing ingredient is coastal areas. Contrary to popular thought, non-Mormans will do just fine in Utah if you stay open minded. I went to grad school in Logan Utah for four years and would have remained if I could have found a job. Salt Lake City is even more diverse - about 50% Mormon. I personally think Utah communities are very friendly if you make some effort to understand the prevailing social beliefs.