<p>yes greg6or, I looked up Warren Wilson College also but I figured it might be too small for me… well but it seems like nice college on my second thought; I would definitely keep the college on my list. 
thank you!</p>
<p>UCSC has 15k students… it’s still half the size of other UCs, but it’s hardly a small school. But it is pretty much THE nature school, haha.</p>
<p>UC Merced near Yosemite</p>
<p>^^^but the area Merced in actually in is pretty bleh.</p>
<p>^^True that.^^</p>
<p>[The</a> Best Colleges For Outdoor Recreation | Outside Online](<a href=“http://outside.away.com/outside/features/200309/200309_college_towns_1.html]The”>http://outside.away.com/outside/features/200309/200309_college_towns_1.html)</p>
<p>University of British Columbia. Where David Suzuki works and the founders of Greenpeace worked! Surrounded by 2000 acres of old growth forest, on a pennisula surrounded by beaches that front the ocean. 15 mins to UBC sailing club, 45 mins to local skiing, 2 hrs drive to Whistler, home of the 2010 Olympics. And yet in the city of Vancouver (20 mins bus to downtown).</p>
<p>Ranked around 35th in the world in terms of academics.</p>
<p>[About</a> UBC - UBC.ca](<a href=“http://ubc.ca/about/index.html]About”>About UBC | The University of British Columbia)</p>
<p>University of Puget Sound*</p>
<p>-fairly small LAC in Tacoma, WA (45 mins away from Seattle)
-Puget Sound is a few miles away from the campus
-Mount Rainier is visible throughout Tacoma and on campus
-skiing is available fairly easily*
-western Washington is filled with gigantic evergreens*
-lots of hiking or biking trails*
-campus is filled with trees and flowers*</p>
<p>I dunno, Washington is just a pretty good place for outdoor opportunities *</p>
<p>UBC will not appeal to someone who wants a small school, but it is very near some beautiful natural places.</p>
<p>The University of Wyoming is a small state school that might interest you.</p>
<p>Carroll College in Montana may be a bit too remote, but it is definitely in nature.</p>
<p>When my D and I visited Juniata we were impressed with the number of students who kept bikes at school. They also have outdoor eqpt available to rent. lots of hiking, camping, boating in the area.</p>
<p>Willamette
Second the Claremont Colleges (their outing club is ‘On the loose’ seems pretty intense)
Allegheny
St.Lawrence</p>
<p>S graduated from Humboldt (in 4 years! Yay!) and really loved what the school had to offer. His adviser got him a summer job with NPS and he was able to go back every summer to an amazing place. Check out this video too: [The</a> Aerial View • Humboldt State University](<a href=“http://www.humboldt.edu/humboldt/videos/fly.html]The”>http://www.humboldt.edu/humboldt/videos/fly.html)</p>
<p>D is graduating from Willamette and that school just bought a nearby forest as a study area. [Willamette</a> University Extends Campus to Zena Forest - News Headlines - Willamette University](<a href=“http://blog.willamette.edu/news/archives/2008/10/willamette_univ_79.php]Willamette”>http://blog.willamette.edu/news/archives/2008/10/willamette_univ_79.php)</p>
<p>Check out Lewis & Clark in Portland, OP. It’s situated among the trees on a hill just outside Portland. Lots of trees, ferns and Mount Rainier views. The school has one of the best Outdoor Club programs. My daughter, who is a sophomore there, says there’s something going on almost every weekend (caving expeditions, mushroom hunting trips, canoe or river rafting trips, etc.). It’s one of the things she likes best about this school – access to an urban environment in nearby Portland (10 min. by car) and very outdoorsy feel, too.</p>
<p>Roanoke; Alfred; Susquehanna; Juniata; Vermont. Generally being close to nature and close to cities is a hard match.</p>
<p>Kenyon - in the middle of the corn fields.
Denison - at the top of a hill above quaint Granville OH.
Agree about Lewis and Clark.</p>
<p>Will you need financial aid or merit aid? Can you afford all these private schools?</p>
<p>Evergreen State?</p>
<p>Agree with the suggestion of Berry. Very pretty school.</p>
<p>College of the Atlantic and Cornell University come to mind as extremely close to nature.</p>
<p>I highly recommend St. Lawrence. I attend SLU and we are located right near the Adirondacks. We have this thing called Peak Weekend where the Outing Club (a club dedicated to help SLU students explore the nature near us) places students on every peak of the adirondacks. SLU is definitely a school that takes advantage of our close proximity to nature</p>
<p>I second the recommendation for Lewis & Clark College in Portland OR. A nature lover and outdoor persons paradise. Only ten min. from downtown Portland (a great city) but in a beautiful residential area of forests, ravines and nature, nature, nature. Only about 1800 students. The views are of Mt. Hood (not Rainier as someone mentioned above) which is only 1 1/2 hours away. My D is a senior there and teaches snowboarding at Mt. Hood on the weekends during spring semester. They have a wonderful OUtdoor club and offer many camping and hiking trips called “Breakaway Adventures” right before orientation for new freshman. </p>
<p>My only concern is your gpa as L&C has gotten pretty selective. But you could fly into Portland and visit it and maybe drive to University Puget Sound and Whitman. The whole area of Portland/Pacific Northwest is a nature lovers dream. Check it out!</p>