Plattsburgh State senior Ben Wells loves being outdoor and taking adventures. One of the reasons he decided to attend PSUC is because of all the mountains that he has been able to explorePlattsburgh State senior Ben Wells loves being outdoor and taking adventures. One of the reasons he decided to attend PSUC is because of all the mountains that he has been able to explore“In Plattsburgh, it is only an hour away from most of the mountains,” he said. “I also love the people here because they are always willing to go outside and having adventure.
They are also very friendly, compared to other colleges.”Wells also decided to attend PSUC because he wanted to join the school track team. One of his friends who attend PSUC told him about it, and it made him want to go here and be a part of the team.Wells is currently a senior majoring in expeditionary studies. He said most people think it is just about learning how to survive at the outdoors.“It is totally not just that,” Wells said. “It is also about being able to take care of people in the outdoor, guiding them, learning skills along the way if they have not learned them already and more about like being able to treat people, taking them out comfortably and showing them the world.”At first, he came to PSUC as a geology major, but then he changed his mind and decided to switch it into expeditionary studies.“On my first semester here, I realize that’s not what I want to do because it bored me,” Wells said. “It did not capture my interest at all.
”Then many of his friends started encouraging him to switch his major because they believe Wells would “fit perfectly” to expeditionary studies.“They all even thought I was an expeditionary studies major already,” he said. “So I decided to check it out after everybody kept telling me to do it, and I love it a lot.”Wells was willing and not hesitant to give it a try and then he ended up majoring in what he is actually passionate about.After graduating, one of Wells’s goals is to move out West.Wells wants to be a wellness promoter in the future and guide people on hiking trips as well. Back in December, one of his friends named Neal Andrews, a PSUC graduates, who introduced Wells to the outdoors, passed away.
“He has been a 46er since he was 12,” Wells said. “The Adirondacks was one of his favorite spots on Earth.”The Adirondack 46ers is an organization of hikers who have climbed all forty-six of the traditionally recognized High Peaks of the Adirondack Mountains, according to its official website.“He helped me become a 46er and taught me so much. I see him as my mentor and a great friend,” Wells said. “But his death inspired me to hike all 46 high peaks in 18 days and spread a teaspoon of his ashes on top of each one”Wells said that was a trip that he “planned entirely on my own.”He is currently the treasurer of the PSUC outing club and also a member of the ski snowboarding club in which they do a few ski trips each year.
Other thwan that, Wells also loves playing soccer in his free time.“One thing I achieved is overcoming the fear of traveling,” he said. “A lot of people are scared to travel, but once you do it, you are addicted to it.”Compared to the past, Wells said he became more comfortable with living outside. He also gained more self-confidence. “I can plan my own trip and start doing my own thing,” Wells said. Junior environmental science and ecology major Matthew Adams met Wells through a club. Adams is currently the president of the outing club. Wells and Adams became good friend and started hiking together every weekend.Adams described Wells as an “adventurous” and “happy” person because Wells loves the outdoors, and he also loves everybody.
“He is a fun guy to be around and always brings smile to everybody,” Adams said. “He is very supportive and always there for you.”Wells encourages everybody to always keep an open mind and not be afraid of going out of the comfort zone. “When you are least comfortable, you grow the most,” he said.
Email Hilly Nguyen at cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
