OPINION: Breaking the bubble

By Jake Zabski

The “Stonehill Bubble” sometimes can prevent us from seeing what is immediately off-campus. Obviously, Easton and the surrounding area cannot compare to nearby places like Boston, Providence, or Cape Cod that might offer more to do on a given day. Many of my friends and I have decided to burst the Stonehill Bubble and see what there is to explore in our area.

I think that it is beneficial to explore your surroundings and become familiar with your local area; it allows you to create connections to your new home and find spots to go to when campus life isn’t satisfying you. There seems to be a general campus agreement that there is not much to do beyond the pine walls of campus, and I went along with that for the first few years of my college life. However, I’ve learned over the last year that this is far from the truth and there are so many unique places to explore nearby if you open yourself up to them.

One special place that my friends and I have discovered locally is the Easton Sheep Pasture Preserve. You can even walk there from campus as it’s just about a mile down the road. The preserve is really unique, and there’s a farm on the site where you can check out chickens, sheep, cows, and geese. The preserve also has several trails that lead into the forest, offering a peaceful escape from everyday life. My favorite part is a gigantic meadow that I can only imagine being a great place to set down a blanket and relax in the sun as the weather gets warmer in the next few weeks.

One of my favorite excuses to go off-campus is for food-related activities. One of my favorite spots is Langwater Farm, only about two minutes down the road from campus. I’ve been to Langwater several times, whether it’s in the fall to pick up some fresh apple cider or recently to go to the Easton Farmers Market. The farmers market runs every Saturday and local vendors come to sell foods ranging from Asian (check out Mao’s Microgreens for some amazing crab rangoons!), to barbecue, even to the infamous Beanery on Washington. The farmers market also sells fresh produce beating anything you could find on your Target grocery runs.

Now buckle in, because I have quite the adventurous idea for any fellow beach lovers reading. I find that especially now, I crave the ocean more than anything. It’s my ultimate relaxing place, and I can spend an entire day just sitting on the sand watching the waves. One of my favorite “local” beaches is Horseneck Beach in Westport, Mass. - about a forty-five-minute drive from campus. While this adventure requires a car, I personally think it’s totally worth it if you’re able to go. During the majority of the entire school year, the beach is free to park meaning that on warmer days it can be a great option for people looking to have a beach day somewhere not as crowded as Cape Cod or Rhode Island. The beach is huge, and you can find a spot to set up and hang out with friends in a socially distanced setting. The sunsets are also amazing, and I imagine swimming there would be pretty fun too even though I have not checked that off the bucket list yet.

If you’re feeling adventurous and want to take a break from campus life, check out some of these spots. I also encourage people to find special places of their own. These are merely suggestions. You never know what you could find

Photo courtesy of The Summit /(Jake Zabski)