A huge part of why I was excited to attend college was to meet new people, make friendships, and explore a part of the country that I had never explored before. My first college experience allowed me to do all these things, and so much more.

The day after I moved into my dorm, I, along with nine other freshmen at my school, ventured out into Northern Michigan. None of us knew each other, and the initial five-hour drive to our first campsite was a little awkward. We were all super nervous, and not knowing what to expect. We played car games, which helped to break the ice, and, soon enough, we had arrived. We set up camp, and because it was pretty late, went to bed shortly after.

The next morning, we set out on a hike that ended up taking us all day to complete. It was about eight miles, and this hike gave us the chance to really talk to one another and get to know each other's personalities better. With little to no use of cell phones and the wilderness around us, it was actually a really great setting for some quality conversations. The hike was tiring, and we all encouraged each other to keep going. After arriving at the campsite that night, we were hot, sweaty, and smelling horrible. Luckily, the beautiful Lake Michigan wasn’t far from our campsite and we all went for an amazing swim. The lake was freezing, but it felt so good and we had a blast swimming in it.

That night we all grew much closer. We cooked dinner together over a campfire, everyone pitching in to get it ready. After dinner, we had a bonfire on the beach right along the lake where we made s'mores and shared our favorite parts of the day. The beach bonfires became an every night event, and, personally, were my favorite part of the day. We played Mafia each night before eventually heading back to the tents to sleep.

Each day was truly incredible, but my favorite day was our last full day of the trip. This day, we took a ferry to Mackinac Island, where we biked the perimeter of the island. After the bike, we ate lunch, walked around shops, and, of course, bought fudge. It was the first time in four days we had been exposed to civilization and other people, and we bonded over the fact that we were all gross-looking campers. The island itself was so quaint and beautiful and it was probably one of the coolest places I’ve been so far. There were no cars on the island, everyone traveled by horse, foot, or bike. It felt like something out of a movie.

The following morning, we woke up super early, and drove the five hours back to campus. It was bittersweet, because we were all so excited to start college life, but also really sad to not be spending every minute with this group that we had grown so close to. It’s been two days since I’ve been back, and I’ve already seen a lot of my friends from this trip around campus.

I’m so thankful that the nine other freshmen on my trip were my first college friends. They are people that I probably would not have envisioned myself being friends with, but I’m incredibly happy that they came into my life. I am so lucky to be going to a school in a state as beautiful as Michigan. Each place we explored was even prettier than the last, and I never want to stop exploring this state. My first college experience forced me to step out of my comfort zone, and it really set the bar high for all of my college experiences to follow.