PELLSTON, Mich. — If you want to see learning come alive, ask students who’ve spent a month at the University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS).
On move-out day last year, their hearts were full — not just with bittersweet goodbyes, but with stories about how Michigan’s campus in the Northwoods changed their lives.
For Valentine’s Day 2026, we’re passing along their love stories immersed in nature and hands-on research.
If you’re a college student anywhere in the world, let these vignettes be your sign to join UMBS for a field course adventure this spring or summer at the paradise of place-based learning amid more than 10,000 forested acres along Douglas Lake and Burt Lake.
(Curious for more? Check out the video recap on YouTube, and read on for deeper reflections from recent alumni.)
Henry Barron: “Super Experiential Learning”
Henry Barron sums up UMBS in one word: unbelievable.
The senior at U-M dove into General Ecology Lab and Lecture last summer and discovered the thrill of “getting to actually do the science.”
He also served as a resident advisor (RA) for the residential campus in Pellston.
“My experience at the University of Michigan Biological Station has been unbelievable,” said Barron, who majors in PitE (Program in the Environment) and organizational studies.
Whether investigating river ecosystems or tracking macroinvertebrates, Henry found the days at UMBS were packed with hands-on discovery that stuck with him.
“It's super experiential learning,” Barron said. “You get to be in the classroom and learn about a concept and then see it in the field the same day.”
Abigail Adams: “Changed My Perspective on Life”
For Abigail Adams, coming to UMBS in July 2025 was a magical escape that turned her world upside down in the best way.
“It's like a wonderland. I love it so much,” said Abigail, a second-year psychology student at Schoolcraft College.
She enrolled in the Art of Observation and Insights from Trees, two UMBS classes that inspired her to shift her academic path toward environmental biology.
“It absolutely changed my perspective on life,” Adams said. “Before I saw nature as something to just pass by, but now I could really go in depth and understand that there is so much life surrounding me, and all of it is interconnected in different ways.”
Her favorite moment? Celebrating her birthday with her class at what’s affectionately known as “Narnia” and exploring landscapes she’d only dreamed about.
Every year, UMBS teaching faculty take students to Bush Bay Trail in the Upper Peninsula to sample aquatic environments and gather soil samples, among other field assignments. Many students also jump off boulders into Lake Huron to cool off.
“The trees were insane. It was just like a walking art piece,” Adams said. “It is so worth it just to get away for a little bit and really discover who you are. This program will help you do that.”
Mikel Vaughan-Coston: “Literally Beautiful”
“If you just listen, it speaks. That's the most cliche thing, but it's literally beautiful,” said Mikel Vaughan-Coston, standing along Douglas Lake.
The senior at the University of Michigan studies ecology and evolutionary biology (EEB).
From May 20 through June 19, 2025, the 21-year-old from Detroit took two courses at the research and teaching campus in northern Michigan.
In Rivers, Lakes and Wetlands, he found not only science but poetry.
“The Rivers, Lakes and Wetlands class is such a fun class,” Vaughan-Coston said. “It's such a good energy. They really care about actually teaching you.”
Mikel even wrote a poem that became a song. His ode to UMBS reflects how the field research station can inspire creativity and growth. (Read about the creation of the music and listen to the song.)
“There's so much here to learn from, so much to experience,” Vaughan-Coston said. “As long as you step forward with the right mindset, you’ll definitely become a better person at the end of it.”
Joelle Morris: “We Jumped in the Bog”
Joelle Morris had always wanted to live in the woods, and UMBS made that dream a reality.
The U-M sophomore found friendship, canoeing, and eye-opening lessons everywhere she turned in the 2025 spring term.
Most fascinating was the study of bogs, unique wetland ecosystems known for their sphagnum moss and carnivorous plants like pitcher plants.
Bogs play a role in fighting climate change. They take in carbon from the atmosphere and store it in peat, deep layers of partially decomposed organic matter.
“In my Field Botany class, we went to a bog, and we jumped in the bog and started swimming around,” said Morris, who majors in studying ecology and evolutionary biology (EEB) and mathematics. “It was kind of mucky, but it was really fun and a great experience.”
And while the rustic cabins might sound intimidating, she’s quick to reassure future students about accommodations on the Pellston campus where cabins, classrooms and laboratories are nestled along Douglas Lake: “All the buildings here are very clean and the dining halls are very well furnished. The people here are just so great too.”
Chelsea Weber: “Unlike Any Class I’ve Taken”
“The dining hall is actually fantastic,” said Chelsea Weber, a sophomore at U-M who took courses at UMBS in the spring term. “They make so much of their own food, and they really try to take stuff from the community garden because we have a gardener here.”
Weber is studying microbiology at U-M as well as human origins biology and behavior.
“The University of Michigan Biological Station is a very special place. And I think it's a once in a lifetime experience,” Weber said. “It’s unlike any class I’ve taken before.”
Field Botany got her outside on hikes, learning directly from passionate professors.
“It's a lot of work, but it's a huge amount of fun because you get to go see everything where it's growing,” she said.
But the real highlight was the community: “I came here a month ago and didn't know a single person. But now I'm leaving with a great group of friends.”
Her advice? “Try everything. If everyone's wading in a river…get your feet wet. You will make so many more memories that way.”
Kenya Hall: “Someone Hears a Warbler”
“Jump right into the deep end,” said Kenya Hall, a senior at U-M and an environment major with a specialization in agriculture and sustainable food systems. “You’re really not here for very long.”
Kenya knows. She took courses at UMBS in 2024 and 2025.
Most memorable last year was Field Ornithology.
“We have to get up at 5:30 a.m. for that class. The birds are most active in the early mornings,” Hall said. “There's definitely a lot of very fun, half-delirious hikes through the woods. We're talking, you know, we’re having a good time, and someone hears a warbler. We all kind of snap to attention and look up in the trees.”
On a field excursion to Wilderness State Park along Lake Michigan, Hall used binoculars to spot bluebirds and cedar waxwings. Plus, her favorite: vultures.
“I had never been birding before, and so this was just a really great intro. I learned a lot,” said Hall, who left UMBS with plans to meet up with new friends and go birding together back in Ann Arbor.
Kasey Gillman: “Fire Ecology in Action”
“I love it here,” said Kasey Gillman, a sophomore at U-M who took courses at UMBS last spring and also served as an RA. “It’s totally worth it to come up here.”
During the evenings, Gillman enjoyed s’mores with friends.
During the days, her classes left her in awe.
One excursion to examine the remains of a recent forest fire made a lasting impression.
“I was able to see fire ecology in action,” Gillman said. “It was really cool to see how ecosystems thrive even after everything gets burned down. It was so beautiful, and it was touching. Everything was just completely black on the ground. And it made me think about how people used to do this in the past, how animals even use fire ecology for themselves, and how we can use fire ecology in the future for conservation.”
Kasey’s advice: spend some time alone in nature too.
“This place helps you connect with nature in a way that humans don't connect with nature now in urbanized areas,” Gillman said. “It’s really important for us to be able to live in a different setting like this.”
Yasmine Chugh: “There’s Still Hope”
“It’s super welcoming,” said Yasmine Chugh, a junior at U-M double majoring in psychology and environment.
She joined General Ecology Lab and Lecture in the summer 2025 term to satisfy her major’s Practical Experience Requirement but found much more than classroom credit.
The lab experiments were her favorite part of the UMBS experience.
One was calculating the population density of snails in Douglas Lake.
“We got to go in the lake, dig for snails under the sand, and then mark them with some nail polish,” Chugh said. “And then we put them back into the sand, waited a few hours, and went back and counted them. It was so fun. It was like we were playing but also doing the lab.”
She also worked with classmates to measure caterpillar predation. In late July the class combed the UV field at UMBS to gather fake caterpillars they placed earlier in the term.
The clay caterpillars were planted atop milkweed plants to learn more about how predators choose what caterpillars to try to eat.
“It was really interesting to see the little bite marks,” Chugh said.
In her academic journey, Chugh is concerned with what makes people care about the environment: “What makes them want to make sustainable changes? And how can we inform the public about this in ways that they'll care?”
Thanks to UMBS, she said she shed her cynical outlook and now sees a brighter future.
“When I was like in sixth grade, I watched ‘An Inconvenient Truth’, that documentary, and I felt this sense of impending doom for the rest of my life,” Chugh said. “I was like, oh my gosh. But taking this class, I learned there are tons of efforts out there. It's overwhelming, but there's definitely still hope.”
Apply Today
Ready to join the adventure? The application for 2026 field-based courses at the University of Michigan Biological Station is open.
Old favorites like Field Mammalogy, Freshwater Fishes, and Ethnobotany are back. And there are exciting new additions including Introduction to Data Science, Great Lakes Policy and Management, and Michigan: People and Place in a Changing Climate.
The spring term runs May 19 through June 18, 2026, and summer term runs June 30 through July 30, 2026, on the campus located about 20 miles south of the Mackinac Bridge.
From microbiology to English and general ecology options, check out the full menu of 2026 classes and apply today on the UMBS Courses website. That’s where you can discover how UMBS courses satisfy academic requirements and learn about scholarships, which are open to guest and international students too.
The priority deadline is March 15, 2026.
UMBS welcomes undergraduates, graduate students and visiting scholars from around the globe. Most courses include research, but no prior field experience is required. If you’re ready for hands-on science, lasting friendships and memories that stretch beyond the woods, UMBS is waiting for you.
The University of Michigan Biological Station serves as a gathering place to learn from the natural world, advance research and education, and inspire action. We leverage over a century of research and transformative experiences to drive discoveries and solutions to benefit Michigan and beyond.
Our vast campus engages all of the senses. Its remote, natural setting nurtures deep thought and scientific discovery.
Founded in 1909, UMBS supports long-term research and education through immersive, field-based courses and features state-of-the-art equipment and facilities for data collection and analysis to help any field researcher be productive. It is where students and scientists from across the globe live and work as a community to learn from the place.
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