Best Smoke Spots On and Off Campus
Sitting against a tree, staring at the dark sky littered with stars, lake in sight, and good company; Friday nights on campus are enjoyed by many UB students at the well-known “smoke island” spot on campus, officially titled Kanzawa Island.
I went over to Kanzawa Island and decided to take a ‘puff’ for myself – see what all the hype was about. I had the opportunity to meet and interview some frequent visitors to the island and hear their favorite locations, methods, and more.
With the now legalized greenery that is popular amongst many, marijuana is found to be popular amongst many New Yorkers, especially students within the college system. Across the largest SUNY school, UB has 1,350 acres of rich land to choose smoke spots from as well as off campus parks open to the public.
Because of the no-cannabis rule across campus, many students tend to remain secretive about their favorite smoke spots.
Asking students around campus, I found some favorite smoke spots; I’ll keep the students I talked to anonymous for privacy purposes.
As I heard from different students, I was able to collect where their favorite places are to spark up on and off campus.
Friday, November 3, I went to “smoke island” and interviewed a sophomore who frequently participates in jazz cabbage use on campus.
“I mean, smoke island is a must,” says the sophomore that is local to the Buffalo area. “I heard about this place before I even came here. My older friends here at UB had told me about it when I was still in high school.”
This “smoke island” is found behind the second floor terrace of the Ellicott dorm complex by Wilkeson, on Lake LaSalle. One must cross over a little bridge to enter, only to reveal a circular section of pavement with a grass mound and a tree in the middle. This area has three benches and is usually crowded on weekends after 7pm (and finals week too). Come on weekdays to catch a beautiful sunset in this area with few people around. Students gather with friends here in an almost devotional way. Although many young, many consider themselves experts at this subject. As brilliant young students are rising in their academia, their marijuana skills are also accelerating.
“It’s fun to sit and chill with friends…Usually we end up talking to some new people who all usually share the same interests. Many laughs are shared with everyone around.”
This same person tells me about a park that she likes to go to with friends at night. This park is located by Glen Falls, which offers a beautiful view of the water and trees off-campus only about fifteen minutes away.
“Glen Park isn’t big, but it does the trick for us. We really like the environment,” she tells me. “We’ve been coming here for a while.”
Although some may get paranoid with the overhead passing cars and people on jogs, underneath the overpasses behind Greiner is a tunnel with colorful graffiti and great vibes.
“It’s not too crowded over there, the people who come there are of the same mindset as you, and the trail to get there is scenic and really enjoyable,” a freshman told me.
Some of the graffiti in the tunnel includes colorful smiley faces, a smiley sun, a big green marijuana leaf, a questionably good drawing of a cartoon man, and more. As one walks to get to the underpass, the path is in between the lake and the nature on campus which provides one with a calming environment. As you continue to walk through you walk towards the roundabout with Greiner to the right and main campus to the left.
Broadening over to the main North campus, the pillars are a spot which has been mentioned by several people; the area provides lush greens and trees with a view of the water, providing “a perfect thinking spot,” says a sophomore. “This is honestly my favorite place to smoke. At night, it’s just so calming. I love laying down and just looking at the stars.”
Another freshman tells me about her experience with smoking back home versus smoking here at the university. “I have a dorm over at Ellicott, but I’m really never there,” she tells me. “I am usually staying with my boyfriend at his off-campus apartment, and we smoke there. We don’t have to worry about getting in trouble.”
She then tells me where she comes from, which is New York City. The difference between the anonymity in the huge city versus on campus is immense.
“It’s just so different from where I’m from,” she tells me. “In Manhattan, you’re able to just walk outside and light up without anyone batting an eye. Here, it’s banned on campus, so it isn’t as acceptable.”
One student tells me about his experience smoking alone on campus.
“I’m only a freshman, so I haven’t been here very long, but I find it pretty easy to just go to my car in the parking lot and smoke there. It’s easy, fast, and convenient.”
With all of the nature that surrounds campus, it is very easy to convert these small areas into smoke spots with your friends.
Obviously with thousands of teenagers all gathered on one campus, there is bound to be pot-smoking around. Since students are still smoking, should the marijuana ban on campus be lifted?
