Even before my first year at Dartmouth, I had the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful outdoors through the Dartmouth Outing Club's first-year trips. They are very popular - about 90% of admitted students go on a DOC Trip - because they are tons of fun! Wild and crazy upperclassmen with fluorescent outfits and tie-dyed hair welcome the incoming class by singing, dancing, and sharing some of the College's most cherished traditions, including the Alma Mater and the Salty Dog Rag. Trips are completely student-run, which is great because it gives freshmen an opportunity to find amazing mentors during their very first days on campus and makes their transition to college memorable.
Trip options include everything from hiking and kayaking to organic farming and nature photography. I chose to go rock climbing because I'm from a big city (Washington DC) and so I never really had a chance to do anything like it. Surprisingly enough, climbing wasn't the hard part, hiking 8 miles uphill to get to the mountain was! By the time my group made it to the climbing site, I was completely out of breath, exhausted from carrying my own backpack (because I over-packed) and shocked by the seemingly endless journey I had just survived. All in all, it remains one of the most exiting experiences I've ever had.
Photo #1 credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dartmouthflickr/3890797689/
Photo #2 credit: http://www.dartmouth.edu/~mountain/res.shtml
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