Forest Knowledge
WOODSMAN-ADVISER TO OUTING CLUB BRINGS OUTDOOR INTEREST REVIVAL
LEANING AGAINST the Senior Fence as he gazed across campus towards old Dartmouth row, Ross McKenney, the newly appointed woodsman-adviser to the Outing Club drew heavy puffs on his well-blackened brier pipe. Turning to his companion who was adjusting the canvas cover on a pack basket in preparation for a trip to the College Grant, Ross said: "It hardly seems possible that my ambition to work with Dartmouth men has been finally fulfilled."
Almost the last official act o£ Dan Hatch before he retired as Graduate Manager of the Outing Club in 1937 was to retain Ross' services as technician in connection with outdoor activities of both the undergraduates and alumni of the College. By taking this step the Outing Club again became the pioneer in new fields.
Ross' story begins in the little wilderness town of Patten which borders on the great forest district of Northern Maine. While he was a small boy, "long timber" was being driven down the Kennebec and Penobscot Rivers, and it was the ambition of every boy in town to become a "river-driver." From his father, who was a well-known woodsman, Ross acquired a fondness for the out-of-doors and made his playground the great wilderness district which extended from his back door to the Canadian line.
At the age of 13 he left school and became cook for a group of timber surveyors. This required living in a tent during summer and winter and his experiences during this period have, on numerous later occasions, served him in good stead. In his spare time, Ross became skilled with an axe and, by watching others, learned the art of casting a fly over a hundred feet. He also became expert with a gun and had many thrilling experiences in big game hunting. On one occasion, a bear intent on protecting its cubs nearly killed Ross in a sudden lunge, but fortunately the last shell ended a situation that might have turned into tragedy.
As time went on he became proficient as a river-driver, but admits that on numerous occasions he was thrown into white water when the log on which he was riding struck a hidden rock. For 17 successive years he followed the great log drives along the various Maine rivers and during these days witnessed many accidents as the result of log jams, and received occasional injuries himself.
With the gradual decrease in lumbering operations following the World War, Ross turned his attention to trapping and for several winters maintained a line of traps extending as far north as the Canadian Line. For weeks at a time he lived in a tent pitched in the snow, with the temperature at twenty degrees below zero, and only at rare intervals did he meet other persons.
With the later increase in the number of sportsmen annually heading into Maine for fishing, hunting and canoeing trips, Ross turned his attention to guiding and eventually became one of the best known guides in the State. Every lake, pond and stream north of Moosehead Lake in the neighborhood of the Allagash and St. Johns Rivers, and extending far across the Canadian line into New Brunswick, were known to Ross in detail.
His MARK IN THE WILDERNESS
Paul Sanders, the well-known Moosehead Lake sportsman, recently told several Dartmouth men the story about the first time he heard of Ross. It seems that Paul, in the company of a guide, was on a canoe trip heading down the Allagash. Daily it became apparent that another party was just ahead of them. Each camp ground was found immaculately clean, with wood piled near the fire, fir beds staked down in the nearby pine grove, camp stools hewn out of odd shaped trees and numerous other useful conveniences which only a woodsman knows how to make for the comfort of his sportsman. Paul became so inquisitive as to who was guiding the party ahead of him that when finally Fort Kent was reached, he decided to ask the Customs Official who it was. "All I know" said the officer, "is that it's a fellow named Ross McKenney from Patten."
Ross had the distinction of being chosen as the first president of the Maine Guides' Association. While in office he placed the Association on such a firm footing that it became a model for many other similar organizations. He later became associated with the Sportsmen's Show and appeared in various cities throughout the country. At the Brockton Fair in 1935, he won the silver cup awarded to the guide scoring the most points in fly-casting, woodchopping, log-rolling, wood-sawing, canoeracing, etc. the contestants coming from both Canada and America. Ross is known as a 100-ft. caster and his favorite fishing equipment consists of an Bi/2 ft. Thomas rod and HDH double tapered Ashaway line with a 6-ft. leader. Timing and the knowledge of the maximum amount of line that can be "picked up" for a successful back-cast, are the two vital factors in efficient casting, he believes.
Occasionally, some friend refers to Ross as "Bull Moose" McKenney. This nickname was bestowed on him during "Teddy" Roosevelt's Bull-Moose Campaign when he was invited to open the Convention at Faneuil Hall in Boston, by giving the moose call of the Progressive Partv.
Of recent years, the Dartmouth Outing Club has received much of its favorable publicity as the result of excellent ski teams. The D. O. C. however, was founded for the purpose of fostering every type of outdoor activity, including fishing, hunting, camping and canoeing, but interest in these latter activities among students has waned as a result of the ever growing popularity of winter sports. For several years officials of the Outing Club have felt that a well-rounded program of outdoor activities was advisable and it was eventually decided to secure the services of a woodsman who could work with both undergraduates and alumni. Ross' personality, together with his training and ability, made him ideally suited for the position.
Since coming to Hanover, he has become not only popular with the students but with the faculty and townspeople as well. During the recent 175th Anniversary of the Town of Warren (near Moosilauke), Ross was the principal speaker at the dedication of the new town clock and someone jokingly remarked "he can be Mayor here any time he wants to."
Ross has always enjoyed working with young people. It has been his practice to let them come to him for information rather than force his knowledge upon them. By so doing, he has gained the respect of all those who have come in contact with him. During the Thanksgiving vacation in 1937, he led a party of six students to the College Grant for several days of deer hunting. Taking with him one student at a time, he showed the proper way to track deer without "crashing." The result was that the party brought back three deer.
According to Ross, the Dartmouth College Grant in Northern New Hampshire contains great possibilities for fishing, hunting and canoe trips. A future program for stocking the streams has been tentatively laid out. According to recent reports, moose have been seen passing along the Dead Diamond River which flows through the Grant. The remoteness of this tract should in itself appeal to many Dartmouth men interested in its development as a fish and game preserve.
In bringing Ross to Hanover, it is the hope of those interested in the Outing Club that the alumni will take advantage of every opportunity to return to Hanover, either alone or with their families, for the purpose of enjoying the many facilities offered by the Outing Club. The new Moosilauke Ravine Camp should, in the near future, become the center of all outdoor activities and during the summer a short-term boys' camp may even be opened at Moosilauke under his direction for sons of Dartmouth men.
Even if an alumnus is only in need of information, whether it be the most suitable color to be used in tying the body of a salmon streamer or when, where and how to take a camping trip, Ross' advice will always be available through the offices of the Outing Club. To use Ross McKenney's own words:
"Nature has taught me through hardships the meaning of beauty, generosity,sportsmanship, and maybe I can passthem on. I wouldn't sell my forest knowledge for all the paper money on WallStreet, but I'm happiest when I'm givingit away to sportsmen that like to laughwhen the going gets tough."
