Voices in the Wilderness

REFLECTIONS ON WHAT MAKES THE SECOND COLLEGE GRANT SPECIAL

"My most memorable trips as a student were in the winter, which at that time was a major adventure. There were fewer snowmobiles, no logging, no plowing. You'd be driving out from campus on a Friday, skipping out as early as you could, and packing up a friend's borrowed vehicle, driving in the night, arriving at the gateand there was no gatekeeper at that point—and skiing into the dark, not sure where you were going. But you go to the cabin, and get things wonderful and warm, and then spend two days skiing in the wonderful powder."

George Kendrick '77

"In June of 1972 I was invited to go with John Sloan Dickey when I was named dean of freshmen. He said to me, 'lf you're going to get into this business of deaning, you need something to give you release, and there's nothing better than fly-fishing.' I've made the trip every year since then. And I let every fish go. A trout is much too valuable to only catch once."

Ralph Manuel '58, Tu'59

"My most memorable experience at the Grant was getting married there, in January 1999. As far as we know, no one else has gotten married there. We had a justice of the peace and two friends as witnesses, and another friend who was a photographer. We had made quite a few trips there and we found it a special place. We wanted an outdoor wedding, and we couldn't imagine a more romantic place."

Laura Robertson '85

"I always enjoy taking my physiological ecology class [Biology 59] for a weekend class trip to the Grant. For many people who go up there it's their first chance to see a boreal forest or see an ecosystem that is relatively un-impacted. We almost always see a bunch of exciting things. The last time I was up there we did some sampling for stream insects, and across the river we saw a fisher. We got to watch a fisher from pretty close up, and most of us had never seen a fisher before, and 30 years ago it would have been hard to see any at all."

Matthew Ayres, Biology Professor

"I was in charge of building two cabins as an undergraduate, Peak's and Merrill Brook Cabin. The logs were cut and carted to the site by French-Canadian loggers in the winter. We built a campsite where they were going to be built and stayed in tents and built the cabins from the ground up. The Grant is the Great North Woods. If you go up there without a compass, you're likely to get lost and wind up in Canada. The Grant was my first introduction to the North Country. It was very primitive and very wild and it has been a very big influence in my life ever since. It gave me an interest in the northern parts of the world, and it's been a part of my life since 1957."

Eric Sailer '60, DMS'61

"On my first trip to the Grant, during my sophomore year, I remember being impressed with the solitude associated with the area, being impressed by wild New England. It's a very unique place. It helps make Dartmouth a special place. Some highlights of my trips have been meeting bears while canoeing down Dead Diamond River, a moose coming through the window of my truck, and seeing the Northern Lights from the Hellgate porch."

Norman Webber '71

"My husband went to Stanford, but he said the Grant is reason enough to go to Dartmouth."

Emily Hill '90