Clubs

Perhaps one of the most unique Dartmouth alumni organizations is the Dartmouth Outing Club of Northern California (DOCNC). The center of the clubs activities is a rustic cabin on Lake Mary at Donner Summit in the Sierra Nevada. At an altitude of 7,000 feet, it sits on the historic Emigrant Trail, a stones throw from its highest point and only a few hundred feet from where the Donner party met its snowy demise in 1846. The Pacific Trail—the West Coasts equivalent of the Appalachian Trail—passes just behind the cabin.

The DOCNC's history began when Johnny Ellis '34 purchased the plot of land in the 1930s with the intent to build a ski resort. Those plans never materialized, but Ellis did build one of the first rope tows in the country. The land passed to a group of area alumni who incorporated the DOCNC in 1939. The original cabin, a World War II surplus Quonset hut erected in 1946, was destroyed by two trees in a storm that fall. The resourceful members, however, used the original platform and salvaged materials such as discarded railroad timbers to build the structure that stands today. Cabin builders included Lou Leeger '46, Carl Ward '32, Alan Grant '43 and many others. Alan and his family are still frequent visitors to the cabin.

Club members enjoy a wide variety of outdoor activities right from the cabins door such as skiing, canoeing, fishing, swimming, rock climbing, biking and hiking. The cabins fieldstone fireplace, wood-fired cook stove and Dartmouth memorabilia provide a great atmosphere for relaxing or dancing the "Salty Dog Rag." Volumes of DOCNC log books make for great reading on a snowy evening. Cabin visitors can hear train whistles blow as they emerge from the Summit Tunnel of the original transcontinental railway line across the lake.

"This cabin has represented the mountain sense of place' for me and for generations of other Bay Area alumni over the years," according to Evan Marquit '87, who recently retired as DOCNC president.

Current co-presidents Betsy Bennett '94 and Susy Struble '93 have grand visions for the club, such as expanding land holdings to create a chain of cabins across northern California and increasing group activities. But, they say, the club will always be centered on its peaceful haven on Lake Mary.

In other news, at the annual Club Officers Association Weekend in Hanover at the end of February, the Club of the Year winners were announced: Dartmouth Club of Central Ohio (Small Club), Dartmouth Club of Dallas (Medium Club), Dartmouth Alumni Association of Silicon Valley (Large Club) and Dartmouth Club of Greater Boston (Metro Club). In recognition of his great efforts for the Boston club, Andrew Home '87 was named President of the Year.

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