Big Green Ballers in the Wilderness

- Dara

One of Dartmouth's many unique traditions are the Dartmouth Outing Clubs freshman trips. Members of the freshmen class report to Hanover in early September to take part in any number of three-day outdoor adventures from hiking to cabin camping to rock climbing. The women's basketball freshmen were no exception and each of the four took part in a different DOC trip: Kelsey Byrd (Saratoga, Calif.), camping; Kylie Kufeld (Billings, Mont.), rock climbing; Zakia Lghzaoui (Alexandria, Va.), canoeing; Faziah Steen (Kalamazoo, Mich.), hiking.

Upon their return, Coach Wielgus concocted a little friendly competition for the rookies to chronicle their DOC trips with the winner getting her story published here. Each provided a great report on her weekend but in the end there had to be a winner and I think you'll see why Kylie Kufeld rose to the top!

Kylie Kufeld ’13 (Credit: Jen Goodwin)

DOC Rock Climbing, Kylie Kufeld ’13
“Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You're off to Great Places!
You're off and away!”

We started at the school
And learned so many names.
Then after we ate
We played lots of games.

We awoke the next morning
To the sounds of Lion King
And remembered the night before
Watching the “Croo” members sing.

“You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.”

Hiking boots, that is
And nice woolen socks.
We were ready to hike.
We were ready for rocks!

With our packs on our backs
And our faces aglow,
We were ready to hit the trail
Whether rain or (hopefully not yet!) snow.

“You'll be on your way up!
You'll be seeing great sights!
You'll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.”

We climbed up and up
And saw a spectacular view.
We could tell it's almost fall
From all the leaves changing hue.

And oh my goodness!
All the rock climbing!
Whenever you reached the top,
Your friends would praise you by rhyming.

“I'm sorry to say so but, sadly, it's true that Bang-ups and Hang-ups can happen to you.
You'll come down from the Lurch with an unpleasant bump. And the chances are, then, that you'll be in a Slump.”

There is just that one cliff
That you really want to climb,
But your strength starts to leave you.
It's much harder this time.

You feel terrible when you fail.
That feeling everyone hates.
But there is no need to worry,
Good friends and free food still awaits.

“Oh, the places you'll go! There is fun to be done! There are points to be scored. There are games to be won.”

A “lodj” near Moosilauke
Is where we go on the bus,
And on that last night,
We learn how much Dartmouth cares about us.

There are dances to learn
And Frisbees to retrieve,
But after all the fun and games,
It is finally time to leave.

“Oh! The Places You'll Go!”

From Montana to New Hampshire,
From trails to streams,
This Dartmouth is the kind of place
I used to see in my dreams.

“Oh! The Places You'll Go!
Your mountain is waiting.
So…get on your way!”

(Quotes from Oh! The Places You'll Go! By Dr. Seuss)