<p>Dartmouth is a cool school in a beautiful location.</p>
<p>Now, can anyone give me an idea of how much people spend time doing activities like hiking/skiing etc?</p>
<p>(What percentage of students heavily participate in these activities?)
(What percentage of students rarely participate in these activities?)
Etc, etc.</p>
<p>I just want to get an idea of the amount this culture exists at Dartmouth. Any comments on this topic would be helpful. Thanks</p>
<p>Well I’m not sure about the percentages, but I know there are various opportunities for outdoor activities. You will find some people who are serious about doing these outdoor activities like hiking, skiing, skating etc. but you will find others who don’t want to touch that kind of stuff. I honestly feel that everyone is provided with the exposure but it is your choice to either take advantage of it or not.</p>
<p>It’s basically varies, some are adventurous and others are not.</p>
<p>Dartmouth owns a major lodge for student use along the Appalachian trail and it’s own ski hill. Enough said.</p>
<p>Freshman year, DS stayed at the lodge with friends for a weekend and went snowboarding numerous times, both on D’mouth’s skiway and at one of the ski resorts nearby. Sophomore year he got very busy with academics and only went snowboarding once, I think. But he also plays a serious club sport, rides his bike, works out at the gym, and jogs around five times a week. </p>
<p>It’s there to be used if you want it. And lots of students use it.</p>
<p>Whenever they can-- there is a lot within 5 minutes and loads within an hour. When you have time, many travel less than an hour to more boarding oriented hills in Vermount. Hiking, camping, kayaking, fishing, etc., is essentially just a part of campus- the App. Trail goes through campus- but there is even more within the general proximity. Dartmouth is the largest private property owner in the State of NH.</p>
<p>There are official DMC (mountaineering club, part of the outing club) climbing trips that run about 2 to 3 times a week (with more people going out on their own), with one being a beginner trip. </p>
<p>Ledyard runs a beginner whitewater trip a week, plus more to more advanced rivers depending on water levels (more in spring, less in summer/fall, not so much in the winter), and they run pool sessions in the winter and fall to learn to roll.</p>
<p>Cabin and Trial run tons (4-5 a week I bet) of hiking and trailwork trips spring through fall, with some tamer backcountry skiing trips in the winter.</p>
<p>Winter Sports Club runs a few more intense trips in the winter, plus a backcountry ski e-mail list has people taking trips all over probably 4 times a week if more during good snow conditions.</p>
<p>The Mt. Biking club is starting to run trips again, maybe one a week, plus tons of unofficial rides that go out on the listserv (road biking happens all the time as well).</p>
<p>There is a bus that runs several times a day up and back from the skiway during the winter. </p>
<p>Just get involved with the DOC and you’ll meet plenty of people who would be very excited about taking you out to go biking/kayaking/skiing/climbing etc.</p>
<p>While many people take advantage of all the opportunity (even those who might not have anticipated enjoying it), I think Questionable28’s response is accurate.</p>
<p>I would say about 15% are “hardcores”, i.e. they are really involved in the DOC and ae always out there. The majority of students, however, are probably "active casual,"i.e. they enjoy sledding or skating on occum pond, might lead a DOC trip, go skiing in the winter occasionally, might go camping maybe once a term, and swim in the rivers in the summer a few times. I was in that category. Then probably another 15% who aren’t so into the nature thing at all.</p>