Northwood students split into 19 groups and conquered 17 peaks in the Adirondack Mountains on Tuesday, September 22. Students and faculty were put into groups that climbed one of the forty-six Adirondack Peaks and were given a day off from classes to climb and explore their designated mountain.
One Group of students climbed their mountain carbon free – meaning that instead of getting to their mountain by bus, they traveled via canoe across Mirror Lake to Whiteface Mountain.
This year was the 45th annual Mountain Day for Northwood School. Combined, the school walked approximately 1,500 miles (about half the width of the United States). Retired teacher and longtime Mountain Day organizer Don Mellor said, “the difficulty, frustration, and adversity the students go through together in order to reach the top of their designated mountain is what [Mountain Day] is all about.” He went on to add “The struggle is what truly brings students together, and it creates a special bond that can last a lifetime.”
Looking back on this successful event, Mountain Day co-organizer and director of the Northwood Outing Club Bobby O’Connor said, “This event is important because it’s another opportunity for the students here to bond as a family.” O’Connor added, “Lots of character is developed when you suffer together as a group.”
Mountain Day has been recognized as an annual school tradition for 45 years now, and many alumni look back on this tradition as one of their favorite memories at Northwood. When asked about the event, student Aidan Lasky ‘22 said “It was a little harder than I expected, but the view at the top of the mountain made it all worth it.”
Another student Camden Davis ‘22 described his experience saying, “It was my first time ever hiking a mountain. At times it felt like I wanted to give up – but my group and I pushed through and ended up having an exciting time.”
Some photos from Mountain Day, provided by students and faculty:
