The great outdoors
UVM and St. Michael’s students benefit from hands-on backpacking course

Larry Frisoli | contributing writer
lfrisoli@smcvt.edu

Hands-on wilderness survival and camping skills are being offered this semester through a one-credit course in backpacking. The course is offered to both University of Vermont and St. Michael’s College students, and meets weekly at the Patrick Gymnasium on the UVM campus.

The Major

Maj. Justin Davis, a U.S. Army ROTC enrollment officer, teaches the backpacking course on the UVM campus, along with other courses, including an ROTC course in physical fitness. The backpacking course meets Wednesdays from 1:25 p.m. to 2:15 p.m., and the weekly 50 minutes consists of mostly hands-on exercises, Davis says. UVM students get physical education credit for the course, and St. Michael’s students enrolled in ROTC get credit as well.

This course doesn't require a textbook – only regular attendance and the completion of a mandatory overnight with Davis in the Green Mountains, which counts as the final exam. (Larry Frisoli, photo)

“In order to graduate, all UVM students in four-year programs are required to take one year [2.0 credits] of physical education and all students in two-year programs are required to take 1.0 credits of physical education,” according to the UVM physical education basic instruction homepage.

The course in backpacking has a limit of 20 spaces; a limit that keeps the number of students low enough for the hands-on skills to be taught efficiently and on an individual basis, Davis says. With the restricted class size, there are usually about 10 students requesting enrollment each semester, Davis says.

There are only four St. Michael’s students currently enrolled in the class. Patrick gymnasium is a few miles away, and students are responsible for their own transportation, as only public busses run between the two campuses.

The hands-on approach

This course doesn't require a textbook — only regular attendance and the completion of a mandatory overnight with Davis in the Green Mountains, which counts as the final exam.

A pair of telemark skis rest in the snow on campus. (Larry Frisoli, photo)

“Each class is sort of a different subject,” says Matt Rogers, a senior at St. Michael’s who is currently enrolled in the class. “The last class was focused on what food and water you should bring with you.”

The course stresses aspects of camping such as packing light, orienteering, wilderness ethics of “leave no trace behind,” and finding and making shelter – among other things. The class is usually held in a classroom in Patrick gymnasium but is taken outdoors whenever possible, Davis says.

Carmen Silvestri is another St. Michael’s senior who commutes every Wednesday afternoon for the course.

“You are expected to go to class, take notes, and do all the tasks,” Silvestri says. “Articles and handouts make up all of the reading.”

“The week before [Presidents Day] break, Maj. Davis took us around Centennial Woods and pointed out edible plants, animal signs, stuff like that,” Silvestri says.

With unique lessons weekly, there is a stress on attendance. Each class missed automatically deducts four percent from the student’s final grade for the class, Silvestri says. Also, the overnight final exam is a crucial and mandatory aspect of the class, counting for at least 25 percent of the final grade, Silvestri says.

The course has additional benefits as well. Although it teaches students how to survive with minimal equipment, everybody on the class roster is given a 20 percent discount for any camping gear they want at Eastern Mountain Sports in Burlington, Silvestri says.

Further St. Michael's ties

Todd Wright, director of the Wilderness program, in his office. (Larry Frisoli, photo)

The Wilderness Program at St. Michael’s has nothing to do with the UVM backpacking course, other than a common focus on the outdoors. That focus continues to provide St. Michael's students with opportunities to immerse themselves in the outdoors, despite the fact that none of the classes offered by the Wilderness Program count along the lines of academic credits.

“Just this past weekend there was an overnight hike to Gray Knobb Mountain, a snowshoeing trip to Mt. Hunger, and an intermediate Telemark ski clinic,” Patrick Renzi says, a junior who has work study in the Wilderness office. “Ski and snowboard classes are offered every Saturday.”