Students, faculty, staff, and local community members are invited to take part on Sunday, Oct. 6, in Peak Bag, an annual event created by Dartmouth alumni to raise awareness of mental health and suicide prevention.
Participants will do an outdoor activity of their choice that day, such as a hike, walk, bike ride, or paddle, and then gather for a picnic, camaraderie, and conversation from 4 to 6 p.m. on the Gold Coast Lawn on Tuck Mall.
First held in 2020, Peak Bag was organized by a group of Dartmouth ’88 rowers to honor the memory of their teammate Omondi Obura ’88, who died by suicide in 1989. Students, alumni, and others take part around the world; last year’s event attracted 273 “peak baggers” in 13 countries.
Organizers are encouraging each participant to register, as alumni founders of Peak Bag and other members of the Class of 1988 will donate $50 per person to the Omondi Obura Fund for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention at Dartmouth, which supports Campus Connect Suicide Prevention Training.
The picnic will include cider donuts, crullers and cake, sandwiches, cider, local apples, and crudités.
This year, organizers are making a special effort to get students and the greater Upper Valley community “really energized” for Peak Bag, said economics professor Bruce Sacerdote ’90, the chair of the Outdoor Engagement Committee, which aims to broaden student and alumni engagement with the outdoors.
“It’s during peak leaf season, and it’s just a great time to get outdoors,” Sacerdote says. “We all feel very busy and pressured with our schedules, but it’s always worthwhile to take some time to get some exercise and to see friends and make new ones.”
Suggested hikes near Hanover (PDF) range from an easy, relatively flat 2.1-mile walk along Mink Brook Trail south of campus to a challenging hike on the Gorge Brook Trail on Mount Moosilauke, covering 7.1 miles with an elevation gain of 2,513 feet.
Participants are also encouraged to email photos of their outdoor activity for a crowd-sourced gallery.
Peak Bag event is also “an opportunity for students to feel that if they have an issue that they need or want to talk about, they can feel free,” says physical education instructor Pam Crandall ’88, the committee’s co-chair.
“Dartmouth is a place where people won’t be stigmatized, and people can engage in those conversations openly and get the help they need or get help for a friend,” Crandall says.
Donations are accepted but not necessary. For more information, email Crandall or Sacerdote.
The Dartmouth event is co-sponsored by the Office of the President, the Outdoor Engagement Committee, the House Communities, Dartmouth Student Government, the Dartmouth Counseling Center, Greek Leadership Council, and the Peak Bag Committee.
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If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or use the online chat at 988lifeline.org/chat/.
Mental health support is available through Dartmouth 24/7 for students, faculty, and staff. Any Dartmouth student experiencing a mental health crisis can call the Counseling Center at 603-646-9442.