Dana Roberts
This past summer was the second Landmark Volunteers program I have attended. Both of them will stay with me for years to come. My Landmark experiences have been some of the most fun, exciting and meaningful experiences I have ever had.

At the Adirondack Mountain Club, our group worked hard 8-hour days building handicap accessible trails and putting new trail names at the start of many of the trailheads surrounding the National Park. The first week we spent building a handicap accessible trail, which consisted of digging out trenches and moving huge boulders. We would then shovel huge amounts of rock and stone dust, which we would wheelbarrow to the trail. We would spread the rock as a foundation, and then the stone dust would go on top to create a smooth layer that any wheelchair could roll across. The trail ran from a beautiful lakeside view to the Adirondack lodge. Before lunch, we worked hard shoveling rock and digging trenches for logs. Then at lunch, we were rewarded with freshly baked cookies and lemonade made by the food coordinator at the lodge. After lunch we continued our work, and by the end of the day we would jump into the refreshing lake fully clothed and wash off our exhaustion from the day’s work.

The second week, we spent doing more hiking throughout the beautiful expansion of trails and mountains. It was strenuous work because we had to carry ten foot long planks up and down all of the trails. We would put these planks up at the start of each trailhead with the names of trails on each plank. Our group had to carry all of these planks on our shoulders along with shovels, ladders, and root cutters through the trails. On the Fourth on July, we were walking down a trail when we got off the path because of an obstruction in the trail. We ended up wandering through the woods for more than an hour. The experience was scary, but so much fun at the same time. We spent our time telling stories to one another, and becoming closer friends. Bushwalking through the forest was one of the most memorable parts of our trip.

On our weekends we hiked to one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. There were manmade water slides made of rock, and beautiful landscapes all around. We went to the local ice cream shop, where we all splurged on the sugar that we hadn’t had the week before. We even went to a swimming hole with 25 and 30-foot jumps into the water. On Sunday, we hiked up the 2nd largest peak in New York, Mt Algonquin, where we had a view of the whole national park.

After our long exhausting days on the trials, we gathered at our campsite talking and telling jokes, and playing poker with rocks around the campfire. This group of people became very close by the end of the two weeks. Working and living together brought us so close, we could talk to each other about anything. We bonded throughout our experiences, and by the end of the trip, it was hard to say goodbye to all my friends.

Over those two weeks, I felt so good about myself. Even though the work was very hard, I enjoyed every minute of it because it was spent helping conserve nature. I was able to spend two weeks in the beauty of the Adirondack National Park where I made so many friends and memories that I will cherish forever. This experience showed me the value of hard work and how rewarding it can be. Looking back I can see how my hard work has helped protect the beauty of the national park. I recommend this program for all those looking to have a valuable experience in nature and make wonderful friendships. I would not trade my time with Landmark experience for anything.

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