University at Buffalo - The State University of New York

Published: March 20, 2003

By DONNA LONGENECKER
Reporter Assistant Editor

She's hiked the 46 peaks of the Adirondacks, but Marjorie Allshouse's dream was to hike the Grand Canyon from rim to rim "before I get too old to do it."

Now Allshouse, director of recruitment for the School of Management, will get a chance to fulfill her dream this May, thanks to a group of MBA students and others in the School of Management.

A group of 10, including students and alumni, faculty and staff from SOM, will hike the canyon from the South Rim to the North Rim during the trip, which is scheduled from May 13-21. The group "bought out" one of the Grand Canyon Field Institute's published trips.

The trip is no easy undertaking—hiking from the South to the North Rim for about seven days in a variety of conditions and temperatures ranging from about 45 degrees at the North Rim to near 100 in the base of the canyon during the day. And it can be steep, although the trails are well-maintained.

Allshouse says the trip came about after she shared her dream of hiking the Grand Canyon with several international students during a trip last year to the Adirondacks. Allshouse is a member of the Adirondack Mountain Club, which makes a yearly trip to the park to do trail maintenance and cleanup, and she invited several students to make the trip with her.

Allshouse notes that the MBA program had its largest ever enrollment of international students last year. Former Interim Dean Jerry Newman wanted to make sure the students were happy and had adjusted well to being in a new country, says Allshouse, so she and David Frasier, assistant dean and director of the MBA programs, introduced the students to a "How to Survive Western New York in the Winter Workshop" in response to their questions about the region during orientation. This led to a cross-country ski trip, the trip to the Adirondacks and now, the milestone of hiking the Grand Canyon.

"We had 65 people sign up for a cross-country ski trip—we had a blast," she says. "Almost all of them had never even seen snow. They came back to class on Monday and Tuesday, and asked 'what are we going to do next?'" recalls Allshouse, who wants to not only give students a taste of Western New York, but to introduce them to America as well.

"MBAs are workhorses and often times they get caught up in the stresses of class and the overload of class and they just don't take the time to play. This group is only here two years, so we thought 'let's give them a little taste of America,' but first it started with a taste of Western New York," says Allshouse.

A guide from Grand Canyon Field Institute will lead the group, offering sessions on natural history along the way. It will take about two days to descend into the base of the canyon, says Allshouse, noting that the first time she laid eyes on the canyon several years ago it literally took her breath away.

"It's gorgeous; it's the most awesome thing I've ever experienced. I've never seen anything like it. I just wanted to be quiet," she says. The group will hike about five to seven hours a day—a 24-mile hike overallwith meal breaks and time to observe the beauty of the surroundings.

Because prior backpacking experience is required in order to make the trip, Allshouse has been training group members who have little or no experience, having them climb up and down the steps in Alumni Arena while carrying increasingly heavier packs to improve strength and endurance. "It's steep and that's the challenge," Allshouse says of the trail. "The students are very perceptive of the importance of working out together. They know they're working toward a common purpose.

"Every now and then we get a question about what we are doing from one of the other Alumni Arena 'regulars' or an occasional 'what are you doing' stare," she adds. "They are always fascinated when we explain our mission."

Although she admits to having always been a bit of a tomboy, Allshouse half-jokes about the "critters" she'll likely encounter during the trip, such as tarantulas and scorpions. She isn't looking forward to that aspect of the journey and notes the altitude might take some getting used to for some—the elevation is about 5,000 feet at the beginning of the hike.

One noteworthy canyon resident Allshouse saw on her last visit was the rare condor. She said she was near the base of the canyon when a large shadow passed overhead—she thought it belonged to a small plane until she looked up and saw the bird's expansive wingspan, which can reach up to 10 feet across.

In hiking the 46 peaks of the Adirondacks in the most severe conditions, Allshouse says she's learned that as long as the most basic needs are met-food, clothing, water and warmth-she can survive anything that life throws at her.

"When you learn to deal with the elements, everything else takes on a much more realistic and doable perspective," she says.