Bound for Dear Arcadia

By Leah Rice and Marina Garlick
September 1, 2025

Beep beep beep! “Leah, LEAH!! You have to get up!” Leah’s tent-mates, Jordanna and Rachael, whisper-shout as they shake her awake. Across camp, the other Arcadians prepare for their alpine start: 4:00am. 

This is the earliest morning of their seven-day canoe trip and involves the final push to Arcadia. This week-long expedition marks the start of the Adirondack Semester, a program in which the Arcadians will live and learn in a yurt village (Arcadia) on the Massawepie Conservation Easement. As they excitedly push off on their final day, these new Arcadians are naïve to the challenges ahead of them. The G.I.V.E.R.s of the day, Beckley and Leah, request a silent thirty-minute paddle to give their peers time to reflect on the trip so far, mentally prepare for the day ahead, and watch the lake wake up. Beckley and Leah also reflect on their own roles as G.I.V.E.R.s, which stands for Goals, Itinerary, Vibes, Essentials, and Route—all necessary contributions of the day’s leaders. Essentially, two Arcadians are assigned the role of designated leader (or “giver”) each day of the canoe trip, allowing students to practice existing leadership skills or develop their leadership style. At a nightly meeting, Emily Campbell noted that “This is the first time I’ve led a group.”

Managing curveballs is part of the role as giver of the day. On previous days of the canoe trip, these curveballs included heavy headwind, hidden portage signs, occupied campsites, or challenging river bends. Today, Beckley and Leah face the first of many challenges when they approach a bridge they expect to go under, but it seems to be under construction. When making decisions, managing the group’s expectations is a top priority. Through watching their peers lead on previous days, givers have learned through observation and constructive feedback that relaying information and changes of plan in real time is vital to group cohesion and morale. Adirondack Semester Assistant Directors Nate and Nicole scout the construction zone, deeming it unsafe to pass under. Beckley and Leah communicate the group’s impromptu portage across the highway.

After carrying canoes across the busy highway, the group breathes a sigh of relief. However, our moment of calm is short-lived because the next portage tests some past injuries. Three Arcadians reaggravate these injuries during the canoe carry, forcing them to slow down and reevaluate. A common theme throughout the canoe trip has been juggling the desire to push their physical limits with the need to rest and practice self-care. As Nicole has said many times, “Self-care is group-care.” Arcadians have learned to take time for themselves and lean on the community they have started to form. After managing injuries for the time being and delaying decisions regarding possible evacuations downstream, the fleet is back on the Raquette River, heading towards the rapids below the hydroelectric dam.

Fast-forward to life at Arcadia the following week when Adirondack Semester Director Jake McCoola will teach a lesson on risk management. Framing risk as “the potential for loss of value,” Jake will propose a probability vs. consequence graph with the x-axis representing probability and the y-axis representing consequence. Any given point on the graph represents a risk being taken. The probability of losing something of value (life, happiness, money, etc.) can be plotted from low to high. Similarly, the severity of the consequence if something of value is lost can also be plotted from low (minor discomfort) to high (death). In retrospect, this model would have been useful in evaluating Arcadians’ decisions to run the rapids.

Throughout the trip, the rapids have been especially low this year. As a result, there is only one plausible line down this stretch of the Raquette: river left between two rocks, then a sharp right between four more rocks. This sketchy line increases the probability of flipping a canoe because it includes an advanced move (the sharp right) that most Arcadians are not experienced enough to make, along with many exposed rocks along the way. It is debatable whether the chance of flipping has increased or decreased due to the low water level. On the one hand, low water is slower moving. On the other hand, it has exposed many more rocks to bump and scrape against. For the givers of the day, flipping their canoe will also have the consequence of leading in a weakened state, cold and wet. 

Beckley and Leah have run rapids together before and are psyched to do it again, but they transfer the initial risk onto other people by watching Emily and Marina run the rapids first in order to assess steering moves and the probability of flipping. Emily and Marina make it down the rapids just fine, so Beckley and Leah go for it, mitigating the risk of being cold and wet for the rest of the day by removing their warm clothes and putting them in a safe place. After all, Leah guesses, “There is a better probability I slip and fall on a rock by walking the canoe down the rapids than by running them myself.” In the end, four pairs of Arcadians run the rapids and each gets caught on the same rock, but nobody swims…yet.

Eventually, the group decides that a couple of members’ injuries make it too risky for them to continue on the journey, so they arrange for Jake to pick them up near the entrance to Dead Creek. After navigating the shockingly low Raquette River but before hitting its class 5 rapids, the Arcadians enter Dead Creek and meet Jake along the highway, where they say farewells to two friends who will miss the final leg of the trip and meet them later at Arcadia.

What now stands between the remaining fleet and Arcadia is the infamous Dead Creek. Adirondack Semester alumni display a distinct look in their eyes when Dead Creek is mentioned. Is it fear? Nostalgia? Pain? As a result, this year’s new Arcadians feel an overwhelming sense of intimidation for the afternoon ahead. Beckley later admits, “The whole day I felt like Dead Creek was looming in front of us.” There are so many unknowns. How many miles long is Dead Creek? Nate says nobody knows. How many beaver dams will there be? We’re about to find out.

Upon later reflection, Arcadian Eva Nielsen states that “play was a pivotal part of how we got through the day.” This couldn’t be truer, as games, song, and even a little gambling are woven throughout the day’s paddle. For example, at lunch Nicole suggests that we all assume made-up personas for the Dead Creek leg to add a whimsical touch to the endless bends ahead. Emily and Jordanna take this idea in stride and put together a hat full of characters. Notable mentions include Doug (the Arcadians’ wilderness first-aid instructor), a pop star (Emily sings in a Southern drawl all afternoon), and Ms. Frizzle (whom Nicole embodies). Other ways that Arcadians engage in play involve singing clips from random songs like “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus. Also, Marina initiates some friendly betting on the number of beaver dams we’ll encounter along the creek. Bets go as high as 52 and as optimistic as 14. Though there is some disagreement about what counts as a beaver dam, the group eventually decides to average the two counts of 17 and 20 to 18.5, leaving Jake the ultimate winner of the bet (ironically, because he is not even present). Other notable playful activities include seeing Jake’s puppies Eddy and Jinora at the first portage (when he meets us to pick up the dreadful pickle barrels to lighten our load) and the customized sea shanty that Garen and Beckley created (SEE APPENDIX!). Finally, when things get a little dull on Dead Creek, some Arcadians start eating elderberries like bears, stuffing whole branches in their mouths and attempting to extract the berries without fingers. Though play has been present throughout the expedition, it is exemplified on this final day as Arcadians turn to laughter instead of silence when faced with adversity. This pushes the group to smile more and ultimately enjoy the day to its fullest.

However, that positive attitude doesn’t spare them from their longest portage yet (two miles). With darkness quickly closing in on the exhausted Arcadians, they throw on their headlamps and rally for the final push. Embracing sore shoulders, they lift their canoes and head down the trail, accepting that this seemingly never-ending day is part of the Adirondack Semester experience. Garen later states, “Even if you’re physically uncomfortable, it’s easy to embrace when you’re surrounded by people excited to challenge themselves.” Garen refers back to the moment on Dead Creek when she and Eva flipped their canoe and went for a swim while trying to get over a beaver dam: “I just loved that neither of us were upset, and we were more excited that it happened. We were just having fun.” This positive attitude was further exemplified by the group teasing the swimmers that they were “pudelnass,” our new favorite German word meaning “to be very wet.” This moment reminded the group of their first morning together at SLU’s Canaras Conference Center on Upper Saranac Lake when Nate snagged the only “fun” mug, which portrayed a photo of a poodle accompanied by a brief history of how the poodle got its name, and Lars informed the group that “poodle” comes from the German word “pudelnass.” Although the final portage is grueling, the challenge is made easier by the Arcadian sense of humor and unlimited support. Garen later says that “laughter is what got Eva and me through the day.”

The final day of the trip comes to a close as the new Arcadians lay eyes on calm and clear Massawepie Lake. As the sky begins to darken, the Arcadians push off, paddling toward the awaiting arms of their missing members and program alumni. Many tears are shed over hugs and melon slices. The new Arcadians are ushered into a warm, aromatic kitchen for tacos and wise words from the departing alumni. It feels like a full-circle moment as last year’s Arcadians pass the village over to the new Arcadians. With warm hearts and full bellies, the new Arcadians snuggle into strange yurts in an unknown forest that will soon enough feel like home.

Appendix: Sea Shanty by Garen and Beckley

We left Canaras Sunday last
Heave away, haul away
And many waters we have passed
Bound for dear Arcadia

Chorus:
Haul away through waters blue
Heave away, haul away
Paddling with friends anew
Bound for dear Arcadia

If you’re choking on a snack
Heave away, haul away
Fear not ‘cause Doug’s got your back
Bound for dear Arcadia

Chorus
C-stroke, J-stroke, draw and pry
Heave away, haul away
Steering is a piece of pie
Bound for dear Arcadia

Chorus
Eating pretzels left and right
Heave away, haul away
Watch out or I’ll steal a bite
Bound for dear Arcadia

Chorus
Spiders crawling everywhere
Heave away, haul away
Even in Jordanna’s hair
Bound for dear Arcadia

Chorus
Eating oatmeal from the pot
Heave away, haul away
Now I have to poop a lot
Bound for dear Arcadia

Chorus
Listen to the sound of loons
Heave away, haul away
Steer clear of the smelly goons
Bound for dear Arcadia

Chorus
Running rapids with the gang
Heave away, haul away
Hit that rock with a bang
Bound for dear Arcadia

Chorus
Dead Creek was approaching fast
Heave away, haul away
And we surely had a blast
Bound for dear Arcadia