Does this look familiar?
A few weeks ago my friend asked if I wanted to check out a rope swing on the nearby Conodoguinet River. A mere five minutes later, several of my friends and I were climbing a 40 foot fallen tree and taking the exhilarating plunge into the murky waters below. I am a sophomore at Dickinson and for the past year I have been exploring the Carlisle area, but this spot was all new to me. How could it be that so few people at Dickinson know about their surroundings outside of campus? The “bubble” of a small college is never more apparent when I talk to some of my friends who only leave campus to eat at the local chipotle.
My blog will document my experiences exploring Cumberland County primarily on my bike. It will highlight the hidden gems of the area, but also talk about the areas of poverty and disrepair with the goal of ultimately improving such places. If I meet locals on my trips I will talk to them about the area, learn about the history, and hopefully strengthen relationships between the school and the town. On my trip to the rope swing I talked with some locals about a nearby cave system, and learned that it was once used by bandits to escape underground after a heist. I envision that my blog will be able to talk about all these things. If an area needs cleaning, students will come with trash bags in hand. My blog will first and foremost show people of Dickinson routes through the countryside that they can easily follow.
I have always liked designing and creating aesthetically pleasing things, whether it be a model home or Lego plane, and I hope to bring this to my blog. A simple elegant header complete with pictures from my trips will be the first thing the viewers see. From what I have seen the only similar blog is http://blogs.dickinson.edu/dickinsonbikes/, but this has only one post from this year and primarily details the authors experiences on the bike. I hope to update the blog every week, but the cold Carlisle winters mean that I have to start writing posts now and queuing them up before it’s too cold to ride.
Americana the Beautiful. http://americanathebeautiful.org/blog/. 2013. Web 15 Sept. 2013.
This blog details events, places, and experiences from the author’s trip to each of the fifty states across the country. The unnamed author travelled across the country in an RV writing about everything from the history of slot canyons to her allergies in the New Mexico desert. The tone is funny while also being informative.
The blog is very well updated, but some of the posts are on the shorter side. The header is nicely displayed, and it is easy to navigate around the site.
The Good Badger. http://zrdavis.com/. Zach Davis. 2013. Web/ 15 Sept. 2013
This blog is written by published author Zach Davis, and details his experiences hiking the Appalachian Trail, and life afterwards. In one of his posts, he writes about honesty as a writer, and how it is right to detail all the positive and negative experiences that happen to him. The posts are extremely helpful for hikers looking for a weekend trip, or a yearlong expedition.
The blog has a elegant layout, due to Zach’s previous work in the tech industry. One problem is that a lot of scrolling is required to see past posts. This site also does have external links to Zach’s published books, which is understandable considering the general lack of income for hikers.
I think it is a great idea to create a blog that explores areas of Carlisle; students rarely get off campus to explore the surrounding areas, and i think there are a lot of cool locales to be found. An idea you could consider for one of your blog posts is to ask other students of hidden Carlisle spots they’ve found, or maybe talk to a few members of the outdoors club and see what kinds of places they visit. I think it will be really interesting to interview locals and get a better idea about the context and history of the surrounding areas.
I love the idea for this blog! I’ve had the chance to explore some of Carlisle and the surrounding area, but I would love to explore more! One suggestion for a place to check out is Cave Hill (I haven’t actually been there but my friends keeps talking about it!). I also know some locals you might be interested in talking to. I can’t wait to read your blog!
Jamie, the photo of my friends and I standing on the shore covered in mud was actually taken at Cave Hill! It’s a very cool place.
Sometimes I think about what I do during an average week at Dickinson and I realize that if you put my movements on a map they would resemble the movements of a mouse in a cage–I always go the same places. I think it is really easy to get caught up in your routine and to forget to explore what else is around you. I do this frequently, so I love this blog idea! I especially like how you mentioned talking to locals. I work with someone who grew up in Boiling Springs and today he was telling me about all the hiking trails he grew up going to. I think that locals would be an excellent resource to learn about places you might not otherwise have known about. Also, you should look into walking tours. I know that because Carlisle is such a historical area they definitely have some that take you around and explain famous events that happened in the area. I think this would be particularly cool because it would show you the significance of places you probably walk by all the time at Dickinson, but maybe never considered as places worth exploring before.
This is an amazing idea for a blog. Students and Carlsile locals who are into outdoor activities, like myself will definitely follow this blog. The only concern might be finding enough spots to write about later on. That is if you plan to keep working on your blog after this course though. Sounds like a great idea to me!