A conversation with John the first school wilderness trip

Fifty years after being a part of the first wilderness school experience, John Williams ‘75 hopes to reunite with his former classmates to go back to this same spot that provided an unforgettable experience for the members of the class.

Will Pechersky: Can you give me a basic overview of what you’re trying to organize? John Williams ‘75: Yeah. When I was a freshman at St. Mark’s in 1971, the school had organized the first wilderness trip to Big Bend ever. Prior to that, there was a tradition called Freshman Day, which was one day on campus where the new freshmen and the upperclassmen would have water balloon fights, spray shaving cream, chase each other around campus and silly activities like that. That was the rite of passage to Upper School. A lot of people didn’t particularly care for it; they thought it was a bit juvenile and silly. And so the idea was, ‘Let’s have a true experience that the incoming freshmen will have, that will be

Headmaster David Dini explains why the Wilderness Program is such an integral part of the school’s education.

I think there are a variety of aspects of the wilderness program that we believe are really valuable and important. That’s why we start in the Middle school and build up to the Pecos in ninth grade. A lot of it has to do with building stronger deeper relationships with classmates and being out of the routine of being in school, and, for some boys who perhaps might not have been involved in the outdoor activities, if they weren’t in Scouts or other things where you camp or hike, then it provides an opportunity to be outside and actually sleep under the stars and and have an experience that might otherwise not have been a part of their life. It’s also, I think, an opportunity to learn important skills, including teamwork and working collaboratively with your neighbor and many of the things we talk about on campus all the time. their rite of passage for Upper School.’ And so that’s how the trip started.

WP: Do you know how similar this trip will be to the original trip? JW: We spent about five days backpacking in the interior of the Big Bend National Park and about another four or five days on the River. The backpacking trip was pretty physically demanding. I’m an outdoorsman. I hunt, I camp, I backpack, I’ve looked at the trails in the mountains we climbed, and a lot of what we did, I don’t think it may necessarily be suitable for some of the people who haven’t done that sort of thing for a long time. What we’re trying to do is to retrace some of our steps, and perhaps some of the easier hikes where we can maximize the number of people who could attend. What we’re planning on doing, is a brief hike, set up in a base camp, then for those who are so inclined, some additional day hikes on top of that, maybe climb a couple of mountains we’ve climbed before and then after that transition to a float trip on the river, which is physically demanding, but not like carrying a 40 or 50 pound backpack.

WP: Was there anything specific that gave you the idea to try and organize something like this? JW: I think that just reconnecting with the class five years ago, our 40th reunion, made me realize how close we were and how we were able to hear about old people, talk to somebody you hadn’t seen in 20 or 30 years, and pick up where you left off. I went to college, I went to medical

school, I went to graduate school, I was in the military for 22 years. The friends that I made at St. Mark’s, I think, are some of the people I’m closest to because we shared common experiences growing up. We played sports together, we did extracurricular activities, I was on The ReMarker. And some of those shared experiences, I think, make you much closer than perhaps maybe a college roommate or somebody you knew in medical school or the military. 50 years is a milestone for anything. I’m just thankful to be alive at this point, because not everybody in our class is, and I think there’s a window of opportunity where you can do something like this that involves physical activity that is closing, and 50 years seems to be an appropriate milestone to commemorate it.

WP: What do you hope to gain from this experience with your former classmates? Are you more hoping to recreate some of those same memories? JW: Yes, I think that’s part of it. I think also, as the years go by, I am constantly reminded of my days at St. Mark’s. Some of my instructors and teachers and activities and things I did and how that impacted me or led me through my different studies and careers in life. I was at St. Mark’s for five years, eighth grade through 12th grade. It was a tremendous experience, and I think most of my classmates feel the same way. And to be able to talk and interact with somebody that you knew pretty well, when they were ages 14 through 18, and now they’re 64 and 65, it’s not common that you have a group like that. Some of the stuff you can do on social media, but a lot of it is done better in person. I would really like to be able to spend that kind of quality time with my fellow classmates.

WP: What do you think can be said about the sense of brotherhood at St. Mark’s, given your continued relationship

ON THE PATH

Members of the Class of ‘75 as freshmen hike along a trail during the newlycreated trip.

with all these classmates this many years later? JW: I think we had some common values instilled in us at St. Mark’s in terms of working hard, fairplay, pretty cliche, simple stuff, that I think pretty much everybody followed through in their lives. Certainly, we don’t all think the same, we’re not all in the same political party or support the same presidential candidate, but I think we’re able to get past that sort of thing and be able to interrelate to each other.

WP: What do you think is the most beneficial aspect of the wilderness program for students? JW: I think being able to be with somebody for 24/7 for several days. When you’re in school with another person for six or seven hours, you can get along with them, but sometimes when you’re with somebody 24/7, they can really get on your nerves, and you probably really get on their nerves as well. I can remember people getting into arguments over silly things, and I think if you’re able to be in a situation where you’re with somebody for 10 days, 24/7, and you can come out of that and still be good friends, you’ve accomplished a lot, because I think you’ve, seen that person at their best and at their worst, and that’s not something that we we typically see in other experiences. I think about people who were on the trip, now successful attorneys, NFL football team owners, space scientists, and I can think back to, ‘Hey, I remember the first time I met you, I really didn’t like you, and you didn’t like me, but when we finished at St. Mark’s, we were pretty good friends.’ When you’re a young kid in high school, there’s not that many opportunities for that, and I think that was unique in that regard.

STORY Will Pechersky, Jonathan Yin PHOTO Courtesy John Williams ‘75

Contact Info email: johnmwmd@msn.com

Annual Pecos trip plans to return in August

by Jonathan Yin

Although previously delayed by the pandemic, Pecos trips are planned to continue in August with minimal changes for both the incoming and current Freshman Class.

“It’s early in the year, so we’re doing gear inventory, looking at our routes, looking at our menus, making tweaks here and there,” Wilderness Program Director Mark Sullivan said. “We have started a dialogue with the Forest Service about making sure that they will allow us to do what we need to do to do.”

The wilderness program operates under a permit system from the United States Forest Service, typically allocating enough hours for one class’s trip to the Pecos a year.

“We’re currently working with the Forest Service to expand those permit hours to allow us to take both this year’s ninth grade class as well as last year’s ninth grade class on their Pecos trip,” Sullivan said. “The big emphasis right now is just making sure we can even operate in the wilderness area based on permitting guidelines, as well as safety guidelines.”

Despite these issues, Sullivan maintains that each class will be able to have its own trip, if conditions with the current pandemic allow.

“We’re going to keep the trips separated, so this year’s freshmen and the rising freshmen will have a trip unique to their class,” Sullivan said. “Years and years ago, when I first started the Pecos, which was 35 years ago, we would do multiple trips in one summer. We have a pretty good relationship with [the Forest Service] because we have been there for so many years, so we’re confident we’re going to get what we need to get done.”

While nothing has changed directly as a result of the virus, Sullivan and his team are constantly looking for ways to improve the trip.

“We are changing how we acclimate to the elevation, which really has nothing to do with the pandemic,” Sullivan said. “But those are changes that, quite frankly, nobody would ever really know we made except those who go on it all the time. They aren’t going to change the dynamic of the trip in any way.”

At the moment, however, nothing is set in stone.

“We can only just sit and wait like everybody else and watch the situation and make our decisions in a timely fashion based on those,” Sullivan said. “At this point in time, we have to think like we’re going.”

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October 29, 2020