Moosilauke Ravine Lodge Bunkhouse Workshops
Harnessing the Dartmouth Outing Club Community to Transform a Beloved Mountain Hostel
The Class of 1984 Crew Cabin became the first of what may be as many as six new buildings at the lodge. With the support of Dartmouth Alumni and the efforts of the Moosilauke community, two new bunkhouses have been completed. A third is nearing completion, the fourth and fifth are in planning stages now. The Crew Cabin project set the pattern for those that followed.
Week-long timber framing workshops of 25-35 alumni and friends cut and raised the timber frames. This burst has been followed by work weekends over the following months to enclose, finish and equip each building. These projects have leveraged 3000-4000 hours of volunteer effort per building, and yielded structures that are loved from before the moment the first beam is in the air, and will certainly continue to be loved far into the future.
The Alumni Class of 1974 sponsored the first workshop to build a bunkhouse after the great success of the Class of '84's Crew Cabin build. When word was sent out to the class of 1974 that the workshop was a go, the answer roared back in the form of a huge pool of volunteers bringing all manner of saws and chisels, at the ready to do what was needed. A raucous time was had by all, and many of these volunteers returned the following year to help on the Class of 1965 Bunkhouse project.
Learn More About This ProjectThe workshop that cut the Class of 1965 Workshop took place in the fall of 2014. It was attended by several members of the sponsoring alumni class, and a gaggle of recent grads, and many returning volunteers from the Class of 1974. TimberHomes and friends organized the workshop and stayed on site for the following six weeks to oversee a crew of Dartmouth folk as they enclosed the building. The interior bunks and cabinetry were completed in our shop over the winter.
Learn More About This ProjectIn the Fall of 2015, a highly motivated group came together to launch the class of '66 bunkhouse More than half of the volunteers had logged one or more timber framing workshops, and the result was a well oiled machine of human mortise-makers. Three Timberhomes staffers stayed on site for the fall to work with weekend-volunteers to oversee enclosure. Interior cabinetry and bunks will be finished in our shop over the winter.
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