Free Dinner? A Trip to the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge
The Moosilauke Ravine Lodge (or "Lodj") is loved by Dartmouth students past and present for two main reasons:
1. Being the culminating part of their First-Year Trips—the pre-orientation camping trip incoming Dartmouth students attend
2. Providing free multi-course dinners throughout the spring, summer, and fall seasons
Until this summer, I had never gone to the Lodj for dinner. Over my sophomore summer, my older brother came to visit Dartmouth for the first time, so my roommates and I thought it would be fitting to make the trek north to show him a unique Dartmouth tradition.
To eat at the Lodj, we had to call in advance to make a reservation. You do not need to be a Dartmouth student to make a reservation, so if you are ever in the area, I recommend trying it out; it is free for all Dartmouth students, and any other visitors can pay to eat at the Lodj. After we made our reservation, we drove around an hour north to get to the Lodj. When we arrived, we discovered that our friend Trudy was coincidentally getting Lodj dinner with her parents—who were visiting her!
We walked around and looked at the other cabins at the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge, showed my brother the "leech field" where all of the First-Year Trip dances occur, and took some pictures!
We then ate a delicious 5-course dinner featuring a salad, garlic knots, lentil soup, chicken orzo, and tiramisu! The meal was prepared by Lodj Croo, who are Dartmouth students who live and work at the Lodj for an off-term!
I think the progression of our dinner is best represented by a series of photos during each course. Enjoy!
Course 1: Salad
Unfortunately, due to our hunger after the drive to Moosilauke, we have no photos of the salad portion of our meal.
Course 2: Lentil Soup
Course 3: Garlic Knots
Course 4: Chicken Orzo
Course 5: Tirmasu
I loved my time at the Lodj and hope to return soon before the Lodj closes for the season! Hopefully, next time I go to Moosilauke, I'll see a moose, as fellow People Places Pines blogger Memo did.