Attending college at UNH is, in itself, a scenic daily walk, especially in the autumn. Just beyond the Field House and the Whittemore Center, walkers get a test of the rural school, the way it used to be.

English majors often forget that the University of New Hampshire began as a farm school. The farm is still there, bigger than ever, and branching off that tree is the equine center. The University keeps about 35 horses in an enormously long barn and sponsors two horse trails and a dressage annually.

The casual Durham walker can make a nice loop up Mast Road Extension and through the horse corrals, down to and through the horse barn and back behind the college buildings. There is a field back there, a nice rural spot, that passes by a number of private homes and a family cemetery behind an early 20^th century metal fence.

Horse people, of course, know this area well. The UNH horses are used in the college riding program, a therapeutic riding program, and in the prevet and equine science teaching classes. Despite that multi-layered workout, they seemed especially friendly during out hike, even to an English major.

For more info on the horse program(603) 862-3757.

Photos by J. Dennis Robinson