MINES, VOLCANOES, AND "THE STRETCH": A STUDENT TRIBUTE TO HALF ZANTOP

The Dartmouth College off-campus program, fondly known as "The Stretch," was made all the more special each year by the two-week segment led by Dr. Half Zantop. The segment was loved not only for its content -- the study of active volcanoes and working mines throughout Central America and Mexico -- but also for the unique experience of learning, working, and traveling with Half. Half engaged students in his passion for methodical and detailed field studies, sometimes spending several hours at a single outcrop as he encouraged students to sketch, analyze, and debate until a geologic story unraveled. He was also untiring, keeping students' schedules filled with fourteen-hour days of field studies based out of indestructible (almost) Volkswagen vans. Yet, amid the hard work and driving schedule, Half would purposefully carve out time -- sometimes in the middle of a field day -- for students to wander an historic town, buy silver earrings and bracelets, and simply experience the culture, people, and landscape around them. This presentation, a student tribute to Dr. Half Zantop's work on "The Stretch," will revisit the years he led the field program. Through collections of student photos and personal stories, the narrative will highlight Half's love of field geology, his personal connection to the volcanoes, mines, and people of the region, and his unwavering dedication to his students. "The Stretch" will not be the same without Dr. Half Zantop, but it will remember him as one of its most respected, and most beloved, professors.