A Sacred Tradition Extinguished

Nothing says Dartmouth Night more than its quintessential bonfire. Positioned at its central location at the heart of campus, the bonfire represents all that Dartmouth stands for and so much more. The hallowed tradition has reunited students and alumni alike since 1888 and each year serves to strengthen this sacred connection. The immense energy radiated from the flames comes second in magnitude only to the shared school pride and excitement that emanates from each and every member of the Dartmouth ecosystem.

Despite its glory and significance to the Dartmouth community, this year’s Homecoming fire would have to wait until next year, with governor Kelly Ayotte’s recent outdoor burn ban for the state of New Hampshire to blame. Extreme drought conditions plaguing the Upper Valley have continued into the fall months, and with all open fires made unlawful until conditions improve, the prospects of an annual Homecoming bonfire have looked bleak for months. With little control over where embers and other debris from the fire land, the risks posed were deemed simply too great to carry on with the great tradition.

In hopes of rescuing the main event of Homecoming weekend, the bonfire committee and other organizers have pivoted and will instead be hosting an interactive light and laser show set to the background of student DJ sets. In the words of interim dean of undergraduate student affairs Anne Hudak, this “reimagining” of tradition will be sure to provide this year’s freshman Class of 2029 with “a new and unforgettable experience.” There is little doubt that the event will be one to remember, but we can only hope that it will be so for the right reasons and not simply due to the abnormality of the circumstances.

EJ Kiefer, executive director of conferences and events in addition to his role as a member of the bonfire committee, maintains that the essence of what makes the Homecoming bonfire and Dartmouth Night in general so special will remain central to the evening’s planning.

While it is clear to see that the Administration’s hands were tied by the decree of Ayotte to ban all outdoor fires, what remains is a potent feeling of frustration and disappointment among Dartmouth’s student population, particularly among freshmen. Their annual lap around the fire stands as arguably the most significant of ceremonies designed to welcome them into the Dartmouth family and community at large. These ’29s will only have one freshman fall and one freshman Homecoming weekend, one which will be forever tainted by this unfortunate series of events. There is something particularly striking about the decision to go from a three-plus-story mountain of flames to a futuristic light show worthy of inclusion in the newest Star Trek spin-off series, as if to add insult to injury.

Moreover, the organizers of the evening share with pride that they are particularly excited about the light-up wristbands members of the Class of 2029 will receive that will synchronize with the DJ sets playing. This gimmick was most recently seen on display during the concerts of Coldplay’s summer 2025 world tour, in which concert-goers screamed in delight as the next song to be performed was foreshadowed by the colors that would appear on their wrists. Although the evening will be a drastically different and potentially jarring experience for those involved, the centrality of light and spectacle to the event will at least rival the bonfire, if only minimally.

As an article from the office of communications puts it, this year Homecoming will be “a little different.” Despite being a somewhat humorous understatement, language such as this threatens to devalue the integral role that the bonfire plays each year in Homecoming festivities and serves to undermine the importance of symbols such as these to the Dartmouth of old. There is something deeply cathartic about staring into the bonfire’s flames, about losing yourself in the spirit of such a special evening as an entire community filled with profound love and appreciation for a school stares on in awe.

Planners assure that the bonfire will return next year, contingent upon drought conditions, but at that point the moment will have been lost. The energy of the evening will have moved on quite unanimously to the Dartmouth Class of 2030, and the ’29s will be left to wonder about how their experience could have been different. While it is difficult to argue that an absolutely correct way to handle this situation exists, I feel there could have been a little more done to keep the main attraction of the evening closer to the spirit of the original bonfire.

Despite these difficulties and the change of plans, what will never change is the fact that Dartmouth Night is a time of celebration and brings us even closer to the traditions and generations of alumni before us — traditions upon which the fabric of Dartmouth’s heritage rests and, God willing, will continue to do so for years and years to come.