During the summer, two Deep Springers work as student cowboys, caring for the herd over 80,000 acres of range land; the first man trains the second to take the senior role the following summer.

Being a cowboy is difficult but rewarding work, John C. Dewis '00 says.

"You spend from June until September in the high country with the herd," Dewis says. "Those days, it's you and one other guy up there and a string of two horses...making sure the cattle have access to water and are well fed, that they're kept out of sensitive areas. Summers on the mountain are the most rigorous and the most indulgent."

Being a cowboy in the '90s isn't like the movies. While John Wayne spent more time slinging a gun than looking after actual cows, the student cowboys must guard the herd carefully to prevent it from trampling sensitive ecosystems. They also assist in calf-birthing.

"You stick your hand up the behind and pull it along if necessary," Mihir E. Kshirsagar '00 says.

If the two cowboys don't get along, the mountain life can be completely isolating.

"There's stories about guys who went a week without speaking to each other," says Zachary R. Mider '00-'01, who is also a Crimson editor.