Since the UW-Eau Claire purchased the 23 acres of upper campus in 1958, students have been making treks up “the hill.”

Students make the trek through rain, blazing heat, ice and snow.

Unless they take the bus, most students who live on campus walk up the hill at least once a day, either to their dorms or to Hilltop. Many have pre-existing knowledge of the hill before coming to campus due to the route of the campus tours.

This semester, Recreation and Sports Facilities introduced Hike the Hill, a challenge that encourages students to track the number of trips they take up the hill this semester.

At the end of the semester, Recreation and Sports Facilities will email participants their climb totals. Each student is entered into a drawing for recreation gift certificates, T-shirts, water bottles and a semester fitness center membership.

The event kicked off Sept. 1 with a non-competitive run the hill event. More than 500 students gathered at the bottom of the hill to race to the top. The Department offered free t-shirts to students once they finished.

Throughout the course of the semester, students can visit the Recreation and Sports Facilities website to see how many miles and elevation they’ve hiked so far. Totals are compared to mountains such as Mount Everest and Mount Godwin-Austen.

Brittany Wold, wellness coordinator of Hike the Hill, said the challenge is meant to alter the way students view the hill.

“We want students to celebrate the awesome natural feature our campus has to offer,” she said. “Not only for the amazing view from the top, but as an opportunity to stay fit and active.”

Alyssa Anderson, a sophomore journalism major, said she is excited for the Hike the Hill challenge.

Anderson said it’s hard to find time to exercise as a college student, and Hike the Hill is a good incentive to take the hill to upper campus.

“You feel better at the end of the year if you can say you hiked up a part of Mt. Everest rather than just having spent time in your room,” Anderson

Elise Randall, a senior social work major, has been hiking up the hill for four years and said she gradually grew exasperated with the idea of once again having to climb the hill at the end of each day to reach her residence hall.

“That (Hike the Hill) makes me super excited.” Randall said. “It’s something to look forward to at the end of the day.”

After interviewing, The Spectator hired Alyssa Anderson for the fall semester.