5 Things You’ll See When Visiting Ankeny Field on a Sunny Day

On any delightfully sunny afternoon at the center of our campus, the green expanse of Ankeny Field seems to beckon every student. Classes from Olin or Maxey Hall are moved outside to form loose circles in the grass as professors teach the material. Every group chat is blowing up with plans to meet and bask in the sunshine. Students everywhere—from North Hall to Stanton—can be seen lugging picnic blankets toward the heart of campus.

Below are 5 fun filled activities you’ll see happening out on Ankeny on a sunny day.

1. Ultimate frisbee players

Whitman students take their ultimate frisbee very seriously. In the fall, you’ll often see our men’s and women’s club teams, the Sweets, practicing and recruiting out on Ankeny. Add in several intramural teams and there are always at least a few people tossing a disc around.

2. The dogs!

One of the hardest parts of adjusting to college was not having my dog. Never fear, however, Ankeny is a favorite spot for locals to walk their dogs, play fetch and get some well-earned belly rubs. As long as you ask for permission, almost every dog owner is happy to let you pet their furry friend and gush to them about your own pal back home.

3. The slackline

As soon as the temperature reaches 60 degrees, the slackline is retrieved from whichever dusty box it hibernates in and is stretched out between two large trees on the eastern end of the field.  It’s a great exercise in humility for those of us with poor balance! I don’t have any clue whose slackline it is or where it comes from but it appears without fail.

4. Spikeball

Spikeball is a favorite among liberal arts college campuses. For those who have never heard of it, the four-player game is played with a round net placed on the floor and a small ball. It’s vaguely similar to volleyball mixed with Four Square. If you haven’t played yet, I can tell you that it is extremely fun.

5. A pickup game of soccer (or lacrosse, football or red light, green light) 

It’s simultaneously remarkable and also not surprising that Whitman students are friendly enough to end up playing full 11 v. 11 soccer scrimmages with folks they just met. If you head out to Ankeny with a couple of folks and a ball, others will slowly but surely ask to join in. Even without any equipment, Whitties will find a way to have some fun. Just the other day I watched a game of red light, green light morph from a group of about 5 friends to upwards of 30 people in the span of 30 minutes.

There you have it, you’re now fully prepared for a fun-filled visit to Ankeny Field. When you stop by, make sure to keep an eye out for me. I’ll most likely be curled up on my blanket, napping in the sunshine.

Zoe Perkins ’25 is from Hillsboro, Oregon and intends on majoring in Rhetoric, Writing and Public Discourse. Zoe is sometimes a little sad Whitman students are so friendly because she knows she’ll never have an enemies-to-lovers college story arc.