Shenandoah National Park, Sunday April 19, 2015 — Patomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC) North District Hoodlums Trail Crew gathered Saturday for its monthly outing. As usual, we divided into several work groups to clear, clean, repair and improve the trails in the park. We got a lot done.
A few of us camped in the park in order to get early starts on our individual trail sections this morning.
Trail maintenance can be pretty mundane. Today was painting day, but not just painting any old thing.
No sir. Today I was painting almighty white blazes. These are the very symbol of the AT and the center of attention for hikers. Miss the wrong one, and you could wind up in Rhode Island sometime.
Some blazes have faded over the years.
I thought this spot needs a white blaze.
A blaze had once been there, but its host tree died after a 2011 fire burned through the area.
So I picked a close neighbor to be its new forwarding address.
Now nobody gets lost.
Could Rembrandt have done it better? I’m not so sure of that. š
Those new white blazes will stand out. No excuses now for missing the trail. How often are they put on the trail?
The general rule is about 7 per mile; sometimes fewer in wilderness areas. The real issues arise at junctions, whether road or cross trail. The direction hikers should go has to be unambiguous.
That makes sense. Thanks.
I got to paint some, too! That was the best part of the day – so much more satisfying than a water bar š
You bet! I’ve got a bunch of those on my list too. A bunch of Japanese tourists even stopped to watch me paint for awhile. Sadly, I forgot my beret.
Pennsylvania could use some more blazes! Have threatend to take carry paint with me and help out with that! I leave in 11 days! Do you remember how well the trail marked was marked from PA 309 to the PA/ NJ border?? PA needs a little help especially through some of their boulder fields!
I didn’t get lost, so it must have been at least average.
Thanks Jim for all that you do!
You are welcome. It’s fun!