Stone walls evoke a certain nostalgia for hopeful yeoman farmers long since passed into history. The truth is that most of these walls were built by slaves who enjoyed no hope at all.
Appalachian Trail, Maryland, November 29, 2019 —
It was Black Friday and all through the world, the shoppers were teed up to give it a whirl. The hikers instead would rather not fight, we would go walking with nature’s delights. And so we did.
The ever-flexible Gang of Four tentatively planned a Black Friday outing. This iteration was minus two. Alexis and Catherine were out of state at family celebrations. Being working journalists, their free time is limited, especially in news-rich times like these.
Tina and I decided we were going anyway. Her demonstrated determination on this trip and others earned her the trail name “Bulldog!”
We decided to do the Maryland Road Scholar route. It’s rich with Civil War history, mostly gentle, and has a nice viewpoint. At nine miles, it’s just long enough for a good workout with delightfully civilized start and stop times.
Note the knit cap. I could not resist noting, as a Red Sox fan, I have several.
After dropping a vehicle at the end point in Gathland State Park, we displaced northward to Washington Monument State Park. There we dashed up the hill for a quick selfie at the monument to memorialize the start.
The weather was a crisp 34 F with a light wind. The scattered clouds feathered some of the sun. They ultimately evaporated allowing the sol’s rays to befriend us as the temp climbed to the day’s high of 46 F.
Lambs Knoll communications towers, reached just after lunch. From the Dahlgren Chapel.
The route is rich with trail candy. The first highlight is the Dahlgren Chapel, at Turner’s Gap, immediately followed by the Dahlgren campground, then Fox Gap, Rocky Run Shelter, the White Rocks viewpoint; with an end at Crampton’s Gap. The lot of it is on South Mountain, the site of several Civil War battles.
The campground features showers, tent pads and picnic tables.
Big blowdown at Dahlgren Campground.
The circumference of this blowdown was in the neighborhood of 30 inches. For scale, the longest bar I have for my chainsaw is 20 inches.
Another view. It’s the devastating work of the emerald ash borer.
We’ve recently had severe winds which knocked down several trees and large limbs. We were able to clear three small blowdowns with my hand saw.
The “Bulldog” on the attack.
White Rocks viewpoint.
Just after the viewpoint we found an 18-inch blowdown. That’s way too large for my hand saw, so I reported it to the local trail maintainers.
What was this camper thinking? The stuff seems carefully arranged as if cached for later or for someone to find. Love the socks.
The hike was almost over except for the walk out. There we were, loping along, looking forward to our traditional post hike burger and a beer, when off to our right was this.
Weekend warriors have a some redeeming values. For one, they’re out there trying to appreciate nature. For far too many of them, that’s about it. Their ignorant behavior overcomes the rest.
For anyone in the ridgerunning world, it’s easy to deride these guys – yes, they’re almost always men. The synonym for ridgerunner is janitor and this exemplifies one of the reasons why.
Women weekenders have few exceptions, they always take a more informed approach. They do their research, plan ahead, prepare and take care to leave wildlands better then they found them.
Bubbas, on the other hand, are a literal mess. They fit several cultural identities and stereotypes – lumber-sexuals, cammo-sexuals or ammo-sexuals; preppers and survivalists; middle-age boy scouts; or sometimes the unfortunate homeless.
In no case are these folks educated and aware of how to Leave No Trace. In every case and everytime I stumble upon a mess I have to clean up, I ask myself, “What were you thinking?”
The perp who’s the subject of this rant left a 1960s vintage Optimus 8 stove. I had one in the early 1970s. The food selection included military MRE packets, sardines, Ramen noodles, instant oatmeal, coffee, a spoon, and assorted other stuff. Way too much for even a four-day hike if the hiker started Thanksgiving eve.
Here’s the issue. Had this person planned ahead and prepared, Maryland’s rules would have been familiar. They are posted at every trailhead, online, and in guide books. No camping or fires except at designated shelters or campgrounds such as Dahlgren. This was an illegal campsite located less than one-third of a mile from the Crampton Gap shelter which has lots of good secluded campsites.
The current fire danger is high and insufficient space is cleared around the fire ring. Lastly, you pack it in, you pack it out. Otherwise it’s animal food. The volume was approximately three gallons which we wrapped in my pack’s rain cover. Bulldog schlepped most of it out.
After our burgers and beer, the sun was dropping as fast as the temp when we shuttled back to my car at Washington Monument. Fade to black, Friday.
Sisu and Bulldog
Your bubba list was very descriptive. Too bad they don’t show signs of learning.
It’s actually a good question on which we’re working. These folks tend to get their info from disinterested sources. You don’t find Leave No Trace on Bear Grylls, in Field and Stream or Soldier of Fortune, prepper or survivalist YouTube channels, or in Cabellas or Bass Pro Shop in-store education. Cabellas and Bass Pro are owned by the same person who is interested in working with us. Don’t hold your breath, we’ll make a dent eventually.
I hope so. Swimming upstream is hard. But it makes you stronger.
Indeed, but it adds more time to the clock. Patience and persistence is the key to success. As a scientist, you’ll appreciate another challenge we’re facing. The trail maintenance carbon footprint is astonishing. Travel time is 1/3 of our effort.
Wow. That blowdown at Dahlgren!
What a great hike and a great group you have. I’m glad you decided to go anyway. But damn the people who dumped that stuff in the firepit. I hear from people (weekenders), “Oh, I left it for the next hiker! It was trail magic!” and what they really mean is “It was too heavy so I dumped it and justified it in my head.” I actually said to a guy once, “They don’t want your shit. They really don’t. Who do you think’s going to have to pack that out, if it was too heavy for you? Ridgerunners. A ridgerunner’s going to have to carry your trash out of there. If you want to donate it to charity, you take it to Goodwill.”
That said… I’m glad you got to get out there a bit! And Happy Thanksgiving!
You’re right. That’s the classic excuse including novice thru hikers in Georgia as they desperately reduce their pack weight. Regardless, bringing too much food has to be the most common mistake.
Thanks for scouting the sections I Oversee from WMSP to CG. I’m in NH now but will clear the 18”er later this week when I get home.
There are a couple of stepovers between Rocky Run and the top of Lambs Knoll. Nothing to prioritize. The 18-incher is waist high. Glad to be useful.