Breaking News.

April 11, 2022April 11, 2022 / jim fetig / 5 Comments

Appalachian Trail and Annapolis Rock, Maryland, April 1 – 7, 2022 — This just in: The end is near if seven months away counts. This will be my final season as the PATC ridgerunner lead. After that, Dan Hippe will take responsibility. We want to get it right, so Dan will shadow me until November 1. Then it’s his show.

Dan is a recently retired geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. He has extensive backpacking and outdoor leadership experience. As I told one of my friends, “He will take good care of the troops.” Of that I am certain.

I originally promised five years. We’re now in year eight and new blood is due. It’s also best to get off the horse before you fall off. Not sure that would be anytime soon, but to be fair, it’s time.

Meanwhile Dan has been out there helping as we prepare Kasey Kohlmeier for her season. Here we broke up an illegal fire ring at Black Rock.

If the last is the saddest day of the ridgerunner calendar, then the first is the most promising. The new season is fresh and the possibilities are endless.

We gathered at the recently renovated “barn” to haul the caretaker tent and other gear up to Annapolis Rock. There we spent a couple of days learning the ins and outs of the caretaker’s responsibilities.

The site is up. The sunset spectacular. My new tent is sturdy. The REI-donated tent and the rain tarp survived the strong winds over the next several days. Count success where you find it.

The usual mess at Black Rock. It is a popular spot, mostly with locals.

Hiking back from Black Rock we found an unfortunate man who face-planted, suffering a bloody nose and some ugly wrist abrasions. He passed concussion protocol, so we encouraged him to stop by AR where we patched him up. We also found a heart rock someone had propped against a tree and fresh bear sign. Of course the view of Green Briar Lake never disappoints.

On the way out we destroyed an illegal fire ring at group site 3, locked the tool box, noted damage caused by the ATVs belonging to the first responders and held up our trash collection as a trophy.

After a couple of days off, we were at it again. This time from Penn-Mar/ Mason-Dixon line to the Raven Rock Shelter. The forecast was ominous – two inches in less than 24 hours. But, we got a dry start up the rocky approach to the shelter.

Along the way we cleared six blowdowns, some small like this one. Others in the six-inch class. We stopped at the hot mess known as High rock. It’s county property, not the AT. Someone said it’s a rock with Tammy Faye Bakker make up, a generational reference to a TV preacher couple only a Boomer would appreciate. Of course privy maintenance was front and center.

Stopped at the Raven Rock overlook. Yes, there was a fire ring. Found another spirit tree. Someday I’ll do a blog on those. I have dozens of photos in a folder. Paid homage to a fallen soldier.

The rain pounded the area overnight and as we hiked. In total two inches worth made a river out of the tread.

The stream crossing at Raven Rock Rd. was a bit iffy.

When we stopped at the Pogo camping area we discovered the South Mountaineer trail crew had delivered the prize of prizes. The old pit latrine is GONE! Earlier this week I sent these photos to the 13 people who have previously been ridgerunners in Maryland during my tenure. Nobody cried over this stinking portal to hell. It’s been replaced by a composting privy up hill. Privy photos by Dave House.

Have to own up. I slipped on a wet rock and smacked my hand. It’s all good now, but it hurt like hell at the time.

Sisu

Rocky is in the House

January 22, 2022January 23, 2022 / jim fetig / 5 Comments

American Discovery Trail, Maryland, January 2022 — I met Briana DeSanctis in a most interesting way. I was near the end of my Appalachian Trail thru hike in 2014. I had nearly finished Maine’s 100-mile Wilderness. I paused for lunch at a shelter near a babbling brook in a sylvan copse of birch. It was so peaceful that I decided to stay and reflect on the previous 2,100-miles.

Thru hiking is an intense experience. You take it day to day and seldom have the time to put it in context. That was my goal that day until a large, particularly unruly scout troop stumbled in.

The scouts took over the joint, pitching their tents everywhere. Needless to say, they destroyed the mood, not to mention the water source as they tromped through the formerly pristine brook, chocking its babble with churned up sediment. It was too late and too far to move on to the next shelter. I was stuck, not to mention pissed.

There I was feeling sorry for myself when a young woman appeared out of the chaos. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to stay. Thankfully she did. Her trail name was Rocky Mountain High and she was preparing for a thru hike the following year.

Flash forward to the next year when I was caretaking on Springer Mountain, Georgia, the southern terminus of the AT. Who taps me on the shoulder but Rocky. She was on her way from Georgia to Maine. From there, thanks to Facebook, we’ve followed each other’s adventures.

Now Rocky is hiking the American Discovery Trail which runs from Delaware to California. This bad-ass woman expects to spend a year inspiring others as the first woman to complete a thru hike on this trail. Go Rocky!

I recently picked up Rocky from the trail to dodge some weather and spend a couple of days at my house. As with all hungry hikers, we started with lunch.

We made a stop at REI where Rocky took an advanced look at the ultra light pack she plans to buy for use this summer when her load is much smaller.

We also found time for a Zoom with Carey “Beer Man” Kish, a mutual friend from Rocky’s home state of Maine.

Ultimately it was time for Rocky to continue her journey. Mixed emotions always define these farewells. I’ve been on both ends. The hiker must look ahead while the host laments the ending of the visit.

My hope it to catch up and hike a spell with Rocky in the near future.

You can follow Briana on FB: Rocky Mountain High on the American Discovery Trail. Instagram: @brianadesanctis.

For safety reasons we never post exactly where hikers are physically located.

Sisu

If you can’t hike…

April 17, 2020April 18, 2020 / jim fetig / 6 Comments

Ash on the left. Silver Maple on the right.

Kensington, Maryland, Winter, 2020 — The theme of these essays is hiking, backpacking, camping adventures, and a behind the scenes peek at the volunteers and activities that make it all possible.

What to write? Planning is underway for the time when hikers might return to the trail. It’s dry, dull, iterative, and not very visual unless you relish Zoom call screen shots. Moreover, it’s pointless to reveal what’s on order until we have a menu. Why? Because the truth is going to change six times between now and then.

Sometimes what happens in the wild forests also occurs in the so called urban forest. Let’s talk about that and see what happens.

The backyard was landscaped in 1978. The ash (in front) was planted then. The silver maple (background) is a sucker that grew from an earlier silver maple, probably planted in the 1950s.

Virtues? Ash trees are frequently planted as shade trees. Their wood is prized for baseball bats. Trail maintainers like them for their rot resistance when used for waterbars and other structures on the trail.

Silver maples are not valued as much. They are fast-growing junk trees with brittle wood and shallow roots. They will give you quick shade, but they are subject to snow, ice and wind damage.

Unfortunately, the ash is about to join the chestnut, elm, and hemlock on the endangered list.

The culprit is the emerald ash borer, an Asian import that is destroying ash trees throughout north America. Our county has removed all ash trees on public property in hopes of slowing the borer’s progress.

The ash on the right was treated with systemic insecticide for the past two years. It succumbed in September when its leaves all turned brown and curled up on the branches without falling.

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There was some blonding higher up on the trunk which was another hint.

The choice was to wait for the ash to eventually fall down and risk crushing the deck, or launch a preemptive strike to speed up nature’s process.

A tree service did the work if for no other reason than they could haul the slash away and grind the stumps.

What to do with the space? The 40+ year-old timbers are rotting. The space is too ugly to leave be.

Here’s where the hiking and camping experience come in. Everybody likes a campfire. Me too. Let the work begin.

I was stunned by the number of roots they had to dig out. Glad I didn’t try to do this as a DYI project. I will admit that I thought about it.

Taking shape. Note the logs stacked in the background. They are the best parts of the ash and maple. In a year they will be seasoned firewood, ready for splitting.

The stone veneer is not “lick and stick.”

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Finished product. The dry creeks fix a long standing water runoff problem. With all the trees around, there’s plenty of dead fall to be burned including larger limbs.

Can’t wait until people can come over. Gang of Four, you’re first.

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I’m staying in practice. One of the dogwoods in front also died. Yesterday I felled it and built a sawbuck that will be needed to buck the ash and maple next year.

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Since I had my PPE on, I could not resist the chance to convert some gasoline into noise. Insider tip: The big chips composing the saw dust indicate the chain is sharp.

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Plants go in after the last frost date. Can’t wait for the first fire. The yard seems a lot larger too.

Have chainsaw. Will travel.

Sisu

Bear-Resistant Food Storage

November 9, 2019January 13, 2021 / jim fetig / 4 Comments

BV 500

Appalachian Trail, November 9, 2019 — About this time every year, next year’s thru hikers start the food storage debate. Some are going to hang it. Some are going to carry bear canisters. Others argue for Ursacks. A few brave Darwin Award candidates claim they’re going to use their food bags as pillows.

The fact is that most shelters on the AT don’t have bear cables, bear poles or bear boxes. Of those without, many are surrounded by trees the limbs of which are so high that a NFL quarterback might have difficulty tossing a line.

Fifty feet of rope.

The discussions tend to proceed along emotional rather than practical lines. The contrarians definitely assert themselves.

The list of practical reasons to seriously consider how to protect your food is getting longer. On the AT, only bear canister requirement is for a short distance on Blood Mountain. It can easily be avoided by camping at the Lance Creek campground. It’s an easy hike on into Neels Gap the next day.

The bear canister requirement on Blood Mountain was created when bears learned to shake food bags off the bear cables at Woods Hole shelter.

The AT Conservancy is highly recommending bear canisters along the entire AT HERE because the number of food-related human/bear encounters is growing. Here’s what the AT Conservancy had to say about bear incidents 2018.

Bears do what human’s teach them.

Sometimes what happened before you came along matters most. This tent had no food. The bear learned that some tents have food, so it opens them up to check. Other bears routinely enter shelters to forage and take what they find.

Before we discuss canisters and Ursacks, the PCT bear hanging method is worth a mention. Done properly, it is effective. The problem is that too many people improperly hang their food and then blame the bear that took it. PCT Bear Hanging Method is at this link. You Tube: Here.

PCT Method.

BV 500 and Ursack.

Now lets try and not to start a WWE match over canisters vs. the Ursack. Each has practical considerations plus strengths and weaknesses such as size and weight. Both should* be tied to trees so that bears can’t carry them off.

*Clarification: One manufacturer does not recommend tying bear cans to trees. The NPS is ambiguous. The concern is that nothing should be done that would permit bears to get leverage that would improve their chances of opening the canister. I’ve had a bear cart one away that I was unable to find. Thus, you’ll find me with my bear can tied to a tree with a long rope well away from camp.

Ursacks must definitely be tied to a tree to be most effective.*

THIS IS NOT A COMPLETE COMPARISON OF ALL BRANDS OR MODELS. IT’S PURPOSE IS TO HELP YOU THINK YOUR WAY THROUGH YOUR CHOICE OF BEAR PROTECTION FOR YOUR FOOD. Google is your friend.

Canisters: Canisters are the most foolproof but can be difficult to fit into your pack. I had to upsize to a 65 liter pack to practically fit a Bear Vault 500 and the way I like to pack my other gear – in waterproof stuff sacks rather than packing it loosely around the canister. My normal pack is 50 liters.

The BV 450 is smaller and an easier fit. Since it will hold four days worth of food, we issue it to our ridgerunners who are normally on the trail for four nights and five days. For many, it’s a best value.

BV 500 and BV 450.

BV 500. 2 lbs. 9 oz. 7 days. $79.95. BV 450. 2 lbs. 1 oz. 4 days. $69.95.

Other canisters such as the Frontiersman Insider Bear Safe are longer, thinner, and a bit more practical, but also heavier.

Frontiersman Insider Bear Safe.

Frontiersman. 3 lbs. 7 days. $78.95

Bearikade carbon fiber canisters are several hundred dollars but cool as hell. Check them out.

Any of the canisters can be rented. Lightly used canisters can also be found on gear for sale sites at discounted prices.

Ursacks: Ursacks are a made of ultra strong Laminated UHMWP and Kevlar. UHMWP is Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene.

When combined with an aluminum sleeve, Ursacks are highly bear resistant.

Ursack AllMitey. 13 oz. 5 days. $134.95.

Ursack Major. 7.6 oz. 5 days. $84.95.

Ursack aluminum liner. $39.95.

Ursack also recommends odor reducing bag liners.

Now for the dark side. None of these methods is perfect. I know, you’re shocked. Bad hang and the bear gets your food. They also have been known to break into containers or destroy food inside Ursacks.

Bad news for a Bear Vault.

The bear got a taste of Sriracha.

Ursack contents, post chew.

What ever you do, check out the containers approved by the U.S. government’s Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee. They are the only containers allowed where food protection is required out west, the John Muir Trail for example. There are many more brands and models than those discussed here. Certified Bear-resistant Products.

The Forest Service, Park Service, BLM and others really do care about your safety. Their certification helps you sort through the marketing hype and the trolls’ bullshit.

In may sound like a cliche, but a fed bear is a dead bear. Let’s do what we can to keep our bears safe, ok?

Sisu.

It’s a wrap for the last ridgerunner standing.

October 20, 2019October 21, 2019 / jim fetig / Leave a comment

Annapolis Rock, Maryland, October 18, 2019 — It’s that time again. Our longest ridgerunner season is running out of altitude and airspeed. The sprint to the finish line is underway.

Friday, Mary Thurman and I struck the caretaker tent, packed it up and hiked it down the mountain to the ridgerunners rustic apartment at Washington Monument State Park. There it is interred in a closet for a long winter’s rest.

At first we thought something had gone terribly wrong. The tarp protecting the tent from UV rays was in shreds.

Had a bear attacked it? Vandals? Actually high winds the previous night destroyed the sun-weakened tarp which had valiantly done its duty. Now dead, its dumpster-destined remains are nothing more than worthless weight on the hike out.

Mary was relieved to find the tent intact.

Packing up.

Tool box locked. Site secure.

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It was a brilliant day on the rock.

Farewell visit to the viewpoint.

Reflecting on how the season opened last April with Sabine Pelton who patrolled Shenandoah National Park.

Out-a-here! The final two weeks will be spent on patrol or tenting in one of the Annapolis Rock tents sites.

Until next year.

Sisu

Educating Hikers

September 12, 2019November 3, 2019 / jim fetig / 1 Comment

This was my final trash run. The load included a discarded tent, new boots, wet cotton clothing and uneaten food. Total pack weight was close to 70 lbs.

September 12, 2019 — There’s a popular website/blog/resource for hikers called the Trek. It was originated by my friend Zach Davis who wrote an excellent book about psychologically preparing for an AT thru hike called “Appalachian Trials.”

Recently a writer for the Trek interviewed me and others about educating hikers. Here’s the result.

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Link to Trek Article

Sisu

Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Hike

July 11, 2019 / jim fetig / 10 Comments

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C&O Canal National Historic Park, July 7 – 10, 2019 — My Hoodlums trail crew colleague Cindy invited me to join her Allegheny Passage hike after her first partner was felled by a hip injury. We agreed to rendezvous at Paw Paw, WV – around mile 158 where the 3,118 ft. Paw Paw tunnel begins. From there we’d trek to mile zero in Georgetown, D.C. Link to Allegheny Passage Trail info.

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When Cindy asked me to join her for the last 160 miles, I thought, How hard could this be? The tow path is flat! Just plant one foot in front of another for 10 days. It would be a snap with campsites every 3 to 10 miles apart, each sporting a Porta Potty, a potable water pump and a picnic table. Pure luxury!

Best of all, like the Laurel Highlands Trail, every mile is marked! Measuring progress by the mile is reassuring. The distance simply melts away. Easy peasy, right? Stay tuned.

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The tow path can be a bit muddy in places, but overwhelmingly consists of hard packed gravel. Emphasis on the word hard. It was like walking on unforgiving concrete.

The guide book is written for bikers, not hikers. Hiker guide books have maps of trail towns showing where and the distances to needed business. Whereas a mile is a lot for a hiker to walk to a grocery store, it’s nothing for someone on a bicycle. The only clues we had were town name and yes or no for restaurants, grocery and the like.

Accordingly I packed 10 days worth of food. My pack weighed 30 lbs. full up including four lbs. of water in the bladder. That’s a lot for summer when I usually schlep something closer to 20 lbs.

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The C&O is full of history which has been curated by the National Park Service. We need a funder for a similar initiative on the AT.

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National Parks are a good cause, but it may surprise most citizens to learn how much the parks depend on volunteers and donations. Without volunteers and philanthropy our national parks could not continue as we know them. I wore the glove on my left hand to cushion the surgical scars from my hand surgery five weeks ago.

Lock keeper’s house. The canal closed in 1924 and it is surprising how much of its infrastructure survives.

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There’s an old mule barn in the distance. Boat owners usually kept two mules hauling and two resting on the boat while boarding others along the way. The sign says they would often get their animals back skinnier than when they left them because unscrupulous livery stable owners would feed short rations.

Most locks are preserved for appreciation. A few are overgrown and barely visible.

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“Please stay off the ruins,” the sign says. Of course there was a well-worn pathway to the ruins.

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Active train tracks. When George Washington proposed building the canal, he could not have anticipated the invention of the railroad which paralleled the canal route even before the canal was finished. Thereafter, canal boats shipped mostly coal rather than the full range of commerce originally anticipated. Sadly, the C&O was obsolete before it was done.

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Some of the old infrastructure is still working. The power plant still generates power.

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We saw a couple of friendly black snakes, a few deer, squirrels, turtles and water fowl, but not much else.

Enough of the park. Here’s the people story.

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After a hot day, the first night we set up at a decent campground. Later a couple on bicycles joined us. Cindy is a hammock hanger. In the absence of trees Cindy pitched it as a bivy.

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With T-storms in the overnight forecast, sweat soaked clothes hang in your tent which has places to attach lines for that purpose. The rain and thunder drummed all night long.

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Yup. It rained. Everything inside was dry.

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Reveille.

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Midway through day one, we discovered abandoned bacon and dog food at a campsite. We thought it interesting that the dog food attracted butterflies, but that the bacon was undisturbed. In fact, we saw lots of raccoon tracks in the tow path mud. However, in spite of being in bear country, we saw no bear sign whatsoever. It appeared the camper couldn’t start the fire.

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In spite of the absence of bear sign, we hung our food anyway.

After a respite from the rain allowed us to pack up in the morning, the skies then opened in offering of a day-long baptism of our march. Note the clothes line behind the picnic table where we hung our stuff out to dry including the plastic ground cloth from Cindy’s bivy.

When I pulled off my sopping socks, my feet were wrinkled and white. They’d been aching a bit during the day, but I attributed that to the hard-surface walking. Upon inspection I had developed blisters on the soles of both feet.

This is a first. I haven’t had a blister in 30 years! Blisters on the soles of your feet are no joke. By morning my feet were dry and the pain was tolerable, so I changed into dry socks and thought I was good to go.

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Trash on this trail proved to be a feature rather than a bug. Bikers are pigs. The park supplies plastic trash bags at each campsite with instructions to pack it out. Of course Leave No Trace educational signage was nowhere to be found. Information on Leave No Trace outdoor ethics at this link.

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At noon on day three we stopped for lunch and to change my socks. The heat and humidity induced profuse sweating. To my surprise, my feet we again white and wrinkled with a cottage cheese appearance. The blisters were worse. I was in trouble.

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Finding abandoned cheap tents isn’t surprising to experienced hikers. My bet is that someone either got soaked in the previous rain or did not want to carry a wet tent.

As the day progressed, the walking grew more painful. I felt like a bird with a broken wing. Fortunately vitamin I (Ibuprofen) took the edge off.

That night we camped at Fort Frederick State Park, the site of a 1756 stone fort from the French and Indian War. Link to Fort Frederick State Park

We discussed my ability to continue. The next day we’d be passing through the town of Williamsport where we planned to grab lunch in what turned out to be a stereotypical dive bar that served a delicious burger. That’s where I’d need to decide.

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They were rebuilding flood-damaged part of the canal in Williamsport forcing a detour through the town. We had stopped at the campsite closest to town where I inspected my feet. The left was tolerable. The right was a clear no go. If the skin sloughed off, I’d be unable to walk and might require an embarrassing rescue.

As it happens there’s a C&O Canal visitor center in Williamsport. That’s were I slipped my pack off my shoulder for the final time with only 60 miles on my odometer. I limped inside and called for the hour-long ride home. I must have looked pathetic. The people at the center tried to cheer up a disappointed visitor who had failed his partner.

Cindy’s trail name is Song because she sings at any prompt. She’s a walking parody of a Hollywood musical. At one point, after reminding me that a mutual friend noted that her hiking partners tend to have bad luck, she launched into Queen’s 1980 hit, “Another one bites the dust.” Well, as it turned out, that another one was me.

The good news, I’m meeting Cindy and our mutual friend, and her new partner, Janice in Harpers Ferry Saturday morning for breakfast. It’s the least I can do.

Sisu

Serendipity!

June 6, 2019June 6, 2019 / jim fetig / 1 Comment

Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, June 5, 2019 — My friend Karma is hiking the AT again this year and I have been following her blog. In the past some of her blogs from previous hikes have been cross posted here to share her adventures.

Her blazing speed this time around is impressive. You can do that when it’s your second rodeo. On a repeat performance the B.S. is reduced to noise and the anxieties are taken in stride. You can actually enjoy the experience. That she’s having a good time was obvious at lunch.

The truth is that she’s a week ahead of schedule, not because she’s faster but because she’s hiking smarter by spending less time in town. It just so happens I was in Harpers Ferry upstairs at the Appalachian Trail Conservancy when a friend there told me Karma was downstairs, fresh off the trail, wringing wet with sweat. Serendipity!

I bounded down the stairs into the hiker lounge and gave my friend a soppy hug. After finding out that it was too early to check into the motel where she could have showered, we decided to go to lunch anyway. After all, it is a hiker town and we’re hikers.

Our plan always had been to meet for lunch in Harpers Ferry where Karma planned to take a day off known as a zero for zero miles hiked. Now as it is, I always buy lunch when a friend hikes in from Georgia. It doesn’t happen that often, so it’s a bet that won’t break the piggy bank. When it does happen, it’s special.

My first question was “Why are you doing this a second time”? The answer was simple and complicated. In the end, her reason is universal. She likes being out there.

Karma first hiked the AT in 2013. Her blog “Karma on the Trail” is the most entertaining AT blog I’ve ever read. You can find it here: https://thumperwalk.wordpress.com/

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Karma’s half way photos from this 2013 and 2019.

You go girl!

Sisu

An Ugly Start to the Summer

May 26, 2019May 27, 2019 / jim fetig / 7 Comments

Bucky

Appalachian Trail, Maryland and Northern Virginia, May 20-24, 2019 — Usually the trail is an undramatic place. Hikers come and go. Some even dig cat holes to go in.

This week opened uneventfully and hopeful of good times to come. I met the short-season Maryland ridgerunner at the Greenbriar State Park visitor center where the rangers with whom we work have their offices. Bucky was issued his radio, parking permit, apartment key and other such stuff.

Bucky’s room. Packs explode when you open them.

We met Mary, his ridgerunner partner, at the apartment. We drove around pointing out landmarks and key areas. Then we adjourned to Dan’s Tap House for juicy gourmet burgers before bounding up the mountain to Annapolis Rock where Bucky will spend his first shift as caretaker. Mary will be patrolling in Maryland.

The sundown faded toward black as Bucky and I arrived at Annapolis Rock. As the last of the sunset peepers were sliding down the hill towards home, we stowed our gear and made the rounds. We found only one camper, a thru hiker. He actually properly hung his food bag on the bear pole. Score! After securing the sagging tarp over the picnic table, we called it a day and dove head first into our respective dream worlds.

We woke to the thunderous snoring of Jake brakes and the throbbing pulse of commerce rushing along I-70. The interstate is invisible from the view point, tucked in behind a low ridge. When the wind is quiet, its presence is as undeniable as is the drag strip across the valley.

With the crack of dawn piercing the tent walls, we raked the sand out of our eyes and adjourned to the ridgerunner office/picnic table for breakfast. Two packs of instant oatmeal and a Jet Boil coffee later, it was time to inspect the rock.

Following orientation, we hiked to the Pogo campsite about two miles up the trail. First we stopped at the Black Rock overlook and scoured the area for trash.

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The desecration of Black Rock and other places is a pastime for local high school kids. I’m certain Shawna wasn’t present when the perp misogynistically memorialized his conquest.

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The good news is that it didn’t last long. Mary followed up the next day with a bottle of Elephant Snot and a scrub brush. Bingo. Like it never happened.

We also checked out Fox Gap where a Civil War skirmish was fought. New graffiti topped the old.

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Once again, Mary and her trusty Elephant Snot to the rescue. (Learn more about Elephant Snot here.) All in a day’s work for a ridgerunner, right?

Now it’s time to interrupt this friendly story for a brief trip to the dark side.

This hiking season has already been marred by a tragic event. One hiker was murdered and another maimed and nearly killed when someone who was deranged stabbed them. Click here for details: (How safe is the Appalachian Trail).

The AT attracts 3 million visitors annually. They represent a cross section of society with all that entails. Normally hikers are pretty mellow, but this tragedy elevated concern within the hiking community, especially for unbalanced and misogynistic behavior which was reportedly exhibited by the accused killer.

Earlier in the day, a hiker complained to us about another hiker variously called “Yogi Beer,” “Renegade,” or “Air Quotes.” Bad actors often change their trail names to avoid authorities. Judging from reports of his behavior, Yogi Beer appears to be a raging alcoholic and possibly bipolar. He had been aggressively harassing women.

With this in mind, Bucky and I were enjoying the brilliant weather while hiking to the trailhead — Bucky to pick up a bale of wood chips for the Annapolis Rock composting privies and me to my car so I could meet the Northern Virginia ridgerunner for his orientation hike the next day.

Three hikers stopped us to complain about a guy called, you guessed it: Yogi Beer. They had first-hand knowledge. One of them had been concerned enough to snap Yogi Beer’s photo. We immediately filed an incident report and shared the photo with law enforcement rangers, trail officials and the other ridgerunners. (Details not shared here to protect the innocent because some of it may be hearsay.) With that, we thought we were done with the dark side.

In the interest of chronology, let’s put the dark side on hold for a minute because we’re not done. It will be right back after a bit more of our friendly story.

Witt

Each of our ridgerunners is an expert backpacker. Occasionally a resume stands out. Witt has thru-hiked the triple crown – Appalachian Trail, Continental Divide Trail and Pacific Crest Trail. He also as held the FKT (fastest known time) for the Arizona Trail and is the FKT holder in Maine’s 100-mile Wilderness. ( Info on the National Scenic Trails System)

Unfortunately for Witt, ridgerunners are more commonly evaluated by the number of contacts they make and the amount of trash they pick up. That’s slow going for a guy who’s used to moving in the fast lane.

Along the way we noticed an unusual arrow made of sticks pointing to a path in the woods.

Somebody wants us to follow the yellow brick road, right? Naturally we did.

About 100 yards in we discovered a sign for a hiker hostel. Unfortunately it’s on National Park Service land, about 20 feet inside the boundary according to the marked trees. We informed the folks who deal with these issues. The owner only has to move it off park service property and it’s good. Commercial ads/promotion isn’t allowed on federal land.

Stacking rocks has been a thing for awhile. Cairns and rock art are inconsistent with Leave No Trace principles. In short: Leave only foot prints (not rock stacks, painted rocks or graffiti) and take only photos (not flowers, feathers and antlers). Leave those for others to see.

Boom. The rocks were widely scattered.

We hiked 12 miles. The trash collected was moderate. Best highlight: We opened the tool cache at David Lessor shelter. We immediately noticed a field mouse. A second later a juvenile Black Snake became obvious. We left mother nature to her business. If they could get in, they could get out.

Now we’ll return to the dark side. When we left we were dealing with Yogi Beer.

Turns out Witt and I may have passed a hiker who turned up in an incident report for threats and sexual harassment. His photo was familiar. Not long after learning that, a report came in about an abusive hiker at a nearby hostel.

Believe me. This volume is highly unusual. Unfortunately, there’s more!

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So, there I was at home in my favorite chair, quietly sipping coffee while reading the New York Times early Saturday morning. The phone rings. It’s Mary at the Ed Garvey shelter in Maryland.

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She’s found a mess. The guy in the tent won’t get up. He doesn’t appear to be under the influence. She wants to educate him to pack out his trash, not to mention properly hanging his food and not to make the mess in the first place.

Raw chicken is in the mix. This could attract animals including bears. Then we’re dealing with a different problem.

Since the camper rolled over and would not get up, she moved a distance away to observe, radioed the Maryland Park Service and waited for the ranger. Before the ranger could arrive, the guy packed up and left. She cleaned up the area.

Enough already? Damn right!

Of note. Sexual harassment on the trail isn’t a universal experience, but its frequency is way too high. Sometimes it’s subtle as when one of our women ridgerunners quipped that all she needed was another septuagenarian man-splaining how she should hike. Other times males go out of their way to tell women they don’t belong on the trail alone or they aren’t strong enough to hike long distances. Sometimes it’s much more sexually suggestive or worse as when someone attempted to rape a hiker I know.

This is shameful. Men need to step up and stop this behavior. We need to own it and step in when we see or hear it.

Incident Reporting: http://appalachiantrail.org/home/explore-the-trail/report-an-incident?fbclid=IwAR2dlPHezWWPQy17qyRHUBqR21UWz-GyyrA7xtHD9FgXgZmrtxGLhZ7l73U

Sisu

No rest for the wicked

May 19, 2019February 22, 2020 / jim fetig / 10 Comments

Everywhere, May 2019 — No time for a deep breath. May is just like that. The list is long.

In all, I flew to my brother’s in Loveland, CO and belatedly celebrated a milestone birthday (50 + shipping and handling), led a Road Scholar hike, attended ridgerunner training, and worked with the Hoodlums trail crew in Shenandoah National Park.

Walking around the lake at my brother Jack’s. Rocky Mountain National Park (Long’s Peak) is on the horizon.

Next comes two orientation hikes (OJT), our neighborhood homeowners’ association meeting (with several contentious issues), an appointment with the Social Security Administration (it’s that time: 50 + shipping and handling), and a pre-op physical because I’m having two more Dupeytren’s fingers surgically straightened on the last day of the month.

Oh, my friend Karma, who hiked he AT in 2013 and the Pacific Crest Trail last year, is hiking the AT again. I’m hoping to meet her on the trail in Shenandoah when I weedwhack my trail just before surgery, but for sure we’re having lunch in Harpers Ferry just like we did in 2013.

Karma was was not only an inspiration for my hike the following year, but in practical terms, she was the person whose wisdom and practicality was worth its weight in gold when I was preparing for my AT thru hike. Her blog for that hike is the the best AT blog ever, IMHO. Click here: Karma’s 2013 AT blog

May has been and is going to be a blur.

Robert, the 2018 northern Virginia ridgerunner, briefs Witt, the incoming. Witt is a tripple crowner having hiked the At, the Pacific Crest Trail and the Continental Divide Trail. He also holds the FKT (Fastest Known Time) for the Arizona Trail. That’s a bunch of hiking.

Joanne, will be patrolling in Shenandoah again this year for 30 days beginning June 15.

Wilderness First Aid – It also was my year to re-certify. It’s an excellent course. Sixteen hours drinking from a fire hose and splinting the hell out of them and so much more. If you’re ever injured on a trail, you want a WFA to find you. Click here: Wilderness Medicine