Busy. Busy. Busy.

July 6, 2023 / jim fetig / 4 Comments

Here, there and everywhere, June to July Fourth, July 6, 2023 — We’ll start with the good news/bad news. My dear friend Mary Thurman is now the park manager at Flagg Mountain, Alabama.

This is stellar news for Mary. She’s been searching for “big girl” work for a long time. She’s uniquely qualified and so far, she’s loving it.

Mary’s mission: Bring a long dormant park back to life. Who could be better for that? Her degree from Florida State is finally paying off.

Unfortunately, with Mary’s fortune, we lost our ridgerunner in the Michaux State Forest, Pennsylvania.

Before she hit the road, we visited the Smithsonian’s Udvar-Hazy Center where the large aircraft are on display. Obviously, this is the Space Shuttle Discovery.

We also shared a fire and some beer. Can’t wait to visit Flagg Mountain after the weather cools off.

Got to welcome four new AT Communities into the fold. AT communities welcome hikers, support the trail and are a vital source of volunteers. I kept my speeches mercifully short. Some of the politicians didn’t.

Along the way things happened. This is the readout on a gas pump. Usually I get gas in Front Royal, VA when I go to the park. It’s often 50 cents less expensive than in the D.C. area.

Guess who left home without his wallet? In addition to not having my drivers license, I didn’t have a credit card. How close was it? My tank holds 15 gallons.

Nice blowdown on Pass Mountain. Tina is my go to swamper because she’s usually available during the week. Pole saws don’t require credentials or PPE. Secret: The car is parked on a fire road less than 100 yards away.

Made a quick trip to weed the part of the AT Caroline and I maintain. Used my new Stihl battery string trimmer. Worked like a charm. The park service says a persistent bear reported by several hikers has been hanging around. Methuselah, the apple tree, is bearing fruit.

For the first time ever, the PATC was in charge of chainsaw training for a class composed solely of park service employees.

We had several park instructor/trainers working with us and carrying a substantial teaching and evaluating load for the four-day course.

Wayne Limberg is teaching chain sharpening in this photo.

My chainsaw was due for cleaning and inspection. Needed a new starter rope. Of course the dealer didn’t have one. The chain catcher had done its job too many times. Received the new parts the next day via Amazon.

A young fox caught a small black snake for dinner as viewed from the bedroom window.

Our friend Martha Kumar is a professorial scholar of the American presidency. I first met her when I served on the National Security Council staff at the White House. Of course, she was born on the Fourth of July. Our tradition is to attend the Nationals game followed by Martha’s birthday party where we sing Happy Birthday.

Let’s close with the bullseye rash found on my elbow after the chainsaw classes. We spend a lot of time in the woods. It’s doxycycline for two weeks.

Sisu

Fun Week – Open House, WFA, Hoodlums

May 28, 2023 / jim fetig / 4 Comments

PATC HQ, Vienna, Va. May 27, 2023 — The PATC headquarters building hides in plain sight, buried deep, just off the main drag, in the Washington, D.C. suburb of Vienna.

We decided it would be advantageous to piggyback our open house on the local annual street festival thinking we might attract more people. The objectives: raise our profile, sell some stuff and recruit new members. We also added a members only cookout at the end.

The crosscut salami slice is always a favorite. Fun for all ages. The youngest gets the chunk sawed off.

We had multiple displays from the ski touring group, mountain rescue and our standard science fair display used at outreach events.

The early results: $1,200 in sales, 200 visitors, 15 new members. That’s in line with our projected performance objectives.

But there’s more…

Wilderness First Aid has to be recertified every two years. https://www.solowfa.com/

Ridgerunner training at High Point State Park, New Jersey.

Of course the third Saturday of the month belongs to the Hoodlums trail crew.

The Hoodlums are like Lake Wobegon. All the women are strong, the men good looking and everyone is above average.

Of course, it’s weed season.

The mountain laurel are finally blooming.

American chestnut next to chestnut oak which mimics American chestnut.

Freshly weeded trail.

Before the string trimmer waltzed by.

Ran into Alex Gardner, the Shenandoah ridgerunner. Always good to get caught working.

Sisu

Walkabout

May 14, 2023 / jim fetig / 1 Comment

Obligatory selfie at the columnar basalt formation.

Shenandoah National Park, May 13, 2023 — About a month ago we planned to take a hike up and over Compton Peak to see the wild azalea and mountain laurel which historically are in full bloom. It was also a chance to check up on weed growth and talk about the work we’d do over the summer.

As the days counted down, the weather prognosis worsened. The precip probability in the 10-day forecast climbed from 39 to 58 percent. Digging deeper the day prior, we learned that the Weather Channel app was predicting less than a half inch accumulation with scattered showers. Those are excellent odds and conditions so we green-lighted the trek to great success. So what if we had to wear a rain jacket for 10 minutes.

Maintenance issues constantly crop up whether a waterbar rots, a spring undermines some stone steps, or some knucklehead scratches graffiti on a rock. The steps will fall to the Hoodlums for repair.

Along the way ya gotta check out the rocks. We also found a couple of thru hikers enjoying out bench.

Ultimately we found a few flowers. The azalea were waning and the mountain laurel are just budding out. The dreaded weeds are ahead of schedule. It’s going to be an interesting year.

Sisu

Gordon Lightfoot

May 3, 2023May 7, 2023 / jim fetig / 2 Comments

On parade at Fort Benning

May 3, 2023 — The passing of Gordon Lightfoot prompted a warm memory of his contribution to my sanity one summer, long ago.

During the blistering South Georgia summer of ’69, 236 officer candidates were training to become officers in the United States Army. One-hundred-four of us survived to be commissioned as second lieutenants in the U.S. Army infantry.

The training at Fort Benning, Ga. was physically rigorous to say the least. The discipline was strict and iron clad, designed to grind down those who could not take it.

Field Training 1969

In those days, harassment, including being dropped for countless push-ups for petty infractions, was the way discipline was enforced. This technique and others were used to put pressure of the candidates in hopes of weeding out the weak.

All it really did was demonstrate poor leadership technique. It taught us how not to be a leader, not how to be a leader.

Each morning following a breakfast we were forced to eat in an impossibly short time, we would go to training. We’d clamber aboard large trailers for field training. We marched to class on other days. That’s where Gordon Lightfoot comes in.

As was customary, the classes sang in complex harmony as they marched to their destinations. Singing as we marched shifted our thoughts and mood to better places.

One song we sang stands out in particular. As we lock-stepped our way across the post, we choirboyed the adapted lyrics which made sense in the context of where we were and the almost certain prospect of serving in Vietnam.

We sang:

In the early mornin’ rain

With a rifle in my hand

With an aching in my heart

And my pockets full of sand

I’m a long ways from home

And I miss my loved ones so

In the early morning rain

Without a place to go…

Inside page of our class yearbook.

At the time, OCS consisted of six battalions. We were the 64^th company. The 65^th was across the way from us. That’s a lot of cannon fodder, a fate which was our fear. For the record, only half of us served in Vietnam and no one died there, a small miracle.

Our 50th and final class reunion in January 2020, not long before the pandemic. OCS today is a much different and improved experience than it was the summer of 1969.

Sisu

Quick Trip

April 26, 2023 / jim fetig / Leave a comment

Wild flame azalea

Shenandoah National Park, April 25, 2023 — My new job as club president is keeping my away from the outdoors, more than I would have thought. In addition, this month’s Hoodlums work trip was rained out. I needed an outdoor fix.

My excuse: Yesterday was the park staff’s annual meeting with its partners – park association, trust, concessionaire, and volunteer organizations. It’s a chance to share, learn and maintain relationships. After the meeting I drove an hour northward.

A blowdown was calling near the summit on the section Caroline and I maintain. After the meeting, I dashed up the mountain to clear it. It was a step-over, so not the highest priority. We left it during spring cleaning because we didn’t think we had time to cut it with a hand saw.

The weather was ideal, a sunny 47 degrees. No breeze and no sweat on the hike up to the summit. It’s been awhile since I’ve been solo. The solitude was priceless.

Got there and it was gone. Much later I realized our first ridgerunner was on the trail and that he probably removed it. Meanwhile, the greenbrier and blackberry canes are starting to go nuts. My clippers clocked overtime.

The inspection established everything was in shipshape. The spring was flowing well. No major concerns other than we can anticipate more than our fair share of weeds.

The azalea and mountain laurel are beginning to bloom. We have a walkabout planned for May 13 to catch peak flowers. That date seems about right.

As one might expect, the animals are very active.

Coyotes mark their territory with scat. It’s possible that this is two males arguing over the boundary. This has happened several times along game trails lower down. This rock was part of some steps much further up the mountain, so I’m not certain exactly what the story is. In addition, found some bear scat, cub size, near the trailhead. That’s the fist bear scat in awhile.

Fresh bear activity. There’s not much to eat right now – mostly acorns and other nuts under the leaf litter, and insects. The bears use their claws to shred rotting logs to expose the bugs inside. This is a black birch. They are soft and rot quickly – good bug habitat.

Blowdowns never end. This one is a minor obstruction at 12″ in diameter. It’s going to need a bigger saw. We’ll get it next work trip which should be May 20.

Sisu

Where Ya Been?

February 20, 2023February 21, 2023 / jim fetig / 3 Comments

Ice-downed pine on a Pass Mountain tent pad.

Shenandoah National Park, January and February 2023 — Ice storm pick up sticks continues. We’re now on the trails. The AT in the North District is clear and mostly clear elsewhere. We’re teaming with the Park Service crews and the Appalachian Conservation Corps (an AmeriCorps group) to get after the approximately 400 miles of blue blaze (side) trails in the park. Many of them are steep in tight canyons that funnel and speed up the wind. The Venturi effect dramatically increases wind speed and consequently the number of downed trees and branches.

Don’t hold your breath for this job to get done. It’s going to be awhile as the video, photos and narrative will illustrate.

My new duties as club president also eat time like an addict finding their next fix. The PATC is a complex organization and perhaps the largest volunteer service organization in the region. We have nearly 9,000 members, maintain most of the hiking trails in the National Capitol Region, operate soon to be 48 rental cabins, 45 camping shelters, several trail centers and the Bears Den Hostel.

So far, it’s a job for a one-armed paper hanger. You’re going to be busy with planning, reports, relationships, Zoom calls, and the politics associated with the large number of people needed to manage this much complexity. That doesn’t leave nearly as much time to put your boots in the mud or to write blogs.

Since the December ice storm, the weather has been generally good. We’ve had individual maintainers and small crews out almost continually, weather dependent. My batting average is down, but I’m still in the game.

Clearing tree crowns and large branches is like cutting hair and can be tedious work. Pole saws help, but we don’t have that many of them. Loppers are the tool of choice. All you need is time and patience.

Sometimes you find a real honker. Naturally, it blocked the AT near Thornton Gap. This one was partially hollow, a condition that presented its own challenges for the sawyer, Wayne Limberg, the AT district manager of the North District.

Sometimes the pick up sticks land in odd ways. Some of these were driven into the ground like stakes. All of them had unusual binds, making it easy to trap the saw.

My friend Josh Fuchs is a blue blaze district manager in the Central District. He also owns a moon bounce business. Ever clever, he invented way of attaching a chainsaw to any pack using spare moon bounce materials. This makes it much easier to schlepp awkward Old Betsy up the mountain.

It’s not just Old Betsy. That pack also has a liter of fuel, extra bar oil, Kevlar chainsaw chaps, trauma kit, Silky folding saw. wedges, hatchet. radio, spare clothing, lunch and so much more. Not sure what it weighs, but it’s a respectable number.

On one trip, the pin that holds the starter pawls broke and and I might as well been hiking a dumbbell back to the car. I’ll be honest. I didn’t even know what a pawl was, but thanks to professor YouTube and Amazon Prime, I made the repair the next day.

Had to leave one tree that Dan Hippe clipped with his Mattel-like battery saw.

Yesterday we organized a crew to work on Compton Peak and Piney Branch.

We taught Caroline to use the pole saw. No certification or chaps needed.

The bench we built this fall got some use.

She put her new found knowledge to work on a large tree we found blocking Keyser Run Fire Road on our way to demolish a nasty tangle on Piney Branch.

Keyser Run fire road was an absolute mud hole. Type II fun. It was an all-battery power event!

This beauty was yesterday’s final objective. Several complex binds. One large branch with side bind moved 15 inches. In some cases, knowing how the tree will behave when cut can save life or limb.

The pole saw reach and stand off made many of the cuts much safer. I’m a believer.

Lots of debris to clear.

One of the trees was a hard maple and the sap was running.

End product.

After all that, we stopped at “lunch rock” before heading home.

Sisu

Why I Vote

November 8, 2022 / jim fetig / 4 Comments

Kensington, Maryland, Election Day, 2022 — We’re lucky. We “walk the vote” at our neighborhood middle school which is a pleasant 10-minute stroll down leafy streets. Most of the leaves are down now but enough are hanging on to offer a pleasant autumn ambiance.

Neighbors were on the same mission, quietly filing along by ones and twos, some pushing strollers, A few held hands, walking with a sense of purpose, as they might on their way to schul on Friday evening or church on Sunday morning.

As voters approached the school entrance, candidate signs decorated the final few yards while campaign reps offered to persuade the undecided.

The early November breeze was just chilly enough to find the gaps in my puffy jacket. The chill reminded me of elections past. Only one other time, in Massachusetts, was walking to vote possible. Mostly you drive, hope to find a place to park, and line up for your turn.

The American armed forces place a lot of emphasis on its members voting without telling them how to vote. Having been a military brat and then a career officer, I’ve watched this process since I can remember. Because most military members are far from home, the effort is all about absentee ballots which must be requested early, making the emphasis on election season seem much longer than in civilian life.

I’ve also served our nation in war and peace. I know what authoritarian regimes look like. Along the way, some of my friends have given all and aren’t here to vote, but all of us have sacrificed some to defend that for which we claim to stand. For me, voting is a continuing duty in honor of those who are no longer with us. That’s why I do it.

For some reason, election day here had a pleasant zen of its own. The people I met were particularly pleasant. I snapped this on my walk today. It seemed about right.

Sisu

Please be seated.

August 29, 2022 / jim fetig / 2 Comments

Who is she going to bury?

Shenandoah National Park, August 27, 2022 — When you live two hours away, the number of trail maintenance trips is limited. When ever you do get there, there’s usually no time for the extra little touches that are fun to do.

We usually tent at Indian Run after a Hoodlums work trip and use the next day to maintain our section. Since Caroline and her partner have a new puppy that needs a lot of potty training attention, we kicked the can ahead a week. The improved weather was a bonus.

First we replaced a rotten waterbar that, as the photo illustrates, was also completely silted up with sand that originated as part of an ancient lake bed that covered the region eons ago. Then the fun began.

For years I’ve wanted to build a log bench adjacent to the water source that flows at about the half way mark on the south side of Compton Peak. Its common to see hikers stop there to refresh their water supply, each lunch or take a break. There is only one flat rock on which one can park their butt. Otherwise, it’s sit in the dirt. Adding a bench was priority two – after everything else that needed doing.

We had a handy materials candidate in the form of a nearby blowdown cleared about 18 months ago.

The plan was to saw two pieces for the base and use a six-footer to sit on. We would then peg it together with wooden dowels. What could go wrong?

Would you believe the battery overheated several times and stopped the drill dead, the last time for good. We were unable to complete drilling the holes. Time for plan B.

We had already made a cradle for the cross piece with an axe. It would have been ok for a pegged bench, but not for one held by gravity so I used my chainsaw to notch a seat. We’ll bring a more powerful drill next trip and complete the pegging then.

Meanwhile the bench got a reasonable test from a flip flopper and two southbounders who stopped to help.

But wait! There’s more.

The last time I painted blazes was 2015 when I inherited responsibility for the section. Some are fading and flaking paint. Time to refresh.

The first thing we did is invite one of the southbounders to paint a blaze. She was thrilled. Her husband documented the deed. I think we made her day.

The first the old paint has to be scraped and the bark smoothed with a stripping tool.

Caroline’s dad is from Switzerland and she’s a dual national. When I asked if there were any famous Swiss painters, she couldn’t think of any. Well, they have one now – sort of.

Sisu

PS: Hoodlums highlights from last week. Our team cleared seven blowdowns from the north district trails including a branch that crashed at the hut.

We also cleaned out a silted up box spring.

The water cleared after a bit.

Michaux State Forest

June 8, 2022June 8, 2022 / jim fetig / 9 Comments

Stuffed bear at Michaux State Forest headquarters.

Michaux State Forest, Pennsylvania, June 1 – 5 — Contrast is the name of the game. This year the predicted rains never came. Last year it never stopped raining. This year the temperatures were in the low-80s. Last year hypothermia lurked around every corner as the rain-soaked thermometer registered in the high 30s. In both cases, the hikers were in good spirits, the rocks were happy, and so were we.

Ridgerunner recruiting this year has been a proverbial bear. Qualified seasonal employees are in short supply. Thanks to a stroke of luck, two ridgerunners will share the season in Michaux. Chrissy has the first part. Wendy has the second. Chrissy will return to close out the season.

After meeting the the state forest rangers, we encountered our first blowdown almost straight out of the door. We quickly hacked a path through the branches leaving the bigger stuff for the chainsaw folks.

Our first night was spent at Tom’s Run Shelter. The crowd was convivial. We saw several people using bear canisters. Everyone took advantage of the bear poles to protect their food. Given the increasing number of bear incidents, this is an excellent sign.

With early morning temperatures in the low 60s, hot coffee is still a welcome treat. That season is about to end as the summer heat and humidity sets in.

Our section of trail in Pennsylvania is only 37 miles long. It packs some respectable hills, so it’s not a snap.

A line of thunderstorms was expected to pass about lunch time at Birch Run. Several hikers ducked in for lunch and some decided to stay. Fortunately the storms never materialized. We pressed on for a total of 18 miles to Quarry Gap, probably the most famous and aesthetically pleasing shelter on the trail. It is famous for its flowers and kitschy decorations.

Sadly one of the twin shelters at Quarry Gap got bonked by a blowdown. Most shelters are built like bunkers and can withstand a significant hit. This was Wednesday.

By mid-day Saturday repairs were well underway. The PATC north chapter mobilized to sneak repair materials in via the “secret squirrel” side trail. By nightfall, almost like new. Photos courtesy of the PATC north chapter.

Meanwhile, other members of the north chapter were organizing at nearby New Caledonia State Park to prepare a trail magic feast featuring hamburgers, hot dogs, pasta salads desserts, and soft drinks! After the work day, the crews descended to polish off the fixin’s.

Ours wasn’t the only trail magic. A well-intended generous soul left water near a road junction. We left it overnight, but cleaned it up on our way back to New Caledonia. Trail magic should not be left unattended, even if it is water which, unlike food and sugary drinks, does not attract animals.

A hiker’s favorite sign. This is trail magic done the right way. This guy comes out several times a year to cook hot dogs and serve snacks at the Old Forge picnic area. He retrieves his signs when the day is done. I loved his dogs last year and my dreams were fulfilled that he’d be there again this year. Before we left, the pavilion was full of hikers.

Our chunk of Pennsylvania has its scenery. Eponymously named Rocky Mountain is our signature site. In other places pine needles carpet the straightaways.

Houston, we have a malfunction. I’m still adjusting to switching to ultralight equipment. This Zpacks frame has had its issues. One reason the gear is lighter in weight is that it simply is not as rugged as the heavier traditional equipment. In this case, the design is flawed. Now both sides have been repaired with zip ties.

Graffiti continues to be a problem, although not nearly as bad as it was last year. “Sunshine” seems to be this year’s problem child. The first instance is in PA. The second is in NJ. We’re looking for you girl. “Pyro” last year’s biggest jerk has been painted over everywhere except in this one spot where someone seems to have had a sense of humor and maybe is trying to message others.

Literally rubbing out graffiti can be a sport.

The patrol ended with the last piece of microtrash at Penn-Mar, aka the Mason-Dixon line.

Sisu

Ridgerunner One

May 4, 2022 / jim fetig / 3 Comments

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Shenandoah National Park, April 29 – 30, 2022 — The first ridgeunner who comes aboard each season inherits the park radio call sign, “Ridgerunner One.” The second follows as “Ridgerunner Two.” This year “Ridgerunner One” is John Cram from Seattle.

Each season, the first stroll we take is from Compton Gap to the north boundary kiosk where we check to see if the permit box is full. Along the way we stop at the Indian Run Maintenance Hut for which the ridgerunners have a key. They check it each time they pass for signs of damage or other issues. They also do the same for the AT-adjacent rental cabins and maintenance huts in the park.

In John’s case this year, some glitches led to a late start and a short first patrol from the north boundary to Panorama at Thornton Gap. At least we covered the whole north district.

Along the way we cover all the items that are part of the ridgerunner’s weekly report which includes a hiker count, blowdowns, the amount of trash picked up and other things. They learn quickly that TP tulips are as prolific as other invasive plants. They apply their folding saws and clippers to remove minor trail obstructions.

They also report campsites less than 60 ft. from the trail and remove illegal fire rings. No fires are allowed in the backcountry other than in fire pits established by the park itself. Note the trash that didn’t burn.

No ridgerunner has ever been more zealous about demolishing fire rings than Lauralee “Blissful” Bliss. I want her to know that, like a momma bear teaching its cubs, I’ve taught her enthusiasm to every ridgerunner I’ve trained since. Your legacy lives on!

There’s never a shortage of blowdowns. Last year they were mostly red oak and ash. This year, the ash are dominating so far. Ridgerunners photograph each one, record the GPS coordinates, and enter the data into an smart phone app that compiles their weekly reports. The poles and hat are for scale since ridgerunners and hikers are notorious for improperly estimating the size of downed trees.

On the way over North Marshall, we noticed the no camping sign had been vandalized. The reason why was on top where a large new campsite had been established. “Honest officer, I didn’t see any ‘no camping’ sign.”

The wild flame azalea and mountain laurel are budding on the south side of Compton Peak. The full bloom photo is from May 21st last year, so we’re about three weeks away from some spectacular flowers.

The view from North Marshall clearly shows “green up” as spring slowly creeps up the mountainsides.

We spent Saturday evening at Gravel Spring Hut. About half the crowd was thru hiking. Almost everyone was sporting a bear canister. That’s a huge victory and a credit to the amount of bear education the AT Conservancy, the U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service have been doing.

Cram friend

Serendipity is one of my favorite words. John walks in and to his total surprise meets his old friend Cheryl. They originally met in North Woodstock, NH at the Notch Hostel when he was hiking southbound on the AT. Without doubt he was surprised to see her on his first overnight as a Ridgerunner. AT trail magic doesn’t get better than that.

Our fortunes changed on Sunday. We made it almost all the way to the Elk Wallow wayside before the cold rain began pelting our Goretex. The store is open, but the grill is closed until Memorial Day. So, we settled for ham sandwiches and a dry spot under the breezeway.

The bright side is for insiders. Chugging up the extra long Neighbor Mountain traverse out of Elk Wallow is much easier without a greasy burger and fries combo riding high in your gut. Serendipity? Maybe.

The rain soon morphed into fog and the afternoon into lazy foggy climbs.

PassMtn

The day ended around six o’clock with a gimme blowdown at Thornton Gap. I know the backstory behind the cut that didn’t count, but I’ll never tell.

Up next. Gravel Spring privy on Friday and an encore appearance by a very special guest star. Stay tuned.

Until then…

Sisu

A fork in the road

Yogi said, "When you come to a fork in the road, take it." So I'm following the white blazes.

Sisu

Busy. Busy. Busy.

Fun Week – Open House, WFA, Hoodlums

Walkabout

Gordon Lightfoot

Quick Trip

Where Ya Been?

Why I Vote

Please be seated.

Michaux State Forest

Ridgerunner One