4/14/14   ENCOUNTERS

   I often meet interesting people as I hike the Smokies. Part of my job as a Ridgerunner is talking with those I meet to learn of problems or concerns and help them with park policies and mostly for conservation of the resources, just a term for keeping the park as pristine and natural as possible for now and the future. I am blessed to have the opportunity to share with those I encounter a unique and beautiful place. I counted 44 northbound thru hikers as I hiked south to the Fontana trailhead, finishing another week of the 2014 season, my 12^th.  I spent a sunny and warm week, ending on a cool morning, spitting rain, the beginning of a wet and cold period predicted.

   I met a family of four thru hikers entering the park for that section of the AT often anticipated by those who would challenge its 70 miles Often with concern for its challenges of difficult terrain and weather, while looking forward to the wildlife in the park, so diverse and beautiful.  Of note for this family was their two children, ages 7 and 9 with their smiling faces and the little fitted packs on their backs coming up to their father, who was graciously listening to my normal spiel. They gave all appearances of simply taking a walk in the woods, not on a 2180 thru hike of America’s most notable National scenic trail.

   Some might look hard on parents dragging such young ones on such an arduous journey but I saw two young people blessed with parents who were joining them on a journey that for most of us is a dream seldom realized but cherished by the few who do it. My own dream began at age 25 on my first trip in the Smokies and first sight of that white blaze my hiking buddy told me, “this goes all the way to Maine”.  My dream stayed with me until I retired and hiked the trail in 1999. I have heard countless stories and I can only imaging the memories these children will have and the education they will get. I went to a summer camp as a boy once and that week experience remains one of the most memorable and genuine learning experiences for me.

   I have since learned that the parents' home school their children and I believe this year will be a very good school year  A chance encounter is an educational experience, but thru hike is an encounter with life that is hard to beat.

   

SAWYER CERTIFICATION

For me the Course was a certification refresher.  I took the course in 2005 and have used many of the principal safety considerations for the past 6 years.  Most of our work is done with one main, large and/or small, pruning saws which we carry regularly into the back country.  Not having injured myself or left a saw stuck in a tree trunk is, in no small part, due to applying course information and practice.
Keep hiking,
Carl, aka Greybeard (GA/ME '99; PCT '08)

RIDGERUNNER SEASON 2014 HAS BEGUN

Ridgerunner Season has begun.  Last week we re-certified in WFA (Wilderness First Aid) with lectures on a variety of injuries and the ABCs of assessing situation and courses of action.  We later took part in a variety of scenarios applying principles for response in the back country.
The information and knowledge from the Course put on by NOLS Wilderness Medicine Institute instructor, Phil, was made more real through his real life experiences.
Keep hiking,
Carl, aka Greybeard (GAME 1999; PCT 2008)

PACK IT IN PACK IT OUT

Pack It in Pack it Out

We all need an attitude adjustment occasionally.  Leave No Trace (LNT) is not just an organization dedicated to keeping all outdoors pristine; it is more than anything an “attitude”.  It is a concern for the individual coming after finding no evidence of our having been there.

As an AT Ridgerunner in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park for the past eleven seasons, I have encouraged all to practice LNT and cleaned up after those who have been less inclined to do so.

I have packed out hundreds of lbs of trash per season, from sleeping bags and tents, to food wrappers and everything in between.  I have found no better way to contain quantities of accumulated wrappers and food containers than ordinary plastic bottles.  Please note the collection of some of the beverage bottles I filled to bring out, clean, odorless and sealed.

The preferred bottle is an empty Gatorade which has a large enough lid and spout to put smashed cans in along with foil, plastic and paper wrappers, etc.  A 33oz Gatorade bottle can hold a week’s worth of trash from several people.

The photos I have uploaded represent weekly trash accumulations and representative trash packed in a bottle, in this case a 16oz water bottle cut open to show its’ contents on the ground, in a plastic grocery bag and in the bottle, right hand upper corner prone on a rock of the final picture.
Do you have an attitude?
Keep hiking and pack it in pack it out!

 

 

Wisconsin Group / Model LNT’ers

I met this group .5 miles north of Doe Knob, well organized, well led and had a plan. These high schoolers were from Madison East High School in Madison, Wisconsin, a group that has brought students to the Smokies for an outdoor Experience for the past 40 years.  Anyone can see the enthusiasm and the "I am glad to be here” look.  Their leader Ms. Erin Parker provided much of that enthusiasm but quickly let me know she has not been the leader for all those years.

A great experience and a fun trip is often the result of a well thought-out plan.  They were perfect LEAVE-NO-TRACE representatives.

Keep hiking,
Carl

“WHAT NOT TO DO”

I have seen many folks in the mountains less than prepared for the conditions the Smokies can throw at you but these three young people deserve not so honorable a mention. The "leader' of the three, a personable young man when I mentioned putting them on my blog, you mean for “what not to do“and I replied ‘basically’.  Sure he said. He seemed strong for his size as well he needed to be, for he must have emptied his mother’s food stores or someone's, selecting only canned goods and whatever he could find, in glass jars; deviating to carry many naval oranges. Actually he had stopped at a supermarket. Paul Newman would have been proud of him for selecting good sauces, in "glass" jars!
   
His youth and strength was tested still the next morning when he required considerable maneuvering and dexterity to get into and vertical with that pack even after providing the thru hikers the night before with plenty of pork & beans and such, relieving his load by half a dozen can goods.  All three managed to get to the shelter with plenty of wet gear, lacking only "dry" gear. Our leader even produced a nice hiker friendly down jacket. Well it would have been if it had been kept dry but instead it was reduced to a wet windbreaker.
  
I have written all this to hopefully emphasize the importance of planning, particularly when venturing into the back country not prepared for the weather and or terrain you could encounter.  Our friends and pleasant folks they were I think realized their error and hopefully left the back country by the nearest exit as I suggested.   In all fairness the weather was hard on all of us. 
Keep hiking,
Carl

Permit System in the Smokies

   Backcountry fee in the Smokies. 2013 has brought a fee for backcountry camping in the Smokies and although it has, surprisingly, not had the negative response expected, it has its glitches. Some hikers have printed a receipt thinking they had a permit. The requirement to print your permit through your email is to protect your personal info, I am told.  The bottom half of your permit with your entry date is to go in the thru-hiker box which is located 30' up the trail from the trailhead (after crossing the dam).  Many times rangers are there to check permits.
   For section hikers (all back country campers other than thru-hikers), who plan to spend at least one night, a $4.00 fee per night is required for ANY campsite or shelter.
   Keep hiking, carl aka greybeard. 

"Willow"

'Willow' is a Plot-Terrier mix and a Service Dog trained to sense and warn his master of potential problems with blood sugar levels, amazing. She is the best behaving dog I have ever encountered on the trail, never barking, staying seated and always attentive of his master's movements while just sitting and generally following  "M80" (trail name) with his head and eyes.
  For those interested The Plot Hound is arguably the most celebrated bear hunting dog anywhere and was  bred (developed) on Plot Mountain (named after the Plot Hound's breeder) near the Smoky Mountain area.

The trash from my second week of the 2013 Season, as Ridgerunner in the Smokies.  Among other things take note of the jeans with the legs and waste taped shut and the result containing a variety of food including oatmeal, Ramen, nuts and chocolates. The jeans were then tossed about ten feet into a tree. This of course was to keep black bears from getting it. He knows his black bears!  This is a thoughtless act and provides no consideration for back country etiquette (LNT principles).  At least the soggy mess found its way out of the back country and into a trash can.

Keep Hiking,

Carl

Egor

This is Egor. He is a young Russion hiker/adventurer. His treking renders most long distance hikers "babes in the woods". He has hiked in so many countries, had so many experiences for one so young.He will follow his current AT thru hike with going to Columbia, having hiked previously thru Nepal and Europe. Egor is a bright young man who could be the "boy next door" but with an adventurous spirit and "the other side of the mountain always in his sites."
Keep hiking,
Carl