Don’t You Love Getting Trail Magic?

I did. 

Seeing those coolers, sitting by their lonesome, brimming with goodies just for a hard hiker like me.

But things have changed….

I have changed.

Why?

Because of this.

Bear wrecks a thru hiker tent. 2017.

And this.

I have seen gear damaged and hikers lose money by animals that have received food rewards in one form or another. Including my own tent that had nothing in it.

I have seen magic left and remnants scattered around the cooler and a half mile beyond, with cans thrown into the woods. I have seen food tied to trees, soda cans propped on the ground and cans pierced by bears’ teeth and a sign on a tree afterwards that says – Bears are active in these woods and have destroyed property.

I have seen folks think they are doing right with all the food feeds, especially down south in the early AT hiker season, but are instead contributing to a massive mentality issue currently affecting long distance hikers. The “I deserve it” mentality. The entitlement mentality. After all – “I am hiking the whole trail, I need it.” They expect people to do for them. They are of a higher class. And that mentality carries into towns and places with regulations, where ill behavior can run rampant and thankfulness and doing good to others instead of yourself is absent. Selfishness abounds. The yellow blazer class is also born with those not interested in hiking but hitchhiking from party to party or feed.  

I have worked now as a ridgerunner on the Appalachian Trail and seen a lot to turn me off to food magic. This past season I had a thru hiker actually ask me – “Hey where is the trail magic around here? I haven’t had food or drink in a long time.”

I was flabbergasted.

I say to him – “There are others ways of trail magic in these woods besides food and drink.”

A sunny sky.

A pretty flower.

A trail kept free of blowdowns by a maintainer. Or a shelter that keeps out rain.

A flowing spring that is not dry.

Encouragement to a weary hiker with a kind word.

Picking up trash along the way. Even some gum wrappers will do.

Offering a ride to a weary hiker. I’ve had some even invite me into their homes. Wow

Thanking a maintainer and offering to help.

(To the trail angels that helped me so much on my treks – who offered rides and their homes and a friendly smile and encouragement – thanks)

To those that leave trail magic unattended - with coolers and bags and boxes of food sitting at a road or by the trail -

PLEASE don’t. Stay with your offerings and give them out. Meet and greet. Then remove it all when you are done. But really, consider other ways of magic instead of food. There is so much food along the AT these days – it is like a carnival from one food stop to another. The wilderness is gone. 

Instead, do other things. 

And do it expecting no thanks or rewards. The thanks is the satisfaction that you helped others and the trail. 

What are You Thankful For?

As hikers we often overlook some of the reasons to be thankful. And this season of Thanksgiving is a good time to reflect and give thanks for things trail-wise maybe you hadn’t thought of in a while -

Here are some that come to mind for me –

1.       Those that Volunteer on the Trail – I’m talking trail club volunteers, maintainers, overseers, those who worked tirelessly to maintain the trails, shelters, etc. so we as hikers can enjoy it. Here is a listing of ones that maintain the Appalachian Trail. And in honor of them, feel free to read the blog I did on these great angels of the physical trail.
belong to a trail club, consider it. Here is a

2.       Trail Angels of Hikers – those that give tirelessly to trail efforts by helping hikers in their time of need. In December I plan to have a few of those trail gems as guests here to explain why they do what they do (so check back). I think of the people that took me into their homes, gave me food, took care of my stinky laundry, drove me back to trail at the crack of dawn, the list goes on.

3.       Organizations that oversee the trail. Like the trail clubs, consider joining them. The funds from memberships, stores, etc help oversee the trail, protect fragile environments, and assist in many other ways. Here's a listing of a few. 

4.       The many Hostels out there – I had the opportunity to interview a few hostel owners for a blog recently. While hikers do pay a modest fee for lodging, it no way begins to cover the amount of time, effort, long days and nights, these folks put in. And the way they support the trail community. It truly
is a labor of love providing a place of rest and recuperation for weary hikers.

5.       Our families and friends – I’m sure you can think of many who have gone out of their way to support you in your sometimes wild adventures. I know I give a BIG thanks to my husband who has stood by my side, even on the home front, while I went off exploring many trails. A big thanks for that!

So what are you thankful for? Feel free to comment. And from us here at Blissful Hiking, Happy Thanksgiving!

Trail Maintainers - the Unsung Trail Angels of Hiking

It's that time of year when trail crews are out tackling the issues of trail maintenance that come up on trails like the Appalachian Trail. Keeping pathways clear and usable for trail traffic is a time consuming but rewarding experience. Trail organizations offer ways for interested people to become trained, certified in certain areas such as chain saw to help clear and maintain trails. Without these efforts, trails would become unusable. Also, the changes of weather affect the trails, leading to erosion issues. Steep grades in trails require a reassessment and may need to be rerouted. Without trail overseers and maintainers, there would be no trails and limited ways of enjoying the wilderness experience.

Maintainer works on a reroute of the Appalachian Trail

The trail upkeep maintainers face -

1. Initial assessment of trail conditions - some clubs hire ridgerunners and others to patrol trails and report their conditions so maintainers know what to look for. This helps a maintainer avoid having to carry heavy equipment while looking for a blowdown or other hazard. If there are no ridgerunners or its out of season the maintainers must walk their section and look for hazards and issues that need to be addressed. This also includes trailside shelters and privies. They then must return and fix the issues they find.

2. Garbage removal - maintainers look for trash and clean it up, including trailside trash and trash in shelters and inside privies. As you might imagine, this is difficult and problematic work at times (and should be totally unnecessary if hikers carry out their trash and don't put trash in the privies!).

3. Foliage - maintainers are responsible for cutting back foliage, many times mowing or weed whacking high grass, and taking care of limb and tree blowdowns. They must carry in the tools necessary to accomplish the task, anything from hand clippers to chain saws (requiring certification). Trail blazing is also done as well as checking for signage.

A maintainer will need to walk in and either saw or take a chainsaw to remove the obstacle

4. Trail maintenance - with the precipitation a trail receives, maintainers look for issues regarding water run-off. In many cases with this and to stop trail erosion, they install water bars (where water moving down the trail turns when it comes in contact with the water and is directed to the lower edge of the trail and runs off) and check dams. Sometimes a steep graded trail becomes so badly eroded that a reroute is needed. Or a reroute can be considered to remove a trail from a road walk or to avoid a hazardous intersection. Trail clubs and maintainers are involved in the process as well as constructing the new trail

Building a Check Dam

5. Shelter maintenance and privy maintenance, including inspection, fixing of issues such as roof leakage, cleaning out and maintaining privies

Trail groups are in dire need of people who love the trail and want to help preserve the trail for future generations. Many offer courses, training, etc on various aspects of trail maintenance. PLEASE - find a trail organization near you and become involved! Even a little can help a lot!