SavageLlama
01-28-2006, 11:46
Good read on ridgerunners from a local PA paper today..
Ridgerunners are eyes, ears of the trail
By DEBBY HEISHMAN
Chambersburg Public Opinion, PA
January 28, 2006
Chris Firme spends time in the woods pretty much all year long.
This Blue Ridge Summit resident takes time from his career of wildlife management in Maryland and his job as a Washington Township supervisor to help make the area forests a safe, relaxing place to go.
In December, Firme was recognized as Volunteer of the Year for 2005 by Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC), a non-profit organization responsible for maintaining foot trails, including a portion of the Appalachian Trail, in Maryland, West Virginia, southern Pennsylvania and northern Virginia.
As a trail patrol member, one of Firme's duties in PATC is as supervisor of the ridgerunners, the position which earned him the recent award.
"I was surprised," said Firme, "I didn't think I did a whole lot."
Firme oversees the training and accountability of five Appalachian Trail ridgerunners who are hired each year to hike PATC's designated segment of the trail from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend. Ridgerunners scout for injured hikers or unsafe and illegal activity along the trail, especially at the shelters and campsites.
Firme's job begins when the five ridgerunners, chosen by interview with trail patrol Chairman Katrina Hedlesky, report in May for training at the Scott Farm near Carlisle. The farm is owned by the National Park Service and used as a training station for PATC's mid-Atlantic trail crew. Here, Firme instructs the ridgerunners in wilderness first aid and Leave No Trace camping, a low-impact philosophy of camping.
"They become the caretakers of the trail," Firme said. "They are trained to remind hikers that our biggest asset is our natural resources." A ridgerunner might, for example, explain to someone who's washing dishes in a stream how that action leaves a negative impact on the environment, he said.
"After training, I take them to meet their partner agencies," said Firme. "These are state agencies, like the Bureau of Forestry. The person in Michaux is Gary Zimmerman, the assistant forester."
Ridgerunners, he explained, receive support all summer from the forest rangers, who shuttle them to and from their starting and ending points along the trail. The rangers are also the law enforcement agents in state forests.
"Ridgerunners are the eyes and ears," Firme said. "We train them to educate, but they don't take the law into their own hands or put themselves in danger. If they come across something like underage drinking, they'll take license plate numbers and radio the rangers."
Since the program was installed more than a decade ago, he said, it has made a big difference.
"Partying has decreased a lot at shelters since the ridgerunner program," Firme said.
Throughout the summer, Firme meets with the ridgerunners to evaluate their progress.
"At the end of the year, they'll fill out reports on the number of people encountered, number of assists, that sort of thing," he said. "And they log their hours."
Trail patrol isn't his only volunteer position with PATC. When he's not supervising summer employees, Firme's wearing his other hat as hike leader. Once a month, he guides a group of hikers across one of the trails the club maintains. His favorite is the Tuscarora Trail. Last year, he divided the northern portion of this rugged mountain trail, from Harpers Ferry, W.Va., to the Scott Farm, into segments for group treks. This year, he's adding a backpacking weekend to his itinerary.
Firme has a long-term passion for our forest trails.
"It will be nice when all the long-distance trails in Pennsylvania are actually protected," he said. Unlike the Appalachian Trail, which has federal protection from development or incursion, other trails in the state routinely cross private property, staying open only through the good will of landowners.
Many townships and counties are coming on board, Firme said, in recognizing their natural resources. Franklin County, he said, is working on a county-wide greenways map to link undeveloped recreational resources.
"But we need help from the state," he said. "Private non-profits can only do so much."
# # #
Ridgerunners are eyes, ears of the trail
By DEBBY HEISHMAN
Chambersburg Public Opinion, PA
January 28, 2006
Chris Firme spends time in the woods pretty much all year long.
This Blue Ridge Summit resident takes time from his career of wildlife management in Maryland and his job as a Washington Township supervisor to help make the area forests a safe, relaxing place to go.
In December, Firme was recognized as Volunteer of the Year for 2005 by Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC), a non-profit organization responsible for maintaining foot trails, including a portion of the Appalachian Trail, in Maryland, West Virginia, southern Pennsylvania and northern Virginia.
As a trail patrol member, one of Firme's duties in PATC is as supervisor of the ridgerunners, the position which earned him the recent award.
"I was surprised," said Firme, "I didn't think I did a whole lot."
Firme oversees the training and accountability of five Appalachian Trail ridgerunners who are hired each year to hike PATC's designated segment of the trail from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend. Ridgerunners scout for injured hikers or unsafe and illegal activity along the trail, especially at the shelters and campsites.
Firme's job begins when the five ridgerunners, chosen by interview with trail patrol Chairman Katrina Hedlesky, report in May for training at the Scott Farm near Carlisle. The farm is owned by the National Park Service and used as a training station for PATC's mid-Atlantic trail crew. Here, Firme instructs the ridgerunners in wilderness first aid and Leave No Trace camping, a low-impact philosophy of camping.
"They become the caretakers of the trail," Firme said. "They are trained to remind hikers that our biggest asset is our natural resources." A ridgerunner might, for example, explain to someone who's washing dishes in a stream how that action leaves a negative impact on the environment, he said.
"After training, I take them to meet their partner agencies," said Firme. "These are state agencies, like the Bureau of Forestry. The person in Michaux is Gary Zimmerman, the assistant forester."
Ridgerunners, he explained, receive support all summer from the forest rangers, who shuttle them to and from their starting and ending points along the trail. The rangers are also the law enforcement agents in state forests.
"Ridgerunners are the eyes and ears," Firme said. "We train them to educate, but they don't take the law into their own hands or put themselves in danger. If they come across something like underage drinking, they'll take license plate numbers and radio the rangers."
Since the program was installed more than a decade ago, he said, it has made a big difference.
"Partying has decreased a lot at shelters since the ridgerunner program," Firme said.
Throughout the summer, Firme meets with the ridgerunners to evaluate their progress.
"At the end of the year, they'll fill out reports on the number of people encountered, number of assists, that sort of thing," he said. "And they log their hours."
Trail patrol isn't his only volunteer position with PATC. When he's not supervising summer employees, Firme's wearing his other hat as hike leader. Once a month, he guides a group of hikers across one of the trails the club maintains. His favorite is the Tuscarora Trail. Last year, he divided the northern portion of this rugged mountain trail, from Harpers Ferry, W.Va., to the Scott Farm, into segments for group treks. This year, he's adding a backpacking weekend to his itinerary.
Firme has a long-term passion for our forest trails.
"It will be nice when all the long-distance trails in Pennsylvania are actually protected," he said. Unlike the Appalachian Trail, which has federal protection from development or incursion, other trails in the state routinely cross private property, staying open only through the good will of landowners.
Many townships and counties are coming on board, Firme said, in recognizing their natural resources. Franklin County, he said, is working on a county-wide greenways map to link undeveloped recreational resources.
"But we need help from the state," he said. "Private non-profits can only do so much."
# # #