when I thru hiked in 2000 I had a watch, then I threw the watch away and only utilized the sun. Loved knowing my way like the ancients. I still do it.
HikerMomKD you truly have a gift. Maybe it's that you see things others miss. Or, maybe it's that you are further down the path in some regards, perhaps because you aren't making the same mistakes you used to. Either way you have a way about you that I so appreciate. Luv right back at ya!
Originally Posted by Symba
...and 2000 miles or so worth of white blazes!
Paul "Mags" Magnanti
http://pmags.com
Twitter: @pmagsco
Facebook: pmagsblog
The true harvest of my life is intangible...a little stardust caught,a portion of the rainbow I have clutched -Thoreau
Good to have even if you walk 200 feet (real distance) into the wood to find a nice private place to pitch a tent. I suspect most AT hikers NEVER EVER camp out of site of the trail. Out of fear or for lack of compass?
Another old foggie tool that will be forgotten because no one will know how to use it.
Thankfully, I taught my son when he was too young to know any better.
Compass can be misleading on trail without a map.
Only time we have gone wrong way in 1700 miles was when we northwards in ny when northbound was actually south of east at that point.
Only 2 or 3 tenths but enough to feel stupid.
Thanks by the way HM. All a bit juvenile of us really.
Dogwoood I agree to differ with you and leave it be.
Any book, pamphlet or article about the AT and Leave No Trace policies will request you not camp off the trail at all to preserve the wilderness plants. This may be why many do not stray....you're not supposed to.
"Maybe life isn't about avoiding the bruises. Maybe it's about collecting the scars to prove we showed up for it."
Hmm, is that true for the entire corridor? (I don't know, I'm asking.) On a lot of the New York State lands where I hike, there's nearly an opposite rule: camp either at designated sites, or else at least 200 feet from any trail, road or water source. (On others, it's "designated sites only.") Is there anywhere that the A-T switches from "concentrate your impact" to "disperse your impact"?
I always know where I am. I'm right here.
There are so many areas that are free of plants and simply leaf cover. Or you could always find some invasive plants to trample on
Who brings a map and compass on the AT? I mean seriously....
You will have a rough list if you start from post 1.
Smart hikers.
Thanks Max
It used to be, with the exception of certain high use /regulated areas, camping off the trail was allowed.
Looks like that is still the case:
http://www.appalachiantrail.org/hiki...mping-shelters
CAN I FIND MY OWN CAMPSITE?
In some areas, particularly the national forests of the Virginias and the southern Appalachians, “dispersed camping” is allowed. Dispersed camping means you can choose your own place to camp, but it carries with it a special responsibility of leaving no trace: You must be more careful to minimize your impact in pristine areas. Choose a site with no sign of previous use. Avoid places that show the beginnings of frequent use—those still have a chance to recover if left alone. Set up tents on durable surfaces, such as dead leaves or grass, well apart from each other and at least seventy paces from water. Avoid trampling plants and seedlings.
Last edited by Mags; 07-30-2013 at 16:10.
Paul "Mags" Magnanti
http://pmags.com
Twitter: @pmagsco
Facebook: pmagsblog
The true harvest of my life is intangible...a little stardust caught,a portion of the rainbow I have clutched -Thoreau
As I stated, totally unnecessary to hike the trail in a purist sense. map and gps/compass VERY useful to get on and off AT at various points. This is extremely useful for section hikers, emergencies or "smarter" hikers.
A compass and map is very useful for those of us that like to bushwack off the AT once in a while. I've bushwacked in every state.
Thanks for the reminder Mags.....knew in CT we would have to stealth camp, and was feeling very guilty about it. I know it's technically not allowed in CT, along with fires, but somehow I now feel ATC sanctioned!
"Maybe life isn't about avoiding the bruises. Maybe it's about collecting the scars to prove we showed up for it."
Dogwoood I agree to differ with you and leave it be.- OJ
Sometimes the best friends turn out to be the ones who are willing to disagree with us - agreeably.
[QUOTE=HikerMomKD;1507806]AK, that pic is gorgeous!!
Anyone that tells/lectures you that you are ruining their wilderness experience is just being selfish themselves. First of all, we have pretty much determined that the AT isn't really much of a wilderness at all. It's quite crowded & a lot of the trail is really close to civilization. These same people will also tell you anything they don't agree with/like is ruining their "wilderness" experience. *shaking head*. It's all about them.
I'll never forget the time, in PA, when we were at the James Fry Shelter. We don't ever sleep in the shelters so we found a nice campsite away from the shelter. Another couple set up their tent kinda close to ours. They hadn't been out very long at all. I think they were headed for Maine. The girl was really pumped about being out on the trail. She got on her cell phone after dark and talked really loud to all her family members.( yep, even grampa) This went on, what seemed to us, for a good hour. You know what, we were annoyed but it's the AT. The girl was so excited about her adventure, it was nice to hear her excitement for what she was doing-hiking the AT. We should have told her, in a polite way, that it's not good trail etiquette to talk that loud on her cell phone, the next morning. We didn't. I'm sure she didn't realize that she was talking so loud. Whatever... we chose not to let that experience, ruin our "wilderness" experience on the trail. The AT is not the trail to hike if you are going to get your panties in a wad about technology on the trail, TM or whatever.
OZ... not one of your true friends have a problem with the way you are thru-hiking. I feel like I'm speaking for a lot of us that have meet you & know you. We are actually HAPPY that you are using your phone, computer and staying in hotels/hostels. These are the things that are allowing you to continue hiking. I'm sure it would be the same way for me. You are in another country far away from your wife and family. This technology helps you hike your hike. We love hearing from you on WB too. We don't want you to have to defend yourself constantly about this matter. We love you OZ!! You are AWESOME!![/QUOTE]
Yes he is.
At least smartphones don't leave poo on the trail!
I'm unabashed. I bring my smartphone. And I virtually never talk on it. When I can get a signal, I'll usually text my wife, because it makes her feel better, and because a text can often get through when a voice call can't. Otherwise, it's in airplane mode to save battery. I warn colleagues when I go hiking that I'm going to be "off the grid." My boss knows me well enough that he answers, "knowing you, you mean that literally!" and chuckles.
About half my hikes are bushwhacks, because trails are suggestions and (thanks D-Low and Mags!) routes are the future of hiking. I use the GPS app but don't depend on it; in fact, the last time I led a bushwhack, my battery unexpectedly gave up the ghost a short way in despite having got a full charge that morning. My partner (nervous when he's out of sight of a white blaze) said that I still made it look like a walk in the park. I'm a computer geek: I use tools like Quantum GIS, Mapnik and MOBAC to make my own smartphone maps of where I'm planning to go, and download them into Backcountry Navigator.
I usually carry a few books on the phone, and sometimes I'll read in the evening or when sitting somewhere waiting for the hail to stop. I usually have some music on it, too, but I seldom find myself listening. I keep thinking I'll want to have it along, but then just never bother to put in the earbuds. (Exception: Something cheerful when I'm 2500 feet up a 3000 foot steady elevation gain can help keep me moving.) I have a movie or two on it, but that's for plane and train rides; it's hell on the battery when I'm off grid.
I have fun with PeakFinder, and find that few other hikers object when I use it to find out, "what mountain is that, over there?"
I use an app to do text memos, although I also carry some paper for notes and journalling.
I'm ridiculously colour-blind, and have an assistive app on the phone to help me distinguish colours. There's one local trail with dark red blazes that I have a deucedly hard time following without having the app to help me spot them. Before I had the app, I always fell back on bushwhacking technique when hiking that one: "I know it comes down to a stream in another mile. If I follow a contour line east, I'll hit it again."
I take the occasional photo with the camera. because sometimes I get magical light when I don't have my other camera along:
Plotterkill in the mist by ke9tv, on Flickr
In any case, I may synchronize the clock on the phone with the clock on the camera and tap 'Add waypoint' on the GPS app when I take a picture, so that I can geotag photos after the fact.
I've even been known - quite against my nature - to use my phone as an alarm clock if I have a long day ahead or need to make a pickup time.
And I can recall at least once changing my headlamp batteries by the light of the flashlight app on my smartphone.
I never talk on the phone in front of other hikers unless I'm doing something like calling for a shuttle for the whole group. I try hard not to let other hikers see the screen light at night. And I mostly have my eyes and ears on the trail and on my companions.
And still I know people who say that my phone ruins their wilderness experience - even when it's in my pack. To me, that's somewhere between 'HMHDI' and '***?' The funny thing was that the last hiker that lectured me on that was thirty years younger than I am. So I don't think it's a generational thing.
Very nice pic, AK.
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