How many porqupines have you seen on the AT?

[rickb]

How many porcupines have you seen on the AT?



Edit: I screwed up. I meant to post a poll. Oh well.

[Footslogger]

1 (one) ...in New York during my 2003 thru. Bugger wouldn't get off the trail either.

'Slogger

[oruoja]

They are very common here in Vermont, so that means don't leave your boots on the ground as they will chew anything with salt on it to shreds. They are climbers as well as I have seen a few up in a tree about ten to fifteen feet off the ground.

[1azarus]

just north of hanover -- i hung my hammock in a pine stand, and really hurt my back bending over to tie out the HH side line... stupid. (old?) anyway, i managed to drag myself into the hammock. heard all sorts of movement that night, but couldn't really move, so i just shined my headlight over my shoulder, the noise quited down, and i went to sleep... in the morning -- there was a cute really small porcupine in the tree about 4 feet above my hammock!!! definitely my favorite porcupine story. did see another one in southern massachussetts right on the trail in the middle of the day. definitely not as cute as the tree climbing one.

[rickb]

I've seen a bunch in MA and Southern VT.

I see their scat fairly frequently-- shaped like macaroni.

[Sly]

I've seen one in MA. It scuttled across the trail and up a tree. It was cool. I'm not sure what I'd do if it was eating my gear though. Bean it with a rock, I guess.

[Minerva]

Maybe three. Here's a picture of the one I saw last year having a snack in Kid Gore Shelter.....

http://www.trailjournals.com/photos.cfm?id=176543

MrsGorp

[hopefulhiker]

One, up north...

[Tractor]

One, on the trail in PA, early morning.

[Sly]

Maybe three. Here's a picture of the one I saw last year having a snack in Kid Gore Shelter.....

http://www.trailjournals.com/photos.cfm?id=176543

MrsGorp

Aw, s/he's so cute!

[emerald]

What Kid Gore Shelter needs is a resident fisher.

[Cookerhiker]

Just finished hiking the Long Trail and to my surprise, only saw one. He was hanging around none other than Kid Gore Shelter. Same one?

Yes, I made sure I secured my boots every night.

[superman]

I've seen a bunch of spotted skunks and a bunch of striped skunks. Winter was about nose to nose with some of them. She didn't bother them and they didn't spray us.

[Tin Man]

VT and MA seems to be a popular place for the porcupines. I have seen them along the trail and they never bothered me. While I never kept score, I would guess I have seen 5 or 6 on my sections hikes through the area. I was not aware of their boot eating instincts on my early trips and have not taken any precautions since. And I just became aware of how to identify their scat (thanks Rickb) - I am not sure how that helps, but I guess that makes for interesting talk at the end of the day.

[Frolicking Dinosaurs]

What Kid Gore Shelter needs is a resident fisher.

I wouldn't want to sleep there with that critter around.

[emerald]

I wouldn't either if I were you since the only thing fishers like more than porkies is Dino toes.

[Frolicking Dinosaurs]

I wouldn't either if I were you since the only thing fishers like more than porkies is Dino toes.

I'm skeerred

[Kerosene]

I wouldn't want to sleep there with that critter around.

My sole encounter with porkies was also at Kid Gore Shelter during my August '79 SOBO hike of the Long Trail. I'll bet the chubby guy in the picture is the great-great-great-great...grandkid of one or more of the "chorus line of porkies" that descended on us at dusk. There was a lot of evidence of their presence when we arrived at the shelter: the gnawed floor where hiker sweat had accumulated, a stripped tree out front, the shelter log encased in aluminum, numerous mentions of porkies in the log, and even an all-aluminum privy.

From my journal dated August 27, 1979: They hit at dusk, snuffling along and sounding like little babies.

There were at least a dozen of them, and yelling didn't seem to faze them, so unfortunately we had to resort to beaning one of them to keep them out of the shelter. It was a long night.

[Frolicking Dinosaurs]

:::: Dino makes note in guidebook to carry a small block of salt lick in VT and MA - especially in Gore Kid shelter area. If they are licking the block, they aren't licking my toes :::

[oruoja]

My sole encounter with porkies was also at Kid Gore Shelter during my August '79 SOBO hike of the Long Trail. I'll bet the chubby guy in the picture is the great-great-great-great...grandkid of one or more of the "chorus line of porkies" that descended on us at dusk. There was a lot of evidence of their presence when we arrived at the shelter: the gnawed floor where hiker sweat had accumulated, a stripped tree out front, the shelter log encased in aluminum, numerous mentions of porkies in the log, and even an all-aluminum privy.

From my journal dated August 27, 1979: They hit at dusk, snuffling along and sounding like little babies.

There were at least a dozen of them, and yelling didn't seem to faze them, so unfortunately we had to resort to beaning one of them to keep them out of the shelter. It was a long night.

I was at Kid Gore in early August '79 going NOBO. The remains of a pair of old waffle stompers were left hanging there. Just shards of leather hanging from the Vibram soles. The older Long Trail guidebooks from 40 and more years ago actually gave the tip on how to dispatch a problem porkie by striking it with a stick on the nose. Of course back in those days shelter dumps were more common which no doubt attracted critters of all kinds. I remember finding the evidence of one these shelter dumps further north on the LT which basically amounted to a large dug pit full of rusted cans.