View Full Version : Alternative Routes for the Appalachian Trail...
Some discussion on another thread got me to really thinking about this the other day. With all of the discussion about crowding and impact on the trail in Baxter, the smokies and other places it seems to me that the simple solution to the problem is to spread things out. The ATC has already taken an active role by encouraging people to flip flop, hike southbound or other variations.
If you look at a map of the smokies in particular it is easy to see that there are many, many different ways to get through the park without taking the main recognized AT route. Someone else mentioned there are many other trails in the whites as well.
In discussions of the Continental Divide Trail hikers tend to say there is no purist mentality there and many people explore many different alternatives rather than rigidly adhering to the "official" route. Why not encourage a similar attitude along the AT?
Seems to me that in order for that to happen it would require two things:
(1) Support and encouragement from the ATC itself, possibly to include recognizing 2000 milers as people who walked from Georgia to Maine, but not necessarily doing all of those miles on the AT trails but rather other trails that intersect with the AT.
(2) The idea would have to be adopted and supported from the publishers of the most popular guidebooks, giving detailed information on route alternatives and promoting the pros and cons of such alternative routes.
Sure the data is already available for those who want to do alternative routes, but in order for it to gain widespread acceptance and usage I think the above two things would be necessary.
There are already some parallel routes in place, eg. the Benton MacKaye Trail. I hear it's nice. I think a lot good can come from simply staggering the start times, or starting in the middle, ie., flip-flop hikes. I kinda doubt there will ever be an officially-recognized alternate route, but hey, what do I know? It's taken nearly a century for the AT to get where it's at, as a single path.
mattjv89
05-22-2016, 12:16
I agree about shaking the "purist" attitude to be more like the other long trails. In addition to spreading out the crowds there is some really cool stuff that the official AT route sometimes misses. I never firmly identified as a purist as far as walking backwards to tag a blaze from the privy etc. but more or less said I was gonna do the white blazed route. Something changed when I got to Gulf Hagas in ME and said I'm just not going to skip five miles of gorgeous waterfalls and canyons to get those .6 miles of white blazes through the green tunnel. Last year I took the white blazed route out of Damascus but this year hiking SOBO into town on the VA Creeper for Trail Days was a much more unique experience. Walking right along a river for 10 miles, and is that a cafe right on the trail I smell? Yes please.
In regard to your points:
1) I'm not sure the 2,000 miler certificate is that much of an obstacle. I see it talked about a lot here on Whiteblaze in regards to "we need the ATC to endorse that change for the certificate" but I just don't recall it being talked about at all on the trail. I never heard anyone say "I really want to do that route but I'm concerned about what the ATC will think" etc. In fact I never heard anyone mention the certificate in any way until we got to Baxter, where the ranger on duty seemed more excited about handing out applications than anyone was to receive them. I know a lot of people do put in for the certificate but it just doesn't seem to influence plans that much. All that being said I'm sure it wouldn't hurt the idea you're suggesting if the ATC was fully on board with it.
2) If we're talking long distance alternatives like the BMT, I don't see it being practical to ever have all the routes under the cover of one guidebook. That is going to be one seriously heavy and confusing book to cover the AT plus all the alternatives in one volume! In some cases there is an important preservation aspect from having the information less readily accessible too. Again using the BMT as an example, if it were a subset of pages within the AWOL guide and dozens of aspiring thru hikers per day took it, probably wouldn't be long before it had all the same problems the southern AT has from inexperienced hikers. Bear problems from sloppy food storage, trash left behind, Charmin flowers in full bloom, etc. Also the folks in those trail towns would probably be wondering where on earth all the strange looking people came from.. Then again due to the lack of shelters I don't know if the BMT could ever reach that level of popularity with new hikers even if the info was super accessible.
Tiggerhiker
05-22-2016, 13:04
Personally I prefer the option of alternative routes and am not concerned about a certificate. We live everyday life constrained by schedules and time that do not change much in a normal work week. It's all rinse and repeat. Isn't that why we all choose to take a walk in the woods. I am attempting my "thru" hike next year and am completely open to alternate routes and no time constraints.
Spirit Walker
05-22-2016, 13:30
If they ever get their act together, the Great Eastern Trail is an option for hikers to hike alternate trails through the Appalachians. (By that I mean, one set of maps and guidebooks for the whole thing, easily available.)
When I thruhiked in 1992, there were a couple of groups that made a game out of hiking alternate routes. Not so much the big trails like the Benton MacKay, the Allegheny Trail and the Tuscarora Trail, as the little side routes through the Shenandoahs or the former AT routes, etc. Purism wasn't as big a deal back then.
Many routes and trails already recognize alternates as viable itineraries: ie; AZT, American Discovery Tr, Buckeye Tr, CDT, Idaho's Centennial Tr, Cali Coastal Tr, Florida Tr, Great Divide, Great Eastern Tr, Ice Age Tr, North Country Tr, Oregon Coastal Tr, PCT, PNT, Ice Age, SHR, Hayduke, oodles of various traverses,..............ATC isn't on board with promoting alternate routes yet. They are currently promoting alternative itineraries on "official " AT tread.
I speculate on the additional jurisdictional, management, overseeing, protecting, budget, and maintenance issues that could arise if the ATC did succumb to recognizing AT Completions or the AT as you've suggested. I've made this same suggestion in that the ATC should be at the forefront recognizing the AT as it was originally intended to be perceived....as an interconnected larger system of trails rather than the single lane interstate super hiking highway it has become.
Seems to me that in order for that to happen it would require two things:
(1) Support and encouragement from the ATC itself, possibly to include recognizing 2000 milers as people who walked from Georgia to Maine, but not necessarily doing all of those miles on the AT trails but rather other trails that intersect with the AT.
(2) The idea would have to be adopted and supported from the publishers of the most popular guidebooks, giving detailed information on route alternatives and promoting the pros and cons of such alternative routes.
I don't see why the ATC would want to support people hiking other trails. To me that is like Toyota saying "don't drive a Toyota, why not a Chrysler?" I also don't see a certificate as being an obstacle. If people need recognition that they hiked from GA to ME via the BMT, AT, I-84, etc. why not get another hiking organization such as the American Hiking Society to hand out the certificate?
If the National Park/National Monument on the north side of Baxter becomes a reality, that would open up all sorts of hiking possibilities and opportunities. Apart from taking the pressure off BSP, the AT could actually connect to the International Appalachian Trail.
I have long thought that a fitting name would be "Apalachian Trails (plural) National Monument". Katahdin could remain a special blue blaze.
One added benefit of ending the AT at the country's newest Park/Monument would be to give it a certain instant cache, profile, and marketability. The protected lands would be enjoyed forever, new hiking opportunities would flourish, and the local communities would see increased tourism.
Hikers would not be faced with mountain closures, and the strict capacity controls in BSP but could still climb K if they wanted to.
cliffordbarnabus
05-22-2016, 22:17
purism is hiking...in a cubicle.
Hike to Maine any way you want. You can even skip the hard parts. The ATC doesn't care. They will issue a certificate anyway.
I don't see why the ATC would want to support people hiking other trails. To me that is like Toyota saying "don't drive a Toyota, why not a Chrysler?" I also don't see a certificate as being an obstacle. If people need recognition that they hiked from GA to ME via the BMT, AT, I-84, etc. why not get another hiking organization such as the American Hiking Society to hand out the certificate?I guess it depends upon what the ultimate goals of the ATC are and whether or not they believe the reports of over-use and impact and if those reports actually matter to them. Unfortunately many people aren't confident enough or independent enough or self assured enough to just hike their own hike. They need some sort of external validation from some kind of official authority and want that certificate to hang on their wall. If another hiking organization issues the certificates then more than likely some or even most people would see it as a not pure enough or issued by a second rate organization and say "I want one from the ATC, so I'm going to hike the 'official route.'
Greenlight
05-23-2016, 10:03
The sagest advice I've read went something like this. Just be honest. As I recall, it was in an effort to assuage purists. If you put yourself out there as a purist, but deviate from the blazes, they won't view you as a thru-hiker. If you make it known at the outset that you'll hike any interesting blue blazes you feel like hiking, but you're still headed to Maine, who is going to chew you out? I certainly won't.
As a person who is still a couple years out from his thru, I just relish the idea of eating up miles wherever I can get my boots on a trail. When I launch at Springer (possibly doing a SOBO/NOBO with the aid of two road bikes!) I'm intent on touching as many white blazes as possible. But as I effectively near retirement, I do envision spending an inordinate amount of time in Appalachia with the wife, an RV, a couple of bikes, and my hiking gear. Doing trail maintenance. Trail magic. God knows what else.