SavageLlama
01-12-2006, 09:59
A little something for those with cabin fever from today's Business Gazette in Maryland..
Appalachian Trail hikers enthusiastic about wintertime
by Rebecca McClay
Business Gazette
Thursday, Jan. 12, 2006
The streams of hikers on Appalachian Trail thin out after November, but several local enthusiasts continue to trek for shorter stints during the cold weather.
President of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club Tom Johnson, who hikes the portions of the trail just about weekly, said winter hikes offers several advantages and challenges for local hiking enthusiasts.
‘‘Everything changes in the winter,” Johnson said. ‘‘It’s totally different than hiking at any other time of year.”
With upwards of 6,500 members, the club is the largest Appalachian Trail hiking club south of New York and is still active in the winter, Johnson said. The 65-year-old said he has been hiking since he was a teenager.
Winter hikers may enjoy better views after leaves have fallen. They may also find overnight cabins are more spacious and the trials less populated.
‘‘If you don’t like to see people, hiking during the winter might be a good time,” Johnson said. ‘‘It’s not quite like walking down Connecticut Avenue.”
Spotting a thru-hiker, or a hiker who completes the entire 2,178-mile trail from Georgia to Maine in one six-month hike, is rare in the winter, said Laurie Potteiger of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, a volunteer group that oversees the trails maintenance and operations.
But whereas several years ago winter thru-hiking ‘‘was virtually unheard of,” now a few hikers may make the whole trek through the cold conditions, Potteiger said.
‘‘Statistically, it’s a small number,” she said. ‘‘But it’s still a very significant figure when we would never in the past have seen them in December.”
She said those extreme hikers have likely already completed the Appalachian Trial once and are looking for a unique challenge.
‘‘We certainly not something we’d recommend,” she said. ‘‘You have to be very careful about hiking during the winter.”
Instead, the trial serves as winter recreation for several day-hikers, or segment hikers, who can more easily fend off the dangers of winter with shorter trips.
In Frederick County, the Appalachian Trail serves as the 41-mile border with Washington County and runs along the South Mountain State Park ridge, roughly 2,000 feet above sea level.
Johnson said hikers must factor in elevation during colder months, as some portions of the trail may ice-over and weather at higher elevations may not match local weather reports.
‘‘Hiking in the winter can differ pretty dramatically,” Johnson said. ‘‘The mountains here in Maryland can top out at 2,000 feet. The elevation is the critical thing – how high up are you going to go in the winter?”
Johnson said portions of the trail along the Frederick County border may be as much as 10 degrees different than weather reports in Frederick city or Washington, D.C.
‘‘You need to have a good map to show you the elevations of the trail,” Johnson said. He avoids hiking in below-freezing temperatures and overnight winter stays.
During icy conditions, local hikers may seek lower-elevation hiking options in the area such as the 18-mile Bull Run trail in Fairfax, Va., or Sugarloaf Mountain in Dickerson, both with elevations of about 200 feet.
Selena Montorfano, advocacy director for the American Hiking Society, said the Appalachian Trail draws about 3 million hikers annually, about 500 of whom are thru-hikers. She said the trend of winter hiking is increasing.
‘‘The air [in the winter] is very crisp,” Montorfano said. ‘‘You don’t have to worry about some of the insects you would in the summer. And people enjoy the beauty.”
She said a study by the Outdoor Industry Association concluded that 75 million people participate in hiking nationwide.
Appalachian Trail enthusiasts layer up clothing and tote more cold weather equipment to hike through the discomforts of winter.
Potomac Appalachian Trail Club members volunteers to maintain about 1,000 miles of the Appalachian trail in Washington, D.C., Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Virginia.
The Appalachian Trail, developed by volunteers, opened as a continuous trail in 1937 and was designated as the first National Scenic Trail by the National Trails System Act of 1968, according to the National Park Service.
<HR>
Find out more For tips on winter day-long hikes:
* Potomac Appalachian Trail Club: www.patc.net⁄index.htm (http://www.patc.net⁄index.htm/)
* Appalachian Trail Conservancy: www.appalachiantrail.org (http://www.appalachiantrail.org/)
* National Park Service: www.nps.gov⁄appa⁄index.htm (http://www.nps.gov⁄appa⁄index.htm/)
Appalachian Trail hikers enthusiastic about wintertime
by Rebecca McClay
Business Gazette
Thursday, Jan. 12, 2006
The streams of hikers on Appalachian Trail thin out after November, but several local enthusiasts continue to trek for shorter stints during the cold weather.
President of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club Tom Johnson, who hikes the portions of the trail just about weekly, said winter hikes offers several advantages and challenges for local hiking enthusiasts.
‘‘Everything changes in the winter,” Johnson said. ‘‘It’s totally different than hiking at any other time of year.”
With upwards of 6,500 members, the club is the largest Appalachian Trail hiking club south of New York and is still active in the winter, Johnson said. The 65-year-old said he has been hiking since he was a teenager.
Winter hikers may enjoy better views after leaves have fallen. They may also find overnight cabins are more spacious and the trials less populated.
‘‘If you don’t like to see people, hiking during the winter might be a good time,” Johnson said. ‘‘It’s not quite like walking down Connecticut Avenue.”
Spotting a thru-hiker, or a hiker who completes the entire 2,178-mile trail from Georgia to Maine in one six-month hike, is rare in the winter, said Laurie Potteiger of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, a volunteer group that oversees the trails maintenance and operations.
But whereas several years ago winter thru-hiking ‘‘was virtually unheard of,” now a few hikers may make the whole trek through the cold conditions, Potteiger said.
‘‘Statistically, it’s a small number,” she said. ‘‘But it’s still a very significant figure when we would never in the past have seen them in December.”
She said those extreme hikers have likely already completed the Appalachian Trial once and are looking for a unique challenge.
‘‘We certainly not something we’d recommend,” she said. ‘‘You have to be very careful about hiking during the winter.”
Instead, the trial serves as winter recreation for several day-hikers, or segment hikers, who can more easily fend off the dangers of winter with shorter trips.
In Frederick County, the Appalachian Trail serves as the 41-mile border with Washington County and runs along the South Mountain State Park ridge, roughly 2,000 feet above sea level.
Johnson said hikers must factor in elevation during colder months, as some portions of the trail may ice-over and weather at higher elevations may not match local weather reports.
‘‘Hiking in the winter can differ pretty dramatically,” Johnson said. ‘‘The mountains here in Maryland can top out at 2,000 feet. The elevation is the critical thing – how high up are you going to go in the winter?”
Johnson said portions of the trail along the Frederick County border may be as much as 10 degrees different than weather reports in Frederick city or Washington, D.C.
‘‘You need to have a good map to show you the elevations of the trail,” Johnson said. He avoids hiking in below-freezing temperatures and overnight winter stays.
During icy conditions, local hikers may seek lower-elevation hiking options in the area such as the 18-mile Bull Run trail in Fairfax, Va., or Sugarloaf Mountain in Dickerson, both with elevations of about 200 feet.
Selena Montorfano, advocacy director for the American Hiking Society, said the Appalachian Trail draws about 3 million hikers annually, about 500 of whom are thru-hikers. She said the trend of winter hiking is increasing.
‘‘The air [in the winter] is very crisp,” Montorfano said. ‘‘You don’t have to worry about some of the insects you would in the summer. And people enjoy the beauty.”
She said a study by the Outdoor Industry Association concluded that 75 million people participate in hiking nationwide.
Appalachian Trail enthusiasts layer up clothing and tote more cold weather equipment to hike through the discomforts of winter.
Potomac Appalachian Trail Club members volunteers to maintain about 1,000 miles of the Appalachian trail in Washington, D.C., Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Virginia.
The Appalachian Trail, developed by volunteers, opened as a continuous trail in 1937 and was designated as the first National Scenic Trail by the National Trails System Act of 1968, according to the National Park Service.
<HR>
Find out more For tips on winter day-long hikes:
* Potomac Appalachian Trail Club: www.patc.net⁄index.htm (http://www.patc.net⁄index.htm/)
* Appalachian Trail Conservancy: www.appalachiantrail.org (http://www.appalachiantrail.org/)
* National Park Service: www.nps.gov⁄appa⁄index.htm (http://www.nps.gov⁄appa⁄index.htm/)