PDA

View Full Version : Article: AT's trail angels are the best



SavageLlama
08-03-2004, 09:06
Interesting article I came across..


A DEVILISH TIME TRYING TO FIND TRAIL ANGELS
By David O. Williams
Rocky Mountain News (http://javascript<b></b>:NewWindow(%20'FIISrcDetails','?from=article&ids=rmtn');void(0);)
July 31, 2004

Other than the legendary Angel of Shavano, which appears each spring on the eastern flanks of that 14,229-foot peak near Salida, there is very little evidence in Colorado of trail angels - rural myths, if you will, more common and controversial in other parts of the country.
The Angel of Shavano easily is explained as a seasonal snow formation, but trail angels are a more mysterious breed. According to www.wordspy.com (http://www.wordspy.com/), a trail angel is defined as "a person who leaves food and performs other acts of kindness for hikers."

The earliest citation the Web site found was in a 1994 book titled Walking the Appalachian Trail by Larry Luxenberg, which is telling because trail angels seem to be far more common on that 2,174-mile national scenic trail in the East.

"I have not run across any trail angels in Colorado, and I was not expecting them," said Anneliese Ring, a Castle Rock resident who moved here to help finish the Continental Divide Trail. "And that's one of the contentions. I've talked to people who've done the Appalachian Trail and they say people are starting to expect (trail angels), and that's not right."

Ring, in fact, has hiked the entire length of the AT, as it's known in scenic trail circles, and the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail, or PCT, which runs from Mexico to Canada through California, Oregon and Washington.

The Continental Divide Trail, which ultimately will run 3,100 miles along the divide from Mexico to Canada through New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho and Montana, is only about 70 percent complete and far less famous than its cousins.

Trail angels - they generally are - people who live near the trail and whose random acts of kindness often are referred to as "trail magic," are a byproduct of the relatively large numbers of thruhikers - hikers who set out to complete the entire trail in one continuous backpack trip - attempting the AT and PCT each season.

Estimates vary, but an average of 300 thruhikers set out on the PCT each season, and as many as 1,500 try to tackle the AT each season, according to Ring, who adds that perhaps a dozen take on the entire length of the CDT.

"(The CDT) doesn't really seem to lend itself as much to trail angels, because if you're hiking the CDT in Colorado, you're very far away, and at your re-supply places, you're going to have something shipped there or just buy what's available," Ring said.

But the PCT and AT, Ring said, come very close to small towns and major urban centers, and some nearby residents get a thrill out of leaving water along the trail, or even offering rides to hikers who need to re-supply, do laundry or take a shower. Ring said she even encountered trail angels who let hikers stay in their homes overnight.

My own experience in 25 years of backpacking and day hiking in Colorado is that you're expected to be self-reliant in the high Rockies, and leaving anything along the trail is considered littering.

I did encounter and take advantage of the work of a trail angel once while backpacking around Upheaval Dome in Canyonlands National Park in Utah, where, in the heat of the summer, it's nearly impossible to carry enough water. My wife and I foolishly ran out on our return trip and took a leap of faith, drinking water left in a gallon milk jug by the side of the trail. But, as Ring points out, reliance on such serendipity could prove fatal.

"It goes back to some people who are kind of expecting (trail magic), and that's not right," said Ring, who is "section" hiking the CDT in stints of up to 10 days. "You should be able to support yourself if you're going to do this, but it certainly is nice when you run across (trail magic)."

And not only do some thruhikers take trail angels for granted, Ring said they're starting to take advantage of them: "The flip side is that there have been people who have been that open (inviting hikers into their homes) that then found that hikers would take advantage of the situation, and they have to stop doing it because it gets out of hand."

Ring said she has encountered trail angels along the CDT in New Mexico.

A selection of Colorado forest rangers told me it depends on how you define the term "trail angel," but that organized acts of kindness on the state's trail are virtually nonexistent and generally would be discouraged.

"We would frown on food being cached because that would be a wildlife attractant and would present problems with our bear population," said Beth Boyst, wilderness manager for the Holy Cross Ranger District. "When I think of trail angels here, I think of people who volunteer (to work) on the trails because our budgets are so horrid."

Adds Tim Lamb, a forestry technician out of Aspen, "I would use (trail angels) to describe those conscientious hikers and backpackers who pick up after others, which you don't tend to hear too much about."

Lamb suggests caution when finding something on the trail.

"(Trail magic) seems kind of enabling in a way in that when you go out in the woods, you ought to be prepared and bring enough water or a filter, and most people would be leery about drinking or eating something they just found out there."

Ken Waugh, a recreation staff officer at the Dillon Ranger District, goes further: "If it gets to be a regular thing that you can count on, you're going to wind up with some guy out there poisoning someone . . . even though most people out on the trail don't tend to be criminal types."

INFOBOX

America's national scenic trails

* The Appalachian Trail stretches 2,174 miles from Katahdin, Maine, to Springer Mountain, Ga. For more information, go to the Appalachian Trail Conference Web site at www.appalachian (http://www.appalachian/) trail.org or the National Park Service Web site at www.nps.gov/appa/ (http://www.nps.gov/appa/)

* The Pacific Crest Trail runs 2,650 miles from Mexico to Canada through California, Oregon and Washington. Check out the Pacific Crest Trail Association Web site at www.pcta.org (http://www.pcta.org/)

* The Continental Divide Trail is only 70 percent complete but ultimately will wind 3,100 miles along the Divide from Mexico to Canada through New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho and Montana. Click on the Continental Divide Trail Alliance site at www.cdtrail.org (http://www.cdtrail.org/)

MOWGLI
08-03-2004, 09:18
"I have not run across any trail angels in Colorado, and I was not expecting them," said Anneliese Ring, a Castle Rock resident who moved here to help finish the Continental Divide Trail. "And that's one of the contentions. I've talked to people who've done the Appalachian Trail and they say people are starting to expect (trail angels), and that's not right."



That about says it all.

Rain Man
08-03-2004, 10:07
I did encounter and take advantage of the work of a trail angel once while backpacking around Upheaval Dome in Canyonlands National Park in Utah, where, in the heat of the summer, it's nearly impossible to carry enough water. My wife and I foolishly ran out on our return trip and took a leap of faith, drinking water left in a gallon milk jug by the side of the trail. But, as Ring points out, reliance on such serendipity could prove fatal.

Hmmmmmm .... according to the author's assertion that there is no trail magic out in Colorado, I wonder if he was drinking someone else's water, which that someone else was depending on, on this long dry stretch?

I mean, along the AT, you'd expect such a bottle of water to be trail magic. But it sounds as if out west it would more likely be someone's cache, or a hiker ahead leaving it for a slower hiker behind. A slower hiker who's going to have to go without water now that the author drank it?

What's the trail etiquette out west? Is it different, based on what part of the country you hike in? He seems to be saying it is.

Just curious. I won't be going out west any time soon.

Rain Man

.

tarbubble
08-03-2004, 12:02
i would never, ever drink somebody else's water cache - that's practically murder. only if i was desperate and knew i was absolutely going to die if i didn't drink it, and even then i wouldn't drink it all and i would return as quickly as possible to re-fill it. that said, when i cache water i don't just leave it along the trail; that's kinda stupid. i conceal it (behind a bush or a rock) in an area that i know i'll be able to recognize, someplace with something noteworthy that i can write down & remember.

now, if there was a note on it that said "for hikers" then that's completely different. but once again, you CAN'T rely on these things!

Rain Man asked about trail etiquette out west. aren't there yahoos everywhere who don't really think about the consequences of their actions? i don't think any region has a monopoly on them.