View Full Version : hatchet murder?
I'm reading a book about coyotes by Catherine Reid, and she spends a few pages talking about a murder that happened on the AT when she thru-hiked. The date isn't mentioned, but I'd guess in the 70s or 80s sometime. A woman named Jan from Wisconsin, whom the author hiked with from Georgia to N. Carolina, was murdered near Damascus by a man who threw a hatched across a campfire at her. The author had spent a night in a shelter some days prior to that with the murderer, a man named Paul who told hiking stories but didn't look like a hiker. He turned himself in to the police in Damascus.
From the ATC web site discussion of AT murders, it looks like this one:
April 1975—Thru-hiker Janice Balza, 22, of Madison, Wisconsin, was killed by a hatchet wielded by hiker/tree surgeon Paul Bigley, 51, after breakfast at a shelter in northeast Tennessee. He died in state prison in Nashville. He killed her for her pack, a brand he coveted, testimony revealed.
Funny how you run across stuff like this when you're not expecting it.
NICKTHEGREEK
03-13-2005, 18:35
I'm a total gear head, my first thoughts were what kind of pack and what kind of hatchet. I believe I'll seek professional help.:datz
That took place at the Vandeventer shelter .
MedicineMan
03-13-2005, 23:19
on the Creepy poll last week.....
concerning hatchets look at this:
http://www.cool-camping.com/camping-equipment-8266.html
I'll put it in the weird things to carry but I've hiked with it when i know i'll have the time and wood to make a fire...best of all it only weighs 19.1 oz.
Better in the kayak but sometimes it has its place on the trail.
That took place at the Vandeventer shelter .
I recall that a couple were killed at Vandeventer by lightening strike, but the hatchet thing happened somewhere else perhaps - if not, I don't think I want to stay at that shelter any more!
Gonzo!
on the Creepy poll last week.....
concerning hatchets look at this:
http://www.cool-camping.com/camping-equipment-8266.html
I'll put it in the weird things to carry but I've hiked with it when i know i'll have the time and wood to make a fire...best of all it only weighs 19.1 oz.
Better in the kayak but sometimes it has its place on the trail.
That looks almost like the tool I have which is hatchet on one side and mattock on the other (kind of a mini pulaski). I can clean waterbars and chop wood! Do hikers ever get scared of trail maintainers with axes and chainsaws?
I've heard that these violent encounters can be avoided by being more aware, carrying a hiking stick, and having a peaceful mindset.
Hikerhead
03-14-2005, 23:00
That looks almost like the tool I have which is hatchet on one side and mattock on the other (kind of a mini pulaski). I can clean waterbars and chop wood! Do hikers ever get scared of trail maintainers with axes and chainsaws?
Just when they see you with one. :D
BlackCloud
03-15-2005, 11:30
I'm a total gear head, my first thoughts were what kind of pack and what kind of hatchet. I believe I'll seek professional help.:datz
I believe I read that it was a Kelty pack. Shouldn't they include that in their catalog as a promo?