What was so great about the "old days"?

[Violent Green]

Hi everyone,

I lurk here quite a bit and pretty often I see someone mention how they miss the AT "back in the old days". Usually referring to the 80's up through the late 90's. Unfortunately, I graduated high school in '99 so I didn't have much of a chance to hike the AT during that time. What was so different back then? Was it because there were no cell phones, Kindles, trail maintenance/angels? Less yuppies? Or was it better just because it was the "old days" by reason of nostalgia??

Ryan

[hikerboy57]

Nothing we were younger.

[hikerboy57]

You did miss the crack epidemic and aids though.

[Violent Green]

You did miss the crack epidemic and aids though.

But, I didn't miss out on MC Hammer and Milli Vanilli. Eeeek.

Ryan

[Tuckahoe]

Nothing we were younger.

Thats it right there. We were kids then. Hiking the AT for the first time as a kid in the 80s was a wonderful experience. I'll admit that part of the reason for my hiking today is to reconnect with that time in my life.

[hikerboy57]

the good old days: wwii, then korea, cuban missile crisis, vietnam, civil rights protests , riots, tear gas, gas lines, wage and price freeze, massive inflation, high interest rates---it was great!!!

we were younger.

[Deadeye]

We did stuff, rather than type about doing stuff.

[Lone Wolf]

a lot less people. no information overload (internet, books, videos) no hiker feeds every road crossing. just a simpler time

[Violent Green]

We did stuff, rather than type about doing stuff.

Ha...that's probably a good way to put it. Although I'm sure there were some slackers and people who were all mouth back then too. Did you hike the AT back then? How is it different today?

Ryan

[Cookerhiker]

I've been backpacking for 35 years and harbor no longing for alleged "good ol' days" at all. The only change for the worse I've observed is more congestion/development/sprawl close to the Trail corridor now compared to the 1970s and 80s. The best example I can offer is the westward viewshed from Shenandoah NP - substantially more sprawl in the Valley now.

But even that must be tempered by the fact that in the "good ol' days," there were more road walks on the AT than now.

[Lyle]

Well, I'll disagree with most so far. Yes there have been plenty of good things that has developed. I don't miss the HEAVY boots that used to be standard. I appreciate the overall lightness and compactness of most of the rest of our equipment. I'm very mixed about all of the "services" now offered, and I'm no fan of the change in what is considered "trail magic".

What I mostly miss, or feel that today's hikers are missing, is the overwhelming sense of discovery. With the internet, all the MANY books, online journals, DVDs, multiple guidebooks, etc. it is very improbable that very many hikers hit the trail and discover for themselves what they will encounter. Most have much more of a pre-conceived idea of what the hike will be like. Yes, it is still a shock to many, when they actually experience it, but there is not the same sense of discovery. I remember when I hiked Virginia, I bought the data book, the maps, and was on the trail. I had no idea what Dragons Tooth was, or how amazing the Tye River Gorge was. Spy Rock was a unique place to explore and consider taking some water from all the dimples that were holding the recent rain.

Contrast that with my hikes of the past year. I had seen so many photos of the rock sculptures at Sunfish Pond, that it was actually kind of disappointing, beautiful, but not up to the hype. Same with the Lemon Squeezer, I anticipated a narrow passage as the unavoidable, only way to go based on all the pre-hike propaganda. I was quite disappointed when I saw a rock outcrop that could have very easily been avoided all together, and that the trail purposely was routed through the crack just because. Would have been much more fun and impressive if I hadn't had the anticipation that all the pre-hike info fostered.

Are there still many surprises? Of course. Little Hump and Hump mountains were amazing for me, and a complete surprise. Unfortunately, though, these major surprises are much fewer and further apart.

[Lyle]

Should have mentioned that I hiked Virginia in 1981.

[4shot]

We did stuff, rather than type about doing stuff.

LOL. There is an element of truth in this. Back then gear was whatever you had from the scouts or whatever you could get at an army/navy surplus store. I don't believe I had heard the term "outfitter" or lived within 300 miles of one.There were no "experts" telling me I had the wrong stuff when I went outdoors.

I did a section hike this spring. I unfortunately got stuck at a shelter with a guy who had thru'd back in the early 90'sand wouldn't quit griping about the "trail wasn't what it used to be". He had planned a longer hike but was getting off at the next town.However this guy was now pushing 300 lbs. at the age of 40 (ish). He thru'd when he was 18 (and over 100 lbs. lighter). There is no way a guy like this could enjoy the hike as much as he did 20 years ago. I imagine this scenario is common - hikers often romanticize things a bit. Just like all guys who barely even made the football team in high school were All-State players 20 years down the line when recalling their "glory days".

[wookinpanub]

The AT is not a static environment it has changed since its inception. I thru-hiked southbound in 1990. I knew no one who had thru-hiked, nor did I have any way of finding them, other than possibly writing the ATC. I read every book that I could get my hands on about the AT, including the James Hare 2-volume set. I was anticipating walking through communities and "Americana" as depicted in those books, meeting many locals, etc. What I found during my hike was that in an effort to move the AT to more secure land, by conservation easements or outright purchases, this anticipated part of my hike rarely occurred. In other words, the experience in the 60's and 70's wasn't what was there in 1990.
Probably, the biggest difference I see is in the area of communication. Most of my backpacking trips now include my family or just one of my pre-teen daughters. I carry a cell phone and like the security as I seek to best protect my "brood". There's something to be said, though, for being solo with no means of help or communication and knowing that all responsibility lies squarely on your shoulders. I was in some terrible situations and felt completely alone, but I wouldn't take a million bucks for the lessons learned through them. To some degree, that is lost.

[Rain Man]

Or was it better just because it was the "old days" by reason of nostalgia??

BINGO!!!

Rain:sunMan

.

[Spoppy]

Nothing we were younger.

Nuff Said!

[Whack-a-mole]

Around 1976 I had this single burner coleman stove that was "light weight" at about 7lbs. My buddy was high tec with a Svea that was so cool. Thing sounded like a machine gun when it ran. When it was really cold, the Svea was really hard to get started, so we used to fire up the coleman and put the Svea on it to heat it up and get it pressurized. Do you ever look back at "the good ol days" and wonder how you survived them?

[Lyle]

I still use my SVEA for winter trips, works great.

[wookinpanub]

I still use my SVEA for winter trips, works great.

I have an MSR Firefly circa 1987 that I still use. It's "Lite" but it was before MSR thought of using the word "Whisper". It sounds like a jet engine, produces like a flamethrower, and can simmer. I love it.

[Tuckahoe]

In the good ol days, of the mid-80s my pack was a no-name external frame pack that we got from K-mart. My sleeping bag from Coleman that had to weigh about 6 pounds. My dad had originally used it when he was hunting. Mt tent was an old wedge type tent that also weighed about 6 pounds, but it was bullet proof. My first stove ran on butane (I think its brand or model name was Scorpian) and the cans looked more like spray paint cans. I never thought of my gear as being heavy as I certainly didnt know any better. I know that tent and that stove are still at my dads house somewhere. Like I said I do missed that time on the trail because I was inexperienced and it was a time of discovery.

[rocketsocks]

Hi everyone,

I lurk here quite a bit and pretty often I see someone mention how they miss the AT "back in the old days". Usually referring to the 80's up through the late 90's. Unfortunately, I graduated high school in '99 so I didn't have much of a chance to hike the AT during that time. What was so different back then? Was it because there were no cell phones, Kindles, trail maintenance/angels? Less yuppies? Or was it better just because it was the "old days" by reason of nostalgia??

RyanIt's all relative I think, my experiences from days gone by are just as powerful and important to me as the new comers will be to them in twenty years. Although, for me, years ago if you wanted to find something out about the trail, you had to get on it and walk, or ask at the outfitters, these guys use to be the ones that had all the latest info. They might recommend a new guide book, or product. There was always talk at the outfitter of someone doing the whole trail, and when the word came down that so and so is doing the whole thing, or is at such and such a place, all who were in the store would perk up, gather round, and the question and answer session would begin, sometimes lasting an hour or more with a coffee run made next door and the conversation moved out to the front steps for a smoke break;) every one smoked back then:) met a lot of cool people during the early days, just like today's new comers will do, it's all relative :)

[SCRUB HIKER]

What I mostly miss, or feel that today's hikers are missing, is the overwhelming sense of discovery. With the internet, all the MANY books, online journals, DVDs, multiple guidebooks, etc. it is very improbable that very many hikers hit the trail and discover for themselves what they will encounter. Most have much more of a pre-conceived idea of what the hike will be like. Yes, it is still a shock to many, when they actually experience it, but there is not the same sense of discovery. I remember when I hiked Virginia, I bought the data book, the maps, and was on the trail. I had no idea what Dragons Tooth was, or how amazing the Tye River Gorge was. Spy Rock was a unique place to explore and consider taking some water from all the dimples that were holding the recent rain.

Contrast that with my hikes of the past year. I had seen so many photos of the rock sculptures at Sunfish Pond, that it was actually kind of disappointing, beautiful, but not up to the hype. Same with the Lemon Squeezer, I anticipated a narrow passage as the unavoidable, only way to go based on all the pre-hike propaganda. I was quite disappointed when I saw a rock outcrop that could have very easily been avoided all together, and that the trail purposely was routed through the crack just because. Would have been much more fun and impressive if I hadn't had the anticipation that all the pre-hike info fostered.


I hear what you're saying, but it's still possible to go out on the AT for the first time without seeing the sights on the internet first. I'm young and pretty well connected with the information age, but I used the internet pretty much exclusively for gear research/ideas before I left. I didn't read Trail Journals or watch YouTube videos or look at photo galleries or anything. That wasn't even an intentional decision--i.e. I have no idea why I approached it that way, but it worked out great. A lot of the big scenic highlights of the Trail--Hump Mtns, Dragon's Tooth, McAfee Knob, some of the Whites, the Bigelows--were genuine surprises for me. I had heard they were beautiful, but I'd never seen pictures before, or if I had (in the case of McAfee's Knob), I didn't know what I was looking at.

The problem is, that's only going to happen once. Another problem is that, by now, I've looked at hundreds of pictures and videos of all the things I want to do next, namely the PCT/JMT. Forester Pass or Tunnel Falls might awe me, but probably won't surprise me, when I get there in a year or two. The PCT is a different animal than the AT, but it's still a long-distance hike, and I've done one of those already. I doubt it will seem as completely foreign to me as the AT did when I jumped on it. I think when older hikers are talking about the good old days, a lot of the time they're talking about the times when the trail, or the idea of hiking long distances alone in general, was a fresh and foreign feeling to them.

[Feral Bill]

I still use my SVEA for winter trips, works great. My go to stove almst every trip.

[ATMountainTime]

because there is NO better hiking music than Motley Crue.

[Alligator]

because there is NO better hiking music than Motley Crue.
He's the wolf screaming lonely in the night...LOL

[Deadeye]

Ha...that's probably a good way to put it. Although I'm sure there were some slackers and people who were all mouth back then too. Did you hike the AT back then? How is it different today?

Ryan

I've been hiking the LT and bits of the AT (obviously the bit in Vermont!) since the late 60's. I notice a few big changes over the past 45 years:

1 - Many places where there were feilds or clearings have reverted to forest (though a few seem completely unchanged!)
2 - The equipment's changed - not many external frame devotees left, and as someone else pointed out, footwear has changed alot.
3 - Back then there was Colin Fletcher, now there's a gazillion freakin' experts with an opinion on how to hike

Other than that, the trail seems pretty much like it was. Some relocations, but other places where I feel like I've stepped on that rock 10 times before. Still plenty of nice people that smell bad, and a few bad apples, but generally the best place on earth.

[scree]

Though my parents took no interest in the outdoors, I had an uncle and a bunch of cousins who I learned to hike and camp with. One thing I've observed, and that I appreciate, is that the experience is fundamentally the same as what my beloved uncle, grandfather, and cousins all had from the 1940s on up. Once you cut past the BS and get outside and on the trail, the passage of time and changes in the world mean a whole lot less. I inherited my grandfather's Svea 123 and still use it from time to time.

I think something else is important here too... you say nostalgia, but I say it's not. It's the real deal. You can have whatever experience you make of it, and you can model it on a memory or do it completely new. Nostalgia has a funereal implication about it that isn't true - you can get hung up in memories, but unlike nostalgia for things truly lost to time (e.g., a decade, an era, a style, etc) the trail hasn't truly changed all that much. I've got a strong connection with my uncle now that he's got bad knees and can't hike, but he can live vicariously through my accounts of the trail, and can also confirm that a lot of what I see now he remembers just the same from 50 years ago.

[Hairbear]

69 cent a gallon gas ,no knowledge of global warming,oz of weed cost 30 dollars,if you got caught with it all you paid was a 50 dollar court ticket,vehicles were not cookie cutter you could tell an american car,the things we used were made here,there were less people choking up the systems,you could eat the fish that came out of your rivers,the sky didnt rain lake killing acid,my beloved st lawrence river was not a toxic waste sight,your new girl friend hadnt dated 75 percent of your friends,a good car was 300 bucks,everything didnt hurt when you got out of bed,we didnt have a mustache growing out of our ears,we were not invisible to 20 year old woman.i could make a hundred dollar bill last more than a 2 bag trip to walmart.hell i quit this is depressing.

[hikerboy57]

Hate to tell you you overpaid for the weed. I was paying 20 bucks

[Hairbear]

Hate to tell you you overpaid for the weed. I was paying 20 bucks

your five years older i missed the summer of love you guys tried to smoke it all up at once drove the price up on us lol

[max patch]

Hate to tell you you overpaid for the weed. I was paying 20 bucks

Well that explains the cyber cafe.

[jimtabor]

no FB people talked to people

[Different Socks]

Well, I'll disagree with most so far. Yes there have been plenty of good things that has developed. I don't miss the HEAVY boots that used to be standard. I appreciate the overall lightness and compactness of most of the rest of our equipment. I'm very mixed about all of the "services" now offered, and I'm no fan of the change in what is considered "trail magic".

What I mostly miss, or feel that today's hikers are missing, is the overwhelming sense of discovery. With the internet, all the MANY books, online journals, DVDs, multiple guidebooks, etc. it is very improbable that very many hikers hit the trail and discover for themselves what they will encounter. Most have much more of a pre-conceived idea of what the hike will be like. Yes, it is still a shock to many, when they actually experience it, but there is not the same sense of discovery. I remember when I hiked Virginia, I bought the data book, the maps, and was on the trail. I had no idea what Dragons Tooth was, or how amazing the Tye River Gorge was. Spy Rock was a unique place to explore and consider taking some water from all the dimples that were holding the recent rain.

Contrast that with my hikes of the past year. I had seen so many photos of the rock sculptures at Sunfish Pond, that it was actually kind of disappointing, beautiful, but not up to the hype. Same with the Lemon Squeezer, I anticipated a narrow passage as the unavoidable, only way to go based on all the pre-hike propaganda. I was quite disappointed when I saw a rock outcrop that could have very easily been avoided all together, and that the trail purposely was routed through the crack just because. Would have been much more fun and impressive if I hadn't had the anticipation that all the pre-hike info fostered.

Are there still many surprises? Of course. Little Hump and Hump mountains were amazing for me, and a complete surprise. Unfortunately, though, these major surprises are much fewer and further apart.

Ditto!! Technology and communication devices infiltrate our lives way too much!!! The funny looks I get from young boys(and girls) to youths to teenagers and even adults when I say, "let's go for a hike, let's go see the sunset, let's go explore a swamp, let's go identify the trees in the park".
For me what was so good about the "old days"? Every where I went there was less people on the trails and even more availability of solitude.

[hikerboy57]

Well that explains the cyber cafe.
Have you stopped by yet?we just installed a mashed potato vending machine, weve got an ample supply of sea salt, 5 bullets, and a SAWYER IN LINE WATER FILTER.
no drugs allowed in the cafe though.other restrictions may apply.

[Cookerhiker]

...Every where I went there was less people on the trails and even more availability of solitude.

Perhaps it's a matter of where and when you hiked...

My first AT section hiking was in VT in the late 70s and early 80s. I section-hiked all of the Long Trail in '77-'81 and then thru-hiked it in '07. Except for the Mansfield summit, there were no more people in '07 than during my first hiking 30 years prior. In the early years, we stayed in shelters and never had them to ourselves except the far north which was also the case in '07.

Solitude? The only declination of solitude I perceive is the presence of more thruhikers (actually aspiring thruhikers) in GA & NC in March & April. You'll find your solitude at other times and places on the AT. Last April, I did a SOBO section hike from Duncannon to Harpers Ferry. Most nights I camped alone. The only "crowded" time was on a Saturday night. In '05 when I finished the AT, my section hikes in March and April in VA west of I-81, southern half of MA in late April, and NY east of the Hudson in June saw very few people. My friend Dances with Scarf experienced both extremes in '04; when she started as a hopeful thruhiker on March 1, she was with the crowd. When she resumed as a section hiker from Harpers Ferry on November 1, there was no one on the Trail. Her book describes this contrast.

White Mountains? I section-hiked them twice SOBOing from Pinkham to Franconia in '82 and '84. Just as crowded then as now (I section hiked the Franconia range in '09 and half of the Presidentials in '08). Bear Mountain and Harriman Park? They were crowded when I first visited them before my teens in the 50s.

I wear pretty thick glasses but fortunately, they're not rose-colored.:)

[rocketsocks]

Hate to tell you you overpaid for the weed. I was paying 20 bucksA quarter pound had just jumped to $120 when I was partaking......had a few of those......

[Biggie Master]

The "good old days" were good, but I'm looking forward to what the future holds!


“The wise man must remember that while he is a descendant of the past, he is a parent of the future.” ~ Herbert Spencer

[Double Wide]

Man, I remember when a dime bag cost a dime, you know what I mean?

You know how much condoms used to cost back in them days? I don't know, we never used 'em!

[mirabela]

Lots of good replies here.

Only a few things I can think of:

First, there were fewer people attempting thru-hikes then, so there wasn't as much of a big crowd at the beginning. I guess this only matters if you're northbound. When I started (3/10/91) I was actually lonely for weeks. I get the impression that wouldn't happen these days. Might not be a bad thing, who knows.

Secondly, there's the info overload thing -- but I already felt the trail experience was a bit short on real-time surprise when I hiked, and deliberately refrained from consulting my maps a lot of the time, got rid of my guidebooks for much of the trip, etc. I can see how with the explosion in always-on documentation these days, it could be harder to keep it feeling fresh.

Thirdly, I think the country was just a little bit less uptight overall. Not by much, maybe, but a little. It's hard to put my finger on, but the squeeze just wasn't on quite as hard somehow.

That's about all I can think of. Mostly, it seems to me about the same -- and I know a lot more now, and I have better partners, and I'm fitter and at least as happy. I had a good time out there then, and I have a good time out there now. Modern life can be pretty lame a lot of the time, and those of us who can conjure up anything like an adventure in the midst of it have a big leg up. The trail is a wide-open opportunity.

[fredmugs]

Here in Indiana 90% of the people still wish it was 1954. I'm not kidding when I say the state was in mourning when Andy Griffith died.

[daddytwosticks]

A six-pack of Bud cost about two and a half bucks. If we couldn't swing that, we'd get a quart of Schlitz...:)

[OzJacko]

Those of us of a certain age remember our youth fondly and with gratitude for having had it post pill and pre aids....:banana

[fiddlehead]

In the "old days", we used to take a hatchet and build lean-tos by cutting trees and lashing sticks together and then cutting pine boughs and covering this structure.
The thicker, the better.
Then we'd carry a small saw and cut lots of firewood and build big fires at night.
No one treated their water, we drank it fresh from the streams.

Our packs were heavy so, we took lots of breaks and not many people were into how many miles they could do in a day.

Shelters had dirt floors and when it rained, the guy in the middle woke up in a puddle. (so we put more firewood on the fire)
Someone was sometimes designated to stay up all night feeding the fire, or we took turns standing "fire watch"

We carried and used lots of band-aids and gauze cause we often cut ourselves with our hatchets and big buck knives.

I'm talking 60's here and I don't remember anyone carrying duct tape, Ibprofen, plastic anything, there was no polypro, or ziplocks.
Instead we carried: ponchos, wool shirts or quilted cotton shirts, frame packs of course, army (heavy) sleeping bags, rope, tent halves, metal canteens on our waistbelts, waterproof matches, and a harmonica.

We rolled our tent halves and sleeping bags and strapped them on the bottom of the pack.

We carried canned food and hot dogs and fishing gear and aluminum foil, sticks of butter, potatoes, onions, a frying pan (was part of the cook-kit) and went home hungry, tired, wet, and cold and gladly did it again next week.

Yeah we were young. How else would we carry all that sh1t?

[Feral Bill]

Back in the good old days wearing cotton wasn't a death sentence.

[hikerboy57]

i agree with cookerhiker. i think the woods were just as crowded, in fact the backpacking "boom occured in the 60s as people got back to nature. we didnt filter water, although the water today is actualy cleaner than 50 yrs ago.
i first hiked the whites in 1976 and i dont remember too much solitude. i remeber staying at liberty springs and sharing a tentsite. i remember staying at desolation shelter(long since removed) in the Pemi with 5 other people, i hiked that year in the green mountains and the daks, and never remeber a day going by where i didnt come across more than a few people, and was never alone at night. i remembr climbing Katahdin in the mid 80s, and KSC was packed.
i think my first post is closest to the truth. yes we're more connected today, but our parents and grandparents had to put up with TV, and technology that was changing their lives almost as quickly as today.
what we remember is cheaper prices, but the salaries were much lower as well. we remeber the music being a lot better, but my fathr told me the same about his music, and im sure his dad had the same thing to say.
what we remeber is being younger and stronger.
im certainly not as young nor as strong, but much much wiser.(although you may not think so if youve been to the cafe)

[Another Kevin]

And considering all the stupid things I did back then, I'd say, "Here's to my lost youth, and may the Lord save me from a relapse."

[Old Hiker]

Back in the good old days wearing cotton wasn't a death sentence.

Darn that global warming.

Burn all the trash, bury the remains: cans, glass, etc.
Don't remember anyone telling me that I was going to get killed by a psycho.
I do remember being called a psycho for going out into the woods (mesquite brush) to hike and camp in the West Texas summer. Didn't have the heart to tell them about the Colorado River we were by.
No adult nannies to yell at us for "fire-bugging", that is, playing with sticks in the campfires.
No worries about Nile fever from mosquitoes, etc. Ticks were pulled off with no thought of Lyme disease or Rocky Mt Fever.
If we forgot our can opener, we just used our 8 inch Bowie knife strapped to our leg. Hey, it was Texas and patriotic to carry one. Had to be a genuine Bowie, though. Never heard of K-Bars.
C-rats were highly prized. The nearest Army surplus store was 40 miles away. Pound cake and fruit cocktail juice - mmmmmmmmm.
The only electronic gear was a 2-D cell flashlight.

Best part: we were young (13-18), capable of carrying the load without months of prep time first and didn't know any better.

[JAK]

Watched Moonrise Kingdom. Twice. Awesome.

Those Sixties were awesome.
I do vaguely remember alot more head injuries, and knife wounds, but totally worth it.

[hikerboy57]

Those of us of a certain age remember our youth fondly and with gratitude for having had it post pill and pre aids....:banana
remeber?
my friends tell me i had a lot of fun.

[rickb]

Before there was that there were these. Not right before, but before.

http://spacefoodsticks.com/pres.htm

Oh, the memories.

[rickb]

Worth a working link, I think:

http://www.spacefoodsticks.com/

[coach lou]

Worth a working link, I think:

http://www.spacefoodsticks.com/

Space food sticks ,pop tarts and Dinty Moore Beef stew, ah yes, back in the good old days

[hikerboy57]

You forgot tang.

[coach lou]

You forgot tang.

HB honest it was on my finger tips,just as I hit POST!:D

[SawnieRobertson]

'90s? Isn't anybody going to bring up the Wingfoot era?

[rocketsocks]

HB honest it was on my finger tips,just as I hit POST!:Dthat's funny, "It was on my finger tips"

Does anyone remember "Quisp" cereal it had a little martian guy on the box.

[hikerboy57]

that's funny, "It was on my finger tips"

Does anyone remember "Quisp" cereal it had a little martian guy on the box.

companion to quake?

[rocketsocks]

companion to quake?
Hey forgot all about that one, cool

[earlyriser26]

Started hiking the AT in 1969 at age 13. I just looked back at some of my logbooks from those days and I had a great deal of good advice, like "bring more Tang" or "dried beef in glass jars is too heavy". I wore blue jeans in all weather, my stove was an Optimus 8R (loved that stove). Water purification was straining it througth my bandana. And you could probablly count on one hand the number of Thru hikers. I don't even think the term was invented then. Equipment is much better now. Services really didn't exist back then, but the trail had about 10% of the traffic you see today. I remember going 4 or 5 days without seeing anyone on the trail.

[rocketsocks]

Worth a working link, I think:

http://www.spacefoodsticks.com/Wow Rick, I sure enjoyed watching some of those old shows, memory lane is a good place to be!

[Jim Adams]

...more rural, alot less amenities, more simple.


...sure the road walks were bad but I really liked Bonnie's ice cream!


geek

[WingedMonkey]

'90s? Isn't anybody going to bring up the Wingfoot era?

Seems it always gets a thread closed.
Then again that could be a good thing.

:bse

[Jim Adams]

Seems it always gets a thread closed.
Then again that could be a good thing.

:bse

I could never understand that. He is the most influential person I have ever met on the trail or hiked with...a truely great person and I for one miss him.

geek

[rocketsocks]

Seems it always gets a thread closed.
Then again that could be a good thing.

I had asked that the last "Wingfoot thread be closed, cause it just didn't seem like it was going in a positive direction, and that was not the intent. And frankly, it wasn't any of my business, didn't know enough about the situation to start a thread like that. My apologies.:)

[coach lou]

I'll bite......who is wingfoot?

[rocketsocks]

I'll bite......who is wingfoot?Dan "Wingfoot" Bruce, wrote most of the early trail guide books, some of those books are still available if you want to view them, I bought one for comparison and nostalgic giggles....for 1 penny, yep that's one cent,(to add to the cyber hiker library) though some seem to be more expensive than others. I have one from 1995' if you ever want to take a look at it, his books I thought were great, little different than Awols but the same ideas, I think his last trail guide came out in maybe 2005, but I could be wrong on that.

[coach lou]

Dan "Wingfoot" Bruce, wrote most of the early trail guide books, some of those books are still available if you want to view them, I bought one for comparison and nostalgic giggles....for 1 penny, yep that's one cent,(to add to the cyber hiker library) though some seem to be more expensive than others. I have one from 1995' if you ever want to take a look at it, his books I thought were great, little different than Awols but the same ideas, I think his last trail guide came out in maybe 2005, but I could be wrong on that.

Thanks 'Socks, why would a discussion of him 'end' a thread?

[rocketsocks]

Thanks 'Socks, why would a discussion of him 'end' a thread?I'm pretty sure the thread can still be read, as I remember the title was, "What ever happened to Dan "Wingfoot" Bruce", it just appeared to me that it was getting ready to be a s*** storm with some negativity, It wasn't my intent to start a thread like that and really just wanted to know what happened to the author of a book I'd read, and many seemed to hold in regard, perhaps it was closed to soon, but it was starting to feel like it just wasn't my business, So I asked that it be closed.

[Wise Old Owl]

We did stuff, rather than type about doing stuff. NICE!


Ha...that's probably a good way to put it. Although I'm sure there were some slackers and people who were all mouth back then too. Did you hike the AT back then? How is it different today?

I was all beak back then and there were no slackers or hiker trash. People cared about each other and reveled in success of hiking the trail. and I was 2 foot shorter. We used to help folk who needed help and did not care about the "angle" I didn't get there because others were smarter or other folk helped me.... :D oops I apologise for that.. see Signature.

[Cookerhiker]

...trail had about 10% of the traffic you see today. I remember going 4 or 5 days without seeing anyone on the trail.

Not my experience, going back to the 70s. Maybe slightly less but 10%? Maybe 1-2 days without seeing anyone but 4-5? Where did you hike? And when - in the winter?

[Wise Old Owl]

Dan "Wingfoot" Bruce, wrote most of the early trail guide books, some of those books are still available if you want to view them, I bought one for comparison and nostalgic giggles....for 1 penny, yep that's one cent,(to add to the cyber hiker library) though some seem to be more expensive than others. I have one from 1995' if you ever want to take a look at it, his books I thought were great, little different than Awols but the same ideas, I think his last trail guide came out in maybe 2005, but I could be wrong on that.

I liked that tread- looked him and everything.... no biggie.

[max patch]

Dan "Wingfoot" Bruce, wrote most of the early trail guide books,

Actually, the first trail guide was written by Darrell Maret, trail name "The Philosopher". His first guide was called "The Bootleg Guide" and thru hikers in 1981 and 1982 could call the ATC and they would send out a zerox copy of it. In 1983 the ATC started printing the guide and it was called "The Philosophers Guide". The last year the Philosophers Guide existed in that name was 1990; Darrell was ready to move on to other things so he turned over the book to Dan Bruce and the book was known as "The Thru-Hikers Handbook" starting in 1991.

I think thats substantially correct, if not the accuracy police will let me know. :)

[max patch]

Heres a link to the 1983 PG.

http://www.atmuseum.org/Philosophers_guide_83.htm

[coach lou]

Actually, the first trail guide was written by Darrell Maret, trail name "The Philosopher". His first guide was called "The Bootleg Guide" and thru hikers in 1981 and 1982 could call the ATC and they would send out a zerox copy of it. In 1983 the ATC started printing the guide and it was called "The Philosophers Guide". The last year the Philosophers Guide existed in that name was 1990; Darrell was ready to move on to other things so he turned over the book to Dan Bruce and the book was known as "The Thru-Hikers Handbook" starting in 1991.

I think thats substantially correct, if not the accuracy police will let me know. :)

You can bet the house on that, Max:rolleyes: