View Full Version : Where have you seen a porqupine along the AT?
We came across a couple poprqupines this afternoon in Princeton, MA and it reminded me of the great joy seeing my first ones along the AT some 30 years ago-- including a baby one at Wilber Clearing leanto.
This poll asks where you have seen porqupines along the AT.
I scrrewed up and didn't allow for multiple posts. Please post where you saw the most porqupines along the Trail.
SassyWindsor
10-20-2012, 22:24
For sure in Vermont, perched in a tree. Think I saw one in Maine, swimming, but, due to the distance, could have been a Beaver.
Sarcasm the elf
10-20-2012, 23:20
Never seen one, but have seen evidence of their gnawing handiwork on Massachusetts. Not to mention the piles of rock "ammo" sitting in Tom Leonard lean-to.
Wise Old Owl
10-20-2012, 23:24
High up in an old tree - like me.... they pull the bark off and eat the termites - but avoid ringing the tree and killing the tree.
shelterbuilder
10-21-2012, 01:10
The other year, I was hiking from Swatara Gap to Clark's Valley and back. Ascending from Clark's Valley (almost to the top of the mountain), I spooked one just before sunset. That night, I camped at the site of the old fire tower on the summit...and hung EVERYTHING - boots, pack, food - higher than my hammock!;)
I also saw one in Vermont.
Tom Leonard Shelter (Mass).
Cosmo
I spent the night at a PA shelter (southern area), and was surprised to see a sign warning me about the porcupines in the area wanting to chew on the boards that had the residual hiker sweat. What was even more strange was when I climbed into the bunk bed and found the end lined with rocks. In the middle of the night, I found out why: Porkie, the porcupine, came visiting and would not stop chewing on the wood of the shelter. Obviously, the rocks were there to encourage him to leave!
Cookerhiker
10-24-2012, 08:22
Only in Vermont but lots there. Hiking the AT/LT in the late '70s/early '80s, I saw them frequently. One guaranteed locale is Kid Gore Shelter. Saw one there in '77 and on my LT thruhike in '07.
Hiking the Laurel Highlands Trail in SW PA in March '08 (http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=221961), we had one lead us along the trail for about 1/4 mile.
I've seen porcupines in Maine and New Jersey. Cute little creatures.
bamboo bob
10-24-2012, 09:34
I had a huge one in my driveway. I think he was sick.
I've seen two - one on the A.T. along Mt. Race's south shoulder in Mass, near the Laurel Spring campsite, the other, off the A.T. in Greylock's Hopper, on the Money Brook Trail near the Mt. Prospect Trail junction at the brook crossing. No bears, moose or poisonous snakes, but two porkys, yes. :)
Saw some in CT.- MASS and Vermont on our 30 day hike this past September, I wonder if the spray left at the Tom Leonard shelter works on repeling the local porky there. Also the needles left behind don't appear to have barbs at the ends - Just worry as sometime we bring the dog and not sure if he gets too close will we be able to remove them.
Not on the AT, but I've seen porcupines twice while hiking. Saw one several years ago in Sam's Point Preserve in NY (western Shawangunks) and one last week on the Paradise Lane trail in CT (which joins the AT just north of Bear Mountain. Both sightings were in October, and both times the critter was sunning himself in a sapling near the trail.
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peakbagger
10-24-2012, 11:23
Seen a few in the whites
Rainbow Pond campsite Maine
Moose2001
10-24-2012, 13:34
MA and VT. Plenty of evidence they are there. Just look at the privys and the shelters!
Blue Mountain Edward
12-23-2012, 01:05
Had one come into a shelter late at night in a Pennsylvanis shelter. Made some noise and it stuck its ass up and it was like go ahead and kick me.It came back later and scared the ladies I was with. It hung around the shelter making freaky noises. Porcupines are known to eat boots so dont leave your shoes at the front step of a shelter or outside your tent.
SCRUB HIKER
12-23-2012, 03:02
Evidence of their wanton destruction is everywhere in the Northeast ...
18542
For sure in Vermont, perched in a tree. Think I saw one in Maine, swimming, but, due to the distance, could have been a Beaver.
The swimmer was most certainly a beaver.
jersey joe
12-23-2012, 10:41
I saw a huge one on the ridge in NJ this past spring. Didn't even know we had them in NJ, nevermind one that big.
ME, VT, MA, NJ, PA, and in at least one other state south of PA, posssibly VA or WV on the AT. I've also experienced them on the Long Trail north of the AT/LT junction. They look cute and funny with their blunt noses waddling around with their quills swaying back forth resembling a field of tall wheat blowing back and forth in a stiff breeze. Their quills are longer on their rear ends which can make them odd unsymetrical looking creatures. When in defensive protectvie mode they can curl up into a ball that looks like the fruit/seed pod of a American Sweetgum or Sycamore tree. They will also climb, quite well, to safety and to forage. I've seen two in trees. Took me a while to identify what I was looking at when I saw the ones in trees. I think they are herbivores so they will seek out discarded scraps of fruit, veggies, plant matter, etc where humans congregate. They will eat the bark of several species of trees, especially in winter when their typical summer food sources become scarce or non existent. Twice I've seen mothers with babies which, to me, resemble small piles of moving sticks.
In a NJ shelter I was sleeping with my head at the open end and my boots under my head. Sometime during the night my boots shifted and the laces from one of the boots dangled over the edge which is where the porcupine found it and began pulling it down. Fortunately for me it was enough to wake me up in time to save the boot and save myself from a long journal with one clad foot.
atraildreamer
12-23-2012, 18:50
I saw one about 4 feet from my face when I woke up about 2 am in the old Stratton Pond Shelter (Vermont)! :eek: I aimed my flashlight beam at its eyes until it walked away. 20 minutes later, he came back with a friend! :eek: :eek: The flashlight, along with a bit of yelling, got them on their way!
A baby one slept on a branch above my hammock in Vermont.
SOBO_Pace
12-24-2012, 11:27
I woke up with one under my hammock at happy hill shelter in Vermont. I also had a sighting in NJ near the mohican(?) Outdoor cemter.
Never saw one -- They must run away fast when they hear me coming ; - )
Well, could also be they are mostly nocturnal and blend in so well with the woods. Like I said, they can resemble small piles of small twigs and branches when not moving or a squirrel's nest when in trees. I've only seen two or three during daylight hours.
One reason why I think I spot more wildlife than some other hikers is that I'm out there specifically to commune with such animals and nature so I'm actively and intently watching, listening and, even smelling for it! I'm often already aware of some of the behavioral habits of regional wildlife. Another reason, which I thing is HUGE, is that I'm quiet when I hike. I tred lightly paying careful attention to where I place my feet. I wear quiet muted color clothing, Actually, I consider the color of all my gear including my clothing so that I can be stealthy in the woods, in a desert, on a mountain ridge, etc. It's kind of like aiming to leave a smaller footprint where ever I trod. I don't brush up against trees, branches, rocks, etc where I might make unusual unnatural noises. I like to think I smell like the woods, although others may say I sometimes smell like something else. And, PROBABLY the biggest thing, I don't normally use trekking poles. I, as a human, can hear trekking poles long before I see the person using them. Consider, some animals/wildlife have MUCH more acute hearing(and vision and smell) than humans. After "tuning in" to nature on a long distance hike my senses become more acute. My periphreal vsion expands. My awareness increases. And, I know this may sound starnge to some, I can sense LIFE before I actually see, hear, or smell it. I think it's one of the wonders of hiking.
Saw one in New Hampshire. Heading up the trail just after Moose Mountain Shelter, heard the noise of something rustling through the woods. This spiky, dog sized creature emerges from the woods. Having never seen a porcupine before I had no clue what the thing was. Naturally, being a thru hiker and all, I had to get a little closer to get a better look at it. A friend I was hiking with told me it was a porcupine. Pretty cool seeing one up close especially after seeing all the evidence of gnawed on shelters and hearing the stories about how they eat hiker shoes.
BirdBrain
01-23-2013, 15:09
Counting the one I'm eating right now? Seriously though, it is a bit unnerving to have one crawl down the tree that you are in while deer hunting. They are everywhere up here. Fortunately, we also have an animal that likes to eat them up here called a fisher. I think they are cute too. The dogs and tires don't like them though.
MuffinMan11
01-23-2013, 17:34
I saw three on my hike in as many states. PA VT and ME. I think they are cool creatures and very slow and docile from my experiences with them, plus we dont have those in Texas so its cool to see them.
Southerner
01-23-2013, 21:22
I received official word from the commander of an army of porcupines that the Porcupine Republic has claimed Cove Mountain Shelter just south of Duncannon (which is the shelter Shelb in post #9 may be talking about) as their own. A family of porcupines apparently visits that shelter just about every night, at least according to what was left of the shelter register when I was there and the visit they paid me. After a stand-off, the leader of the group bedded down in the rafters and I went back to sleep.
Have to be honest here.
Had been on the trail for 2 weeks, was really missing my wife.............met a female porcupine right on the AT near a shelter in MASS.
COLD NIGHT
We spent the night together............nothing happened.............we cuddled and snuggled, hiked in different directions the next morning
No contact information shared..............just another great experince in the woods.
Q
I recall somewhere, maybe in NY, where porkies had eaten so much of the wood in the picnic tables that the nails stood up where the wood used to be.
The first one I saw NOBO was in Vermont, Glastonberry Mtn shelter I believe; my dog found it in the middle of the night outside a shelter. I was in there with a bunch of boy scouts and my dog howled and ran back to us with his face covered with needles. So I took him into Manchester and a vet put him to sleep for a while and pulled the needles out. Then I had to pull this groggy drugged up dog up the hill to the AT... for weeks I was finding more needles come out of his fur.