Anyone on the AT on 9-11-01?

[Programbo]

If so how did you hear about the attacks in NYC,DC and PA?

[ed bell]

I've wondered the same thing. My wife was on Katahdin on 9-11-03 and commented that the anniversary was on everyones mind.

[Jack Tarlin]

I was probably one of the LAST people in America to find out.

I was at Full Goose shelter in Maine with two good friends. None of us carried radios or phones. Around 9 o'clock some hikers came in late and told us what had happened. We were all horrified, and what was worse, we all knew people in New York and Washington.

We considered hiking out, but we were miles from anywhere. There was really nothing to do.

We got up at first light, not that we slept much, and FLEW thru Mahoosuc Notch, and then up and down Old Speck to Grafton Notch. I've never hiked to fast in my life and I don't understand why I didn't break my neck.

My friends from the Cabin in Andover, God bless them, had sent a car for us and we spent the next few days watching T and making phone calls to practically everyone we knew.

We weren't sure what to do, and considered going home. One of my friends was British and couldn't really go anywhere as planes were grounded indefinitely and she wasn't exactly looking forward to flying anyway.

In a few days, we headed North, with mixed feelings. Our heart wasn't in it. I think we all just wanted to be home with people we loved.

Around three days north of there, we looked up and saw a passenger plane flying overhead. Ordinarily, the noise and contrails of a plane aren't something that hikers usually enjoy seeing or hearing, but that day we jumped up and down and cheered, and then I started crying.

We knew things weren't going to be the same, but somehow we knew that things would go on.

Itwas five years ago today and it could have been yesterday.

[Grampie]

That's a part of my hike I'll never forget. I was hiking SOBO, after flipping in Duncannon. I had spent the night of Sept. 10 In the Ski Patrol building on the top of Stratton Mountain. On the morning of Sept. 11 I hiked down with a couple of section hikers who also spent the night with me. I said good by and continued on my way. About 11 I decided to listen to a little radio I carried. I was shocked to here what had happened. I was alone and had no one to talk to about it. I soon came apon four day hikers and asked, "did you hear what happened in New York?" I than told them. One of them said to me"what the hell you been smokeing?"
The next day I hiked into Bennington, Vermont to get a newspaper and call home.

[Gray Blazer]

No, I wasn't out during 911 but I was out the week following in the Eastern Smokies/Max Patch area. I'll always remember it because there were no Jet Contrails or even aircraft sounds. Pretty noticeable for the absence thereof. If you do a lot of hiking on the AT you'll notice if all the jet sounds go away.

[Smile]

Strider, Gunslinger & Maximus were. You can check out TREK for a short segment on that very thing, they didn't really believe it till they got to town, guess they heard it from another hiker with a radio.

[the goat]

good thread. i was on the AT headed sobo on a thru and i had crashed near kittantiny ridge (?) i think, the night of the 10th. well, it had rained that night, and being that rain was a rare event in the summer of '01, i told the dude, that i camped with that night, to check his radio for some weather.

well, as you might imagine after he had the radio on for a few minutes he told me "wow, a plane crashed in NYC this morning".

i thought to myself: "big deal, is it gonna rain tonight?"

he then exclaimed:"ohmygod! two planes crashed in NYC this morning!"

well, we then knew something awful was going on.

it was an eerie day. having gotten used to all the flight patterns going over NY all day long, it was a defening silence hiking that day, with all flights grounded.

i remember being confused when i hiked into DWG, PA and saw candles in windows, and flags everywhere, for i had no media contact & didn't know how the country was banding together. that made me proud. i didn't see the footage until much later, but when i did, it took my breath away, and it was then that i understood.

it had a much more personal effect in october when i took a pit stop at my home in VA. i was opening all my mail and found that two of my classmates died in the twin towers, and a family friend perished in the pentagon. surreal.

[Alligator]

My hiking buddy and I were in the Smokies, hiking through the park. We didn't find out until Thursday two days later. The only people we ran into between the attack and then was another group going through the park. We didn't notice the planes were missing. We ran into an old (81 years old I think) section hiker at Peck's Corner. He told us the what happened. We had a hard time believing it. The next day we ran into another hiker and he told us it was true. Wasn't much we felt like we could do and we only had one day left to go so we stayed the last night and got out on Sat.

My condolences to you Goat and any other members who lost friends/family in the attacks.

[Shutterbug]

If so how did you hear about the attacks in NYC,DC and PA?

I was five days into a 9 day hike of the Wonderland Trail. The trail circles Mt. Rainier. On 9/11/01, I reached the place that the trail crossed the parking area at Reflection Lakes. A car was there with the windows down and the radio on. As I walked past, I heard the report that a plane had hit the first tower. At that point, they thought it was an accident.

A few hours later, I reached the complex at Longmere, where there was a pay phone. I called my wife. By that time, the second tower had been hit. The estimate at that time was that 20,000 people were dead.

As I continued my hike, I picked up a little information from other hikers. One of the things that was remarkable was the absence of aircraft noise. I really hadn't thought about how many times aircraft pass overhead until suddenly there were none. As I recall, two military aircraft passed in the four days.

When I finished my hike, I was astonished to learn that the deaths had been only 10% of the estimate that was in my head for four days. I was also greatly relieved to learn that none of the people I knew who worked in the World Trade Center were killed or injured.

The primary topic of discussion on the trail was "Who is Al Qaeda?" There was also a lot of discussion about when commercial airplanes would start flying again.

Some of the people I met on the trail were military. They were very concerned that the U.S. was immediately going to war.

[Footslogger]

My wife (BadAss Turtle) was at the Hiker's Paradise in Gorham. She was in the shower and there was a large group of hikers there at time and someone told her to come out of the shower and watch the TV to see what had just happened. She immediately called me on the phone.

'Slogger

[Nean]

Not to take away from the WTC, but as I was watching another special tonight on 9-11, I kept wondering why the Pentagon attack was getting zero coverage. From the pictures I saw back when, could it be that a plane did not hit the Pentagon? I've heard the theory and have tried to dimiss it, but the silence is speaking.

[Teatime]

maybe because the loss of life at the WTC was over 3,000 and the loss of life at the Pentagon was 184. Also, over 300 firefighters, NYC cops and port authority cops were killed at the WTC. The WTC were 2 of the tallest buildings in the world (not the tallest but I think in the top 5). The Pentagon survived the attack, the WTC did not. Forget the conspiracy, there isn't one.

[Tin Man]

I was in NYC for 9/11 and after a horrible day of helping to close our offices and making sure people got home. It really hit me when I finally got home myself and I cried when my wife and kids greeted me at the door. Two days later, my brother and I decided to go ahead with our planned section hike in CT and MA, our first. We ran into quite a few SOBO'ers and they had all heard of the attack. One SOBO'er told us he had a job offer at the WTC and chose to thru-hike instead. We went into town mid-way through our hike to check the news and call home. At the end of our 50 miles, we saw a convoy of Humvee's going under the hiker bridge crossing the Mass. Pike. Someone had placed quite a few flags in the fencing on the bridge. We stood and waved at the convoy and the cars passing underneath. I cried again.

[ed bell]

Not to take away from the WTC, but as I was watching another special tonight on 9-11, I kept wondering why the Pentagon attack was getting zero coverage. From the pictures I saw back when, could it be that a plane did not hit the Pentagon? I've heard the theory and have tried to dimiss it, but the silence is speaking.

Check out this article:http://www.popularmechanics.com/scie...tml?page=6&c=y

[Nean]

maybe because the loss of life at the WTC was over 3,000 and the loss of life at the Pentagon was 184. Also, over 300 firefighters, NYC cops and port authority cops were killed at the WTC. The WTC were 2 of the tallest buildings in the world (not the tallest but I think in the top 5). The Pentagon survived the attack, the WTC did not. Forget the conspiracy, there isn't one.

I may try to "forget" the "conspiracy", which I never claim there was.

But why "forget" the 184 and the terrror of those at the Pentagon.

Seems like you are saying because the Pentagon didn't have the numbers or loss of structure(s), that it isn't as impotant? If all those died on the same day of the same cause, why rank them lower? Numbers you say...

[ed bell]

I may try to "forget" the "conspiracy", which I never claim there was.

But why "forget" the 184 and the terrror of those at the Pentagon.

Seems like you are saying because the Pentagon didn't have the numbers or loss of structure(s), that it isn't as impotant? If all those died on the same day of the same cause, why rank them lower? Numbers you say...

Good point Nean. People are people.

[TOW]

This is an excellent thread!

I was not on the trail, well I was and I wasn't unless you want to count Harpers Ferry Outfitters as being on the trail, then that is where I was at.

I had hiked into HF on Sept. 9th. I was at The Outfitters gearing up a little when Laura hollared at me from upstairs in her apartment and told me to come up there and watch the TV. I told her I didn't enjoy watching TV too much. She said "Well I think you had better watch this....."

I'll never forget that. Train service in HF stopped immediately. The town became very quiet. We were just a hop, skip and a jump from the Pentagon up the Potomac.

There was just a very eerie feeling in the air there for days....

[K0OPG]

Active duty in the military. Base shut down, only essential personnel allowed. Scarey time.

[bartender]

I wish I was on the trail that day, instead I was driving to work watching them burn, I'll never forget thinking that they looked like two giant smokestacks and naively wondering how long they would be closed after the fires were out for repairs. Stood in the parking lot of the restaurant and watched them fall and thinking of all the firemen and wondering how many of the 40000 who worked there got out. Then last night driving home I was looking at the two pillars of light where they used to be.

[SawnieRobertson]

Checking e-mail that morning in my home in Colorado, I saw on AOL that a plane had crashed into one of the Twin Towers. I thought that pilots ought to be more careful or something the equivalent of that.

Then my phone rang. My hiking partner said, "Sawnie, turn on your TV. This is big."

Linda is not an alarmist, so I did as instructed. Then the second one hit. Then all the coverage of the horror.

I remembered that there is a spot on the trail at which one can view the skyline of NYC. I wondered (and am still wondering) if anyone stood there, watching the whole thing come to pass, even just saw the smoke.

Kinnickinic