Don't park at the Keys Gap Parking lot- West VA Route 9!

[Ratchet-SectionHiker]

So my wife and I did a sobo hike from Pen-Mar to Keys Gap this week and had a blast! Didn't rain on us except in the tent one night and had an absolutely great trip to the ATCH and other places. We left my wife's vehicle at Keys Gap and her mother gave us a ride to Pen Mar the same day. When we arrived to where we parked our car at the nice looking parking lot on West VA 9 we jumped in the car exhausted and ready to go home after a great time. At the closest 7-11 I stopped to put fuel in the car for the ride home. After about 5 gallons of pumping I started noticing fuel running from under the vehicle at a high volume. After stopping the pump and running inside to tell the clerk to call the fire department I investigated the car. Someone had taken about a 3/8" drill bit and drilled TWO holes in the plastic fuel tank of my wifes Saturn Vue. The fire department came and put oil-absorb on the fuel and helped me push the car away from the pumps. Mind you we were still a 5 hour ride from home after hiking 7 miles that morning up and out of Harpers Ferry. After the police came to file a vandalism report, we were able to drive the car enough to get it to an Advance Auto Parts store and patch up the fuel tank with some epoxy to get us home. The police officer said someone may have vandalized our vehicle because there was an Obama sticker on the back window!!! We ended up getting home about 3 hours later than we had planned because of all the ridiculousness (is that really a word?). The creeps did nothing to the exterior of the vehicle not even a scratch except for drilling the tank either to drain and steal the fuel or just to be complete jerks. I just wanted to vent a little and warn people from long term parking in this lot. I am so glad that I am done with this section and never have to leave a vehicle in this area again!

[Lugnut]

Looks like you may have had the wrong sticker on the car for the neighborhood you were in.

[Lone Wolf]

i have Bush, McCain, NRA, USMC and Harley Davidson stickers on my truck. people leave me beers at trailheads. they never mess with the vehicle

[Cookerhiker]

Sorry about your car. There's no excusing such vandalism no matter what one's politics are.

I recommend you report this incident to the ATC. They like to monitor the safety of trailhead parking.

[elray]

It's possible that they were just after your gasoline and it had nothing to do with your political sticker. I'd hate to think that I would have to make my car up to look like a gun toting redneck biker non-combat marine just to safely park at a trail head.

[Manwich]

110% positive they drilled two holes in your tank to steal your gas. when i do it, i put a second hole in so it drains faster.

[Manwich]

and ill sooner drill a plastic gas tank. cuts down on my fear of catching it on fire with a drill.

[Feral Bill]

110% positive they drilled two holes in your tank to steal your gas. when i do it, i put a second hole in so it drains faster.

Always good to get a professionals viewpoint.

[Toolshed]

So my wife and I did a sobo hike from Pen-Mar to Keys Gap this week and had a blast! Didn't rain on us except in the tent one night and had an absolutely great trip to the ATCH and other places. We left my wife's vehicle at Keys Gap and her mother gave us a ride to Pen Mar the same day. When we arrived to where we parked our car at the nice looking parking lot on West VA 9 we jumped in the car exhausted and ready to go home after a great time. At the closest 7-11 I stopped to put fuel in the car for the ride home. After about 5 gallons of pumping I started noticing fuel running from under the vehicle at a high volume. After stopping the pump and running inside to tell the clerk to call the fire department I investigated the car. Someone had taken about a 3/8" drill bit and drilled TWO holes in the plastic fuel tank of my wifes Saturn Vue. The fire department came and put oil-absorb on the fuel and helped me push the car away from the pumps. Mind you we were still a 5 hour ride from home after hiking 7 miles that morning up and out of Harpers Ferry. After the police came to file a vandalism report, we were able to drive the car enough to get it to an Advance Auto Parts store and patch up the fuel tank with some epoxy to get us home. The police officer said someone may have vandalized our vehicle because there was an Obama sticker on the back window!!! We ended up getting home about 3 hours later than we had planned because of all the ridiculousness (is that really a word?). The creeps did nothing to the exterior of the vehicle not even a scratch except for drilling the tank either to drain and steal the fuel or just to be complete jerks. I just wanted to vent a little and warn people from long term parking in this lot. I am so glad that I am done with this section and never have to leave a vehicle in this area again!

So, I am curious, because this doesn't seem to make sense... Did you lie down in the gas to look under the car to see what they did?
How high up in the tank did they drill the holes?
Do you have a locked gas cap access?
For a criminial to lay on the ground after bringing a drill seems like a lot of work especially if gas shoots out and covers them while drilling....
Are you sure there wasn't some sort of sensor bolted on the tank there, that came off (for whatever reason?).
But your take on this is really more along....."DON'T PARK IN KEYS GAP IF YOU HAVE AN OBAMA STICKER ON YOUR CAR......" So the rest of us are OK to park?

[le loupe]

of all the ridiculousness (is that really a word?).

I prefer - ridiculosity!

[Dirigo]

I am very sorry this happened to you in my neck of the woods, and I agree that you should report this to the ATC, as they like to keep track of what happens at the trailheads.

I would like to say that I don't think the sticker had anything to do with it. The cop was very wrong in stating that.....This parking lot had been know for many years to have locals cause problems. Getting gas for 4-wheelers is a mounting problems with kids in this area.

I have parked in this lot many times, but would never leave my car over night.

dirigo

[Pedaling Fool]

From the below link:
"Two unattended vehicles were broken into at the Route 9 Keys Gap trailhead on 2/16/08; another such incident occurred there within the past month. 02/19/08."

http://rohland.homedns.org/at/state/...0&sectionID=85

I'm sure it was the Obama sticker

[Wolf - 23000]

Keys Gap seems to be a bad area for vandalism. I know ATC tries to keep track of this stuff and I would encourage you to file a report with them as well if you haven't done so already. Does anyone know if ATC post a list of crime in an area. I would be interested to see it.

Wolf

[Skyline]

Keys Gap has been a site of repeated vandalism for the better part of a decade. The ATC shuttle list even has had an advisory to warn hikers not to park there long-term, for years. They are, therefore, already aware of the problem but another report to them won't hurt. They will probably update the advisory based upon your report.

It's conceivable a certain type of vandal might be motivated by hate-politics, but I would not assume this was the reason (or the only reason) your vehicle was vandalized.

[Marta]

Okay, I'm back from a pleasant bike ride this morning to find my normally innocuous forum taken over by political posts. I'm sorry to wipe out so much effort on a new WB member's part, but posts that foment political arguments are not acceptable on Whiteblaze. Therefore I am going to go back and remove a number of posts. Also leaving us now are the posts that react to the unacceptable posts.

[Pedaling Fool]

Okay, I'm back from a pleasant bike ride this morning to find my normally innocuous forum taken over by political posts. I'm sorry to wipe out so much effort on a new WB member's part, but posts that foment political arguments are not acceptable on Whiteblaze. Therefore I am going to go back and remove a number of posts. Also leaving us now are the posts that react to the unacceptable posts.

Save yourself some grief and just close it; the OP should have researched the parking area, already been pointed out, nothing else to learn here

[Marta]

The general policy of moderators is NOT to close threads unless they are clearly just pot-stirring, with no redeeming value. There may yet be information people can contribute to this thread, such as suggestions as to where one can safely park in the area, and so on.

[yaduck9]

Always good to get a professionals viewpoint.

Sounds more like an enthusiastic amateur.

[bullseye]

Keys Gap has had a lot of problems for at least the last 15 years that I can remember. I'm sure it wouldn't matter if you had Bush, NRA, or harley stickers on your car.

[Lauriep]

Ratch,

I'm very sorry to hear about this incident. The PATC ridgerunner has been working hard with the club and others to clean up the parking area at Keys Gap, so this is especially disappointing to learn.

I will echo what Cookerhiker, Dirigo, and Wolf said about filing an official incident report form with ATC. Doing this will give us more details that would be helpful and provide us with a format that is easier to work with. You can find the "Reporting an Incident" page with the form on the Health and Safety page of ATC's website here.

Many thanks,

Laurie Potteiger
ATC