Crawford Path getting major attention this summer

[peakbagger]

I went to a RMC fundraiser this weekend and the president announced that the RMC trail crew was going to spend a lot of time on rebuilding the Crawford Path this summer. REI is supplying funding for multiple trail crews from different organizations to work together on the rebuild.

I expect its going to get a lot of PR activity at some point.

Not sure where the focus will be but the stretch from from Highland Center all the way to Pierce is in pretty sad shape and in need of major reconstruction.

 

[egilbe]

There was a trail crew working on Crawford path most of last Summer. I thought it was in pretty good shape.

 

[iagreewithjamie]

Hopefully they'll let RMC do the whole path. That group builds some real quality trails.

 

[peakbagger]

At one point the RMC trail crew used to stay at Camp Dodge and pay AMC for lodging. They tended to poach the best AMC trail crew to work for RMC as they worked a better schedule and there was less BS from up high so AMC came up with a excuse to drive them out. It took a few years but eventually RMC built the Stearns lodge facility which is great setup for a trail crew. At one point I was working on trail maintenance with a couple of RMC folks and their theory to trail hardening was if only one person could move a rock it was too small to use as a step. They are definitely a believer in burying far more of a rock than what is visible. The also put in rock water bars in place of wood. The trade off is takes quite awhile to do a stretch of trail which means the rest of the extensive trail network doesn't get as much attention from the crew except for the spring walk through and the fall water bar cleaning. They are a small club and cost share funding has tightened up so I expect the Crawford Path work may be a way of keeping a full crew for the season.

 

[Jazzbo]

That's great to hear. CP gets tons of traffic and would certainly benefit from trail hardening done right. I haven't been on Crawford Path in long time, but one thing always impressed me when hiking it was huge volumes of sand stored in delta deposits built up over the many decades deposited by outfalls by water bars. They should mine the stuff and put it to good use maybe fill in around rocks or cribbing or something. Publicity about trail work on CP is newsworthy item never hurts especially if it inspires some folks to think about volunteering themselves.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

More on the Crawford Path closure around Mt Monroe-use Mount Monroe Loop as an alternative route and do not travel off trail.

USFS FOREST ORDER #R9-22-18-01

For safety and ecological concerns, the trail is closed to the public without exception during reconstruction. Violations of this closure is punishable for individuals $5000 or $10,000 for an organization or imprisonment of up to 6 months or both. During the closure period there will be quantities of trail work supplies and equipment, as well as trail workers, in the trail treadway, making pedestrian passage unsafe. Further, the fragile alpine habitat cannot withstand any level of travel outside of the existing trail treadway. Use the Mt Monroe alternative route.

For more information contact White Mountain National Forest Headquarters 603-536-6100

Tim

 

[DayTrip]

More on the Crawford Path closure around Mt Monroe-use Mount Monroe Loop as an alternative route and do not travel off trail.

USFS FOREST ORDER #R9-22-18-01

For safety and ecological concerns, the trail is closed to the public without exception during reconstruction. Violations of this closure is punishable for individuals $5000 or $10,000 for an organization or imprisonment of up to 6 months or both. During the closure period there will be quantities of trail work supplies and equipment, as well as trail workers, in the trail treadway, making pedestrian passage unsafe. Further, the fragile alpine habitat cannot withstand any level of travel outside of the existing trail treadway. Use the Mt Monroe alternative route.

For more information contact White Mountain National Forest Headquarters 603-536-6100

Tim

Bummer. That is one of my favorite spots on the Crawford Path. I expect that area will look like a bit of an eye sore during construction too. Was expecting the work to be in the lower elevations toward Highland Center.

 

[Kimball]

More on the Crawford Path closure around Mt Monroe-use Mount Monroe Loop as an alternative route and do not travel off trail.

USFS FOREST ORDER #R9-22-18-01

For safety and ecological concerns, the trail is closed to the public without exception during reconstruction. Violations of this closure is punishable for individuals $5000 or $10,000 for an organization or imprisonment of up to 6 months or both. During the closure period there will be quantities of trail work supplies and equipment, as well as trail workers, in the trail treadway, making pedestrian passage unsafe. Further, the fragile alpine habitat cannot withstand any level of travel outside of the existing trail treadway. Use the Mt Monroe alternative route.

For more information contact White Mountain National Forest Headquarters 603-536-6100

Tim

Interesting: They included the fines and "imprisonment", but not the dates.

 

[peakbagger]

I agree the lower Crawford needs attention but the Monroe area probably requires more skill doing hard core rock work.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

I wonder just how wide that enforcement zone is? LNT ethics aside, is it illegal to bushwhack in the Alpine Zone?

Tim

 

[Mike P.]

There had developed a "bushwhack" from the Monore loop to C-Path that skipped going over Little Monroe. I think I had only been on the C-Path around Monroe once so I could say I had done that, same with going around Ike. Sounds like if I want to do Washington this year, I should go up from PNVC or take the Jewell.

 

[TJsName]

I wonder just how wide that enforcement zone is? LNT ethics aside, is it illegal to bushwhack in the Alpine Zone?

Tim

I don't think it generally is, so I am curious how they would enforce it. It sounds like you're only subject to the penalties if you're actually *on* the trail. That said, I suspect most people will just go over Monroe and it won't be a big deal.

 

[sierra]

Someone in a group I'm in, asked about NB hikers doing the AT. I'm assuming, that skipping this closed section will not disqualify them. It's not like they have a choice. Another thought I had. In regards to families doing the Huts, to us it might not be a big deal. But traversing over Monroe verse the CP in bad weather is substantial imo and they are not going to have a choice.

 

[TJsName]

Someone in a group I'm in, asked about NB hikers doing the AT. I'm assuming, that skipping this closed section will not disqualify them. It's not like they have a choice. Another thought I had. In regards to families doing the Huts, to us it might not be a big deal. But traversing over Monroe verse the CP in bad weather is substantial imo and they are not going to have a choice.

IMO, thru-hikers that go over the summits still get credit. Imagine the the AT took the Westside trail - how many hikers would skip the summit? I suspect several of the TH's I know wouldn't bother since they could get water at LoC.

 

[DayTrip]

I wonder just how wide that enforcement zone is? LNT ethics aside, is it illegal to bushwhack in the Alpine Zone?

Tim

Isn't there a sizable posted area along the Oakes Gulf area for wild flowers or nesting birds or something? Would certainly eliminate a sizable area of the easy terrain for whacking and force any technically legal route to zig zag in the rocks along the cliffs under Monroe.

 

[David Metsky]

Someone in a group I'm in, asked about NB hikers doing the AT. I'm assuming, that skipping this closed section will not disqualify them.

For the duration of the work, the AT will be over the summit so no problem for Thru Hikers. When we did reroutes along our section of trail for construction the temporary route becomes the official trail.

 

[peakbagger]

IMO, thru-hikers that go over the summits still get credit. Imagine the the AT took the Westside trail - how many hikers would skip the summit? I suspect several of the TH's I know wouldn't bother since they could get water at LoC.

To an "anal" white blazer this is blasphemy . Technically a true purist will do the white blazed bypass route around Eisenhower Monroe Jefferson and Adams summits and then go back to the summits if they choose to. The purists tend to be far more prevalent down south and taper off as the distance and months on trail increase. There are multiple shelters along the trail with a south bound and north bound entrance trail and true purists insist upon leaving the shelter site via what ever trail they entered the evening before. ATCs official policy is if the official white blazed trail route is closed or impassable due to short term issues that a blue blazed route is acceptable.

After Hurricane Irene, the AT from the VT/mass line to RT2 in Shelburne NH was officially closed for a period of several weeks. During that time, there was no blue blaze, technically a thru hiker that year just didn't have to do this section although many either ignored the closure or flipped forward and came back to fill in this stretch.

 

[TJsName]

To an "anal" white blazer this is blasphemy . Technically a true purist will do the white blazed bypass route around Eisenhower Monroe Jefferson and Adams summits and then go back to the summits if they choose to. The purists tend to be far more prevalent down south and taper off as the distance and months on trail increase. There are multiple shelters along the trail with a south bound and north bound entrance trail and true purists insist upon leaving the shelter site via what ever trail they entered the evening before. ATCs official policy is if the official white blazed trail route is closed or impassable due to short term issues that a blue blazed route is acceptable.

After Hurricane Irene, the AT from the VT/mass line to RT2 in Shelburne NH was officially closed for a period of several weeks. During that time, there was no blue blaze, technically a thru hiker that year just didn't have to do this section although many either ignored the closure or flipped forward and came back to fill in this stretch.

The 'AT' is really an abstract concept. It's as hard to define as a coastline (frame of reference problems), and no two people have ever hike the same trail (the same guy also said, "the path up and down are one and the same"). I would argue that the 'AT' is an experience. Sure, it is literally a physical thing, but at some point the sum of its parts makes it larger than trails that comprise it. I would argue the 'purists' arguments may suffer from an inability to see the forest through the trees - which is literally a quintessential AT experience.

 

[Tom_Murphy]

I would argue the 'purists' arguments may suffer from an inability to see the forest through the trees - which is literally a quintessential AT experience.

Hahaha, I see what you did there. If I point out that the idiom is typically expressed as "can't see the forest for the trees" I guess I would guilty of the same thing.

The discussions on Whiteblaze as to what constitutes a pure thru-hike quickly grow very,very tiring. I can't imagine what it must be like to meet one of the zealots on the trail.

 

[TJsName]

Hahaha, I see what you did there. If I point out that the idiom is typically expressed as "can't see the forest for the trees" I guess I would guilty of the same thing.

The discussions on Whiteblaze as to what constitutes a pure thru-hike quickly grow very,very tiring. I can't imagine what it must be like to meet one of the zealots on the trail.

I guess I'm not a purist when it comes to that idiom. As for the zealots, those arguments always make me think of this: https://xkcd.com/1095/