Disgraceful trails - Letter to the Editor

[dug]

Is there any indication that she actually wrote the letter? Someone could easily sign her name to a letter as a joke or annoyance. I'm still on the side of "it's a joke/hoax".

None that I can tell. But, she does have posts hiking in Maine recently (hiking in the area), is retired (could validate 40 years of backpacking), and is from Alabama (where she said she was from). So, nothing would show otherwise.

I can't account for anyone saying they are who they say they are on the internet...including yourself

 

[peakbagger]

I think thin soils, freeze thaw and heavy use are part of it. About the only option for heavy use trails is allow them to wear down to rock and try to keep water bars in place to reduce sheet flow or pave them with rock like Tuckerman's Ravine trail or much of the upper Falling Waters or the Twinway. The sidehilling I have seen down south and out west probably wouldn't survive a lot of new England freeze thaw cycles although the dugway roads built by Henrys loggers seem to survive pretty well . When hiking down south on the AT, the big use is the thru hiker bubble and some section hikers. I hiked a lot of sections off season outside the bubble and sometimes we could go a couple of days without seeing anyone. Not so in the whites where thru hikers are the minority. In general much of the southern AT are old ridgeline roads that were built for farming and terrain is far more gentle. It isn't until VT where the soils and trail transition to the thin soils on the ridgeline that turn to soup every spring.

RMCs trail crew is very good at armoring trails but it takes a lot of resources so the number of trails they can get to is minimal. When they do a section its top rate. MATC also does incredible rock work but they only can work on very limited amounts of trails. I perceive AMC has scaled way back on this type of work and have shifted to using youth at risk programs and volunteers to get light duty work done. They did participate in the Grafton loop Trail and at least on the west side some of the trail work is state of the art. The USFS also seems to have scaled way back on trail reconstruction although on rare occasions they do seem to do high profile work with contractors if there is funding available. I expect that the soon to occur major washout on Lincoln Woods trail at the site of the last high profile repair location will need another high profile repair soon. AMC treated the Cardigan Highlanders crew so poorly that the crew quit en mass so there goes any future quality rock work at Cardigan. Its pretty depressing that AMC looks for trail adopters to adopt the primary trails to the huts rather than maintaining them themselves.

 

[TJsName]

Is there any indication that she actually wrote the letter? Someone could easily sign her name to a letter as a joke or annoyance. I'm still on the side of "it's a joke/hoax".

Agreed. Finding someone on The Facebook with the same name doesn't prove it's real any more than the absence of finding her name disproves its authenticity. I'd argue that neither condition would even qualify as evidence for either side of the argument.

The authenticity of the letter notwithstanding, the discussion of the condition of trails in and around the Whites is a valid topic; however, a key takeaway should be that if someone thinks there is room for improvement, they should get involved/volunteer. The RMC, WODC, BRaTTs, etc. all have plenty of work and will always accept donations of time and money. Exploring the Whites via redlining really opened my eyes to the gamut of trail conditions and got me to volunteer. Even though the work I do is all basic maintenance, it frees up resources to dedicate towards more advanced work. The less time professional trail crews have to spend brushing and clearing out water bars, the more time they can spend hardening the trails to prevent the erosion that causes the trails to get so rough in the first place.

 

[sierra]

Maybe, I'm a victim of my surroundings. Having grown up hiking here, I guess, I just assumed trails were supposed to be rough. In my climbing out West, I have seen little to make me think, we have it bad here. Granted, most of my climbs are on routes that either have "use" trails, or are just as rocky and tough as the trails in the Whites. The 14er initiative in CO has upgraded a lot of the standard routes on the 14ers. The upgraded trails do tend to have a more forgiving footbed. But it's pretty dry out there, our trails get pounded with rain fairly frequently and as someone mentioned, out freeze/thaw cycles are pretty brutal. I was just on Osceola, pretty good example of how rocky out trails can be. Basically like walking down a field of rock hard basketballs, it will hurt you, if your not used to it. I tried going to trail runners, have no clue how you guy's do it. I'd rather wear boots and let them absorb the impact of these trails myself, but I'm a lazy hiker. I don't really try to avoid stuff as I hike, I rarely look at the trail, I'm walking on.

 

[peakbagger]

I switched to trail runners with inserts and never looked back. Heavier boots equal more impact. I do use poles especially downhill so I transfer the load into my shoulders instead of my feet.

 

[sierra]

I switched to trail runners with inserts and never looked back. Heavier boots equal more impact. I do use poles especially downhill so I transfer the load into my shoulders instead of my feet.

I've heard all the arguments, they just don't add up with my experience. I don't like wet feet either. My new boots this summer, the Salomon Quest 4d GTX. Love them! Not that heavy, grip like mad, waterproof and at the end of the hike, my feet feel great. To each his own.

 

[rocket21]

Poorly worded? Perhaps. But the message is valid.

Our main 4K trails are falling apart at an astounding rate. I've only been hiking these trails for about a decade, but the damage observed during that time is deeply troubling. Whether it be losing 5 vertical feet of footbed due to erosion, having corridors expand to 15 feet wide (vs. 4 foot spec), having boulders rolling downhill, or having entire trees uprooted, it's something you can't unsee once you know what you're looking at.

We are now seeing usage on these trails at all hours of the day, all days of the year, and in all weather conditions. The trails were simply not designed for this and cannot sustain it.

We need to look to the models of groups like the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative to save our trails, and soon.

 

[iAmKrzys]

My new boots this summer, the Salomon Quest 4d GTX. Love them! Not that heavy, grip like mad, waterproof and at the end of the hike, my feet feel great.

I don't mean to divert this thread but I really feel the urge to comment on these boots... My son got them I think two or three years ago and wore his first pair out. He got a second pair, so I decided to try his worn out pair recently on a rainy day. I was pretty impressed with the grip and comfort level and so I got a pair for myself too. I haven't put them to a real test yet but I am quite hopeful. I should know in a few weeks if that was a good buy.

 

[Brambor]

I'm with you on that. I tried to switch to trailrunners and overall it can be ok but I do not see the benefits to be as tangible. What's most irritating to me is that the trailrunners just don't last while my boots are probably 10 years old and still going strong. The biggest anxiety for me is to have boots that fit and for some reason it takes a lot of trial and error to get it right. To be required to do that every two years as opposed to 10 years is a big downer for me.

I've heard all the arguments, they just don't add up with my experience. I don't like wet feet either. My new boots this summer, the Salomon Quest 4d GTX. Love them! Not that heavy, grip like mad, waterproof and at the end of the hike, my feet feel great. To each his own.

 

[peakbagger]

Looks like this one has a bit of traction. The horse discussion is interesting. The PCT is definitely built for horsepacking, some of the lengths they go to stay on contour are pretty extensive. On a few days on the PCT we would encounter ridges coming down off a mountain with a valley in between. We could see the trail on the other ridge but the actual trail was dug into the sides of the ridges to follow the same contour line instead of dippng into the valley.

http://www.concordmonitor.com/hiking-trails-different-10678529

 

[richard]

I switched to trail runners with inserts and never looked back. Heavier boots equal more impact. I do use poles especially downhill so I transfer the load into my shoulders instead of my feet.

Are the inserts you use designed to absorb shock ( for cushioning) ? Or do they perform more like a rock plate? I need something that would add firmness to the sole.

 

[skiguy]

I've heard all the arguments, they just don't add up with my experience. I don't like wet feet either. My new boots this summer, the Salomon Quest 4d GTX. Love them! Not that heavy, grip like mad, waterproof and at the end of the hike, my feet feel great. To each his own.

I really like my Salomon Quest 4D GTX's and plan on getting another pair. As a point of interest this is one of the go to boots for Navy Seals.

 

[peakbagger]

I use Montrail heat moldable inserts based on recommendations from VFTT folks several years ago. https://www.amazon.com/Montrail-Enduro-Sole-Unisex-Running-Insert/dp/B0058BE7PU. The gray arch support is a somewhat rigid piece that adds stiffness where I want is which is under the arch. The black part is just dense foam which when heated correctly will mold to your feet which speeds up break in. The blue heel piece goes through the arch support. I have both the regular volume and low volume versions to adjust to the volume of the trailrunner. I am not a lightweight and have done several presi traverses (or variants) and usually do the Bonds traverse every other year plus yearly baxter trips including backpacks and they work for me on rocks along with my poles . I have shredded or worn out a couple of pairs of trail runners but haven't worn out the inserts yet. Adjusting to trail runners from heavy boots does take a transition as you are now asking the foot to do what it was evolved to do instead of relying on heavy boot to absorb shocks. The one thing that trail runners don't do is protect your toes from front impact, there is no toe box to speak of and on the rare occasion I kick a rock I know it.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

Back on topic, the Concord Monitor has picked up on this: http://www.concordmonitor.com/hiking-trails-different-10678529

Tim

 

[sierra]

I really like my Salomon Quest 4D GTX's and plan on getting another pair. As a point of interest this is one of the go to boots for Navy Seals.

One issue I've always dealt with is the toe box not giving me room on descents. The smashing of my toes has been a plague. I'm a size 9, I rolled the dice and got my Salomon in 9 1/2, Bingo!!! That little x'tra room is the key. Last week, I was off all week, my boots have now seen at least 12 hikes, they are the bomb.
Sorry Tim, back on topic.

 

[richard]

Thanks.Peak bagger . I have a pair of "Montrail" trail runners that I like a lot, but are too soft in the forefoot for hiking in the mountains. I'll check out these inserts.

 

[dug]

Agreed. Finding someone on The Facebook with the same name doesn't prove it's real any more than the absence of finding her name disproves its authenticity. I'd argue that neither condition would even qualify as evidence for either side of the argument.

Chatting with her on FB and confirmed who the poster is. She is sending me photos of particular sections to note (looks like where it follows a dried river bed)

 

[Bob Kittredge]

I suspect that the lady has done most or all of her hiking in her native Alabama where the terrain probably differs greatly from (and is easier on the body than) that of the Whites. The glaciers didn't make it all the way to 'Bama, did they?

When I did a little hiking in Washington state, I was flabbergasted. Where are the rocks in the trail? Why are all the trees 4 and 5 feet thick? At least there were Canada jays to remind me of home.

I did wonder about her reference to "meager vistas". However, it does please me that she considers me an "athlete" because I can negotiate the trails safely. (4 times up Huntington).


Hiking the Whites; not a walk in the park.

 

[jrbren]

I suspect troll as well. If not, I guess we best keep her out of the Adirondacks. Overall, I find those trails worse than the Whites (excluding above treeline boulder hopping in the Presidentials) for overall ankle twisting rocks & roots, and of course mud. In the east, "switchback" is a beer, nothing more. Most of the trails out west I have done are much more foot friendly, for better or worse. Off trail, all bets are off anywhere. Perhaps her next gripe to editor will be complaining about the condition of White Mountain bush wack routes ? I will also throw in Green Mountain rock seems more slippery when wet then elsewhere too (more so then in NH or ADKs).

 

[dug]

She's a real women. I'm in an ongoing conversation with her. Sending me pictures of hikes from out West, middle-East, Europe, NH, etc. No, she really doesn't grasp the nuances of NH and the geological challenges, the overuse issues, and also the legal issues associated with Wilderness areas.

She's a nice woman, maybe a bit understood, and not experienced with the terrain too much here in the Northeast. She's been getting attacked, apparently, is appreciative that I have reached out and didn't call her names....