NH Mask Mandate in Effect

[ChrisB]

The governor of NH has announced a state-wide mask mandate to take effect Friday, Nov 20. As reported by media:

The mask mandate, which marks a change in position for the governor, takes effect Friday and will remain in effect through Jan. 15. New Hampshire is the last New England state to impose a mandate for masks.

“We’re elevating this message given the seriousness of the current surge,” Sununu said. “With this surge, it’s now really a stateside issue more than ever before.”

 

[bikehikeskifish]

Article Link from NHPR.org

In response to the surge in cases and what health officials call "substantial spread" of the virus in all ten New Hampshire counties, Gov. Chris Sununu has announced a statewide mask mandate effective tomorrow, Nov. 20. The mandate covers all indoor and outdoor public spaces where social distancing cannot be maintained.

(emphasis is mine)

In other words, if you're hiking and you cannot remain 6+ feet away from people not in your household, then you must wear a mask.

Emergency Order 74

There are, of course, excemptions. For example, Section 5d of the order reads:


5. This Order shall not apply to the following:
d) Any person engaged in physical[sic] strenuous physical activity;


I am interested in any tips for keeping the mask readily available especially when entering the season of hats and hoods. For now, I keep it wrapped around my hand with the ear loops on my thumb, and my hand around my hiking pole. Wearing it full time would get it soaked faster than I soak through glove liners.


Tim

 

[rocket21]

Has there been a single documented case anywhere in the world of someone contracting COVID-19 while hiking?

 

[NHClimber]

My understanding is there is no penalty in case that matters to folks.

 

[nartreb]

My understanding is there is no penalty in case that matters to folks.

In general, state law will include some catch-all clause whereby any violation of any executive order, if the order is issued under color of a declared emergency, is subject to some kind of penalty (usually a fine, whose amount hasn't increased in decades). I was curious what New Hampshire law was, so I checked the order to see what chapters of the statute it would refer to for its authority -- those would be the places to start looking for a penalty clause.

Doesn't matter in this case. The order is toothless:

6. A person who declines to wear a mask or cloth face covering because of a medical or developmental
issue, or difficulty breathing, shall not be required to produce documentation, or other evidence,
verifying the condition.

For those who care more about the epidemiology:
New Hampshire's per capita case numbers are better than massachusetts' but both are rocketing upwards. Massachusetts recently exceeded its April record, and New Hampshire, which was largely spared the first wave, is at about four times its spring record (which occurred in May). Hospitalizations have begun trending up in the last two weeks or so, expect deaths to follow -- but it's not clear what the CFR will be this time around. So far it looks like it's going to stay lower.

Latest numbers as of 19 nov 2020: daily new cases per 100,000 population:
Rhode Island: 82.7
Connecticut: 49.2
Massachusetts: 38.0
New Hampshire: 27.3
New York: 24.3
Vermont: 14.3 (but a scary R of 1.44)
Maine: 14.0 (lowest in mainland US!)
and then there's:
North Dakota: 184.8 (but an R of 1.05, so a peak soon is possible)
Hawaii: 5.1 (and an R of 0.93)

 

[Puma concolor]

As a hiker just trying to enjoy the woods and hills, this whole thing just gets weirder by the day.

Been spending a lot of time doing mostly obscure hikes in Vermont this year, but have also been to Baxter a couple of times and my most recent hike was Mount Kearsarge in New Hampshire. Due to New York’s latest rules, this meant that I had to fill out a travel form and get COVID tested on my fourth day after returning to NY. As a Catholic school boy rules-follower, I did all of that only to find out that insurance doesn’t cover travel-related COVID testing. Out of pocket cost = $230 to find out I was negative even after my high risk (LOL) hike.

Some people are super mad about all of the strange rules that have taken effect during these unusual times but I’m just rolling with it as best as I can. Having said that, I think I’m done with out-of-state hiking until I get that vaccine pumped into my arm. Vermont doesn’t want me and NY doesn’t want me going to NH or Maine, even though the three non-NY states I just mentioned have the lowest cumulative numbers in all of the America. And my NY County has been doing well all along. Go figure.

 

[Rhody Seth]

I am interested in any tips for keeping the mask readily available especially when entering the season of hats and hoods. For now, I keep it wrapped around my hand with the ear loops on my thumb, and my hand around my hiking pole. Wearing it full time would get it soaked faster than I soak through glove liners.

I just keep my mask in my pocket when hiking (or tucked into my shorts when running) and have gotten pretty good at pulling it out and slapping it on in one quick motion. I think the key is to find a mask that goes on and off easily. The mask I'm using when hiking isn't as beefy or secure as the one I use for going in stores but it's easier to get on and off which is all I'm really looking for during these brief trail encounters.

It gets a little trickier if I'm holding poles. Then I have to add the "poles under my arm" move to my song and dance.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

Has there been a single documented case anywhere in the world of someone contracting COVID-19 while hiking?

I ask myself that a lot. Also in my case I ask about group bike rides. So far, I have not found one. Nor do I even know anyone personally who has contracted the virus. I know people who know people...

I would think that someone where would have heard if there was a spreading event from hiking. There certainly were enough people doing the 48 all summer long. I made the mistake of going to Garfield for Flags on the 48 but didn't stay very long because there were several hundred people on the summit and the trails surrounding it and nobody was distancing or wearing masks.

Tim

 

[DayTrip]

Wouldn't a buff be the easiest thing for hiking? Just pull it up over your face when you have to and take it right back off when it's not needed. In terms of protection it is probably well down the "effective list" but I personally am not super worried about getting COVID on a hike. I'd be more looking at it from a compliance standpoint than a risk standpoint. I have a bug buff I carry in Spring that is pretty light and easy to breather through. Probably just throw that in my hip belt pocket.

 

[jniehof]

I've used a Buff for most of the summer, easy to pull up when passing people and provides a little protection. Fold it over for two layers and it's pretty good.

I did the Twins last week wearing a two-layer (Burgeon) mask the whole time except eating and it went fine, although it was certainly damp by the end. I've got a group hike coming up and wanted to make sure it would work out.

For a long time now, over half the cases in NH have been "source unknown, community transmission." There could well be hiking-related cases buried in there, even though it's most likely a pretty darn safe activity.

 

[JoshandBaron]

Wouldn't a buff be the easiest thing for hiking? Just pull it up over your face when you have to and take it right back off when it's not needed. In terms of protection it is probably well down the "effective list" but I personally am not super worried about getting COVID on a hike. I'd be more looking at it from a compliance standpoint than a risk standpoint. I have a bug buff I carry in Spring that is pretty light and easy to breather through. Probably just throw that in my hip belt pocket.

I've been wearing one around my neck all year. Pull it up when passing people. Coming up to the colder months I'm not going to be upset with a little more neck insulation.

While researchers have ranked the effectiveness of various cloth face coverings, no previous study has ever identified any face covering that is less effective than no face covering at all.
https://medical.mit.edu/covid-19-updates/2020/08/neck-gaiters

 

[Mike P.]

Has there been a single documented case anywhere in the world of someone contracting COVID-19 while hiking?

Since contact tracing is not being done 100% of the time and with so much around, you probably would find multiple choices for a possible infection location. Do you het contact info for everyone you pass? Is there a record of people sharing the Monadnock summit? (Insert any other crowded summit) I would certainly not want to be downwind on any of these. More of an issue if you are behind someone for a long period of time.

Are the school outdoor clubs doing outdoor activities? Meet up groups and FB groups or any other group that might hike in groups of 5-12 people in a conga line? If you are solo or with one other person (esp. from same household) avoiding the most crowded trails. (Stuff most of VFTT'ers do) you should be fine. (I'M NOT an infectious disease specialist or an MD)

I have been trying to step way off the trail and stay off a few seconds longer than usual when passing someone.

 

[peakbagger]

I was out on a cold weekend a few weeks ago hiking and was wearing my mask as it was a bit crowded at the start of the hike. It was nice on a cold day as it kept my mouth and nose warm. It was cotton so I probably wouldnt want it for real cold weather. I was thinking why not get a Merino wool mask and when I searched for one there are several out there. I have one on order and expect it will get hung around my neck so I can pull it up. Of course the next thing to see if it freezes up. Worst case is I have a couple of lightweight balaclavas that will work in pinch.

 

[Lost Dad]

I'm not going to get uptight about passing others on the trail; a buff, scarf or a big step off the trail will suffice. I have planned my hiking to the less travelled areas and less popular times.

However, I do believe that we all should pack a good mask on the off chance that we might have prolonged, unplanned contact with others.

 

[ChrisB]

Has there been a single documented case anywhere in the world of someone contracting COVID-19 while hiking?

Good question for sure and answer is who knows!

A good place to do some contact tracing for this might be with the "Over 40" and "Over 50" Meetup Hiking groups.

They are running lots of mid-week and weekend hikes these days with 20 or more participants per event.

I've hiked with the Over 50 group on occasion but have not done so recently out of an abundance of caution.

 

[NHClimber]

I’ve been wearing my BSL-4 suit for all my hikes and let me tell you it is no walk in the park. First of all, my Prius has a fairly low towing capacity, so towing the large diesel generator that supplies the positive pressure for the suit it quite the challenge. You should see the looks I get at the trailhead! And I barely made it up to the Caps Ridge lot a few weeks ago. Getting the suit on also presents challenges - do I wear my pack on the outside or on the inside? Have you tried to put on a pack over a PPPS suit, particularly the face shield? People at the trailhead laugh at me - they are so mean. And of course the suit snags on everything and the boots make any kind of rock hopping or scrambling quite difficult (one of these days I’ll tell you my story of climbing VMC Direct Direct with the PPPS - talk about rope management skills!). Then there is the air hose. Trying to drag three miles of air hose is exhausting. Just something else that snags on everything and gets you dirty looks from hikers who can’t even bother to bring a face mask. The suit legs also start to become a drag (literally) with all the pee bottles that I accumulate. And let me tell you a No. 2 event is absolutely out of the question unless you are into the whole Uta Pippig thing. Oh, and the damn manufacturers do not mention anything about CO2 buildup from engaging in strenuous (and perhaps unintended?) activities using the PPPS. So apologies to those that witnessed a creepy disoriented dude in a moon suit wandering around the summit of Osceola back in September. If folks have specific questions about PPPS and hiking or climbing, I’ve accumulated a wealth of knowledge since last March and have been through several hundred suits in my attempt to gain that knowledge. Thank god I save on fuel costs with the Prius.

 

[rocket21]

A recent study shows that neck gaiters can actually result in *more* droplets than wearing no mask at all. https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/6/36/eabd3083

 

[Andrew]

Wouldn't a buff be the easiest thing for hiking? Just pull it up over your face when you have to and take it right back off when it's not needed. In terms of protection it is probably well down the "effective list" but I personally am not super worried about getting COVID on a hike. I'd be more looking at it from a compliance standpoint than a risk standpoint. I have a bug buff I carry in Spring that is pretty light and easy to breather through. Probably just throw that in my hip belt pocket.

I was going to suggest same. I asked my wife why she just bought that new pack of buffs from Amazon, she often runs on a local rail-trail and said having the buff around her neck and being able to pull it up in an instant was most convenient. Besides, it's cold now so that extra is there and even cool that they have some bright orange for the season.

I also happened to see this and thought the easily deployed face covering was neat
https://yooperchook.com/

Thanks for posting this Chris. I was thinking last night people should be alerted from the NH'ers, as everyone is busy trying to follow guidelines for their own states.

 

[JoshandBaron]

A recent study shows that neck gaiters can actually result in *more* droplets than wearing no mask at all. https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/6/36/eabd3083

That wasn't a study of mask efficacy, it was a proof of concept for a lower cost testing procedure. See the link in my previous post.

 

[bikehikeskifish]

I love my Buff(s)... but I am told the are either ineffective or actually worse than nothing, so I have been trying to comply with social distancing as best I can by

Stepping off trail when it's convenient and not likely to cause damage
Wearing a mask when not

Pockets + gloves result in "misses" or "drops" while trying to fetch the mask. I will often have a Buff with me (and have for many years) but don't always have a mask, like when riding or walking the dog.

I did the Wildcats last weekend and there were two outing groups - 5 from UNH and 20+/- from somewhere else. The latter tried to get out of *my* way by half going to one side and half going to the other resulting in a gauntlet that was far narrower than 6'. I did the Z-B traverse the previous weekend with 3 friends. We wore masks in the car with the windows open but walked either 2x2 or single file for 10+ hours without, so not sure how effective that is. It's only interesting if one of us was positive and nobody else caught the virus. Since we're all fine I'm thinking we simply don't know how effective countermeasures would have been.

I am not personally super concerned about a chance encounter/passing outdoors. I still greet neighbors while we are out walking our dogs. I keep those encounters as short as possible. But, I also want to get this over as soon as possible.

Tim