Appalachian Trail Maintainers News
October, 2006
Remote
for detachment; Narrow for chosen company; Winding for leisure; Lonely
for contemplation;
It beckons not merely north and south, but upward to the body, mind and soul of man...Harold Allen
Published by the Appalachian Trail Maintainers Committee of the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club
Dick Ketelle, Strategic Planning, 865 483-9345; Phyllis Henry, Volunteer coordinator, Special Projects, 865 577-2604; Mac McNutt, Tools Manager, 865 983-3237; Lucinda Turbeville, Outreach and Development 865 945-1441;Philip Royer, Shelter and Campsite coordinator 865 694- 0160; Pete James, Volunteer Data Records, 865 977-0807; Dianne Gruber, newsletter editor, 865 977-0807; Penny Lankford, Secretary, 865 774-1866; John Lankford, Webmail Coordinator 865 774-1866; Jim Lowe, Trail Manager, National Forest 828 479- 9271; Randy Puckett, Consultant.
October 2006 - Editor/Dianne Gruber
“OCT” Trail Maintenance Trip is Sept 30
John Lankford has scheduled a training day for new trail maintenance
volunteers on September 30th and will need assistance. His plan is
to meet at the extreme west end of the parking lot at Sugarlands at
9:00 AM and, after some orientation and assignments, proceed to the
AT between Newfound Gap and Clingmans Dome to do weed cutting, etc.
Experienced maintainers will be needed for the training. Bring tools.
If you are interested in either being a “trainee” or “trainer” please
contact John at 865 774-1866.
Alcoa Employees to Work on A.T.
Alcoa locations around the world will join together during the month of October for “Alcoa’s Worldwide Month of Service.” This year’s theme is based on the Conservation and Sustainability Area of Excellence. The employees will work in their community with the goal of helping to ensure that our environment is as sustainable as it can be. The local plant has chosen to work in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
On Saturday, October 14, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy Southern Regional Office will coordinate a workday with employees of Alcoa Aluminum Company located in Alcoa, TN. The goal will be to try to finish up the projects that were not completed on National Trails Days. The locust logs used were purchased with a grant from the Alcoa Foundation and we hope to get everyone of them used. The projects will be on sections of the Trail between Newfound Gap and Clingmans Dome. Team leaders are needed for the day.
We will meet at Sugarlands Visitor Center at 9am and plan to work until 4pm. If you can help on October 14 please call Phyllis Henry at 865/577-2604 or email Morgan Sommerville at msommerville @ atconf.org
Mouldering Privy Study Under Way
In early June we received an inquiry concerning our interest in participating in a U.S. Forest Service study on the effectiveness of mouldering privies along the AT. We have jumped at the opportunity to try to learn as much as we can about understanding how effective this “technology” is in the Smokies and to improve the handling of sanitation in the backcountry on our AT section.
Brenda Land, a sanitary engineer with the USFS is heading up the study and she provided us equipment for estimating the level of privy usage at 4 shelter sites in the Smokies. The study includes “floor-mat” type counters that track the amount of privy usage and when composted material is ready to be removed from the mouldering bins samples will be collected to determine the bacteriological content of the compost. Between Aug 25 – 27 we deployed the “Crapper Counters” at Mt. Collins, Icewater Spring, Cosby Knob, and Spence Field. The study will officially start next spring and will continue for several years.
Rocky Top Sessions
Session #3 9/29-10/6 (Fri-Fri)
Session #4 10/10-10/17 (Tues-Tues)
Session #5 10/21-10/28 (Sat-Sat)
Contact Julie Judkins at the ATC office 828/254-3708 or the Rocky Top crew headquarters
430-7940 (leave message) for specifics about where to find the crew to work with
them.
Cosby Knob Shelter Rehab
Each year the SMHC renovates an A.T. shelter, tearing off roofs, repairing
walls and chimneys, then rebuilding according to new designs by architect
Philip Royer. This year the rehabbed shelter was at Cosby Knob. The
forward crew of George Minnigh, GSMNP Backcountry Specialist, Phyllis
Henry, camp coordinator, and Tom Howard arrived at the shelter Friday,
September 8 and were joined in the late afternoon by Ridgerunner
Shatter. They started removing the rafters, building a table and
bench and doing preparatory work for the mason. They were joined
on Saturday, by members of the work crew who would stay the duration:
James Fondren, crew chief, Wayne Williams, Mike Crabill, Paul Ruble, Jerry
Troxler and Craig Rightmire. Also, Philip Royer, Pete James, and Bill Smith
walked up to spend the day helping. Bill spent the night on Saturday and
did the mason work around the new beam in the back and graciously
gave RR Shatter a ride back to Gatlinburg on Sunday so that he could
stay longer to help the crew. Smoky Mountain Trailriders Dick Barnes
the expert chimney mason and Carter Moulden, rode up early and started
the masonry work and Dalton Cameron, Nolan, and Sam Tillery packed
up the supplies and arrived later in the day. On Sunday, Stewart
Taylor (who stayed the duration) and Mac McNutt (who worked until
Monday afternoon and left loaded to the max with garbage) enlarged
the crew. SMTR Ronnie Boone and a friend packed up more supplies
by horse on Sunday and took out garbage and any supplies that we
did not need for the duration.
A call was made to Burt Emerson on Monday evening to bring up a drill bit and spikes. He arrived Tuesday with the supplies and soft drinks for everyone. He worked until lunch on Wednesday and left with an overflowing pack of “stuff” that needed to get packed out.
The work was completed by 4PM on Wednesday, and they ALMOST met their goal of getting done and out before the heavy rain moved in. Phyllis said she walked out the last half mile in a downpour. The crew worked hard 10-11 hours a day, had great food, and had a good time, even though the camping was miserable because of the lack of flat spaces.
A big thanks to Carolyn Williams who met the returning crew on Wednesday evening with a celebratory picnic at the Cosby pavilion and commemorative t-shirts and to Betty Royer for getting the shirts printed at the last minute.
Many thanks to everyone involved who helped make this shelter rehab
project a success.
More details will follow in next newsletter.
A.T. Work
7/21/06 Matt Davis cut weeds on our Spruce-Fir section of the A.T. (This was Matt’s last maintenance trip, as he has moved to MN—we wish him well as he remembers MN winters after his sojourn in NC).
8/23/06 Todd White, Matt McSpadden, Stew Taylor, Jerry Troxler, & Phyllis Henry worked the section going north from Newfound Gap cutting back the vegetation, lopping, cleaning waterbars and filling in behind steps.
8/25/06 Dick Ketelle, Shatter, Jim Mowbray, George Minnigh, and Brenda Land installed "Usage Counters" at Mt. Collins and Icewater Spring privies.
8/26/06 Stewart Taylor, Mac McNutt, and RR Shatter moved the privy at Tricorner Knob with the help of folks who had spent the night at the shelter.
8/26/06 Dick Ketelle and Ann Farrar removed blowdowns near Goshen Prong trail intersection with A.T. using a crosscut saw.
8/27/06 Dick Ketelle and Wayne Williams installed a "Usage Counter" at Spence Field privy.
9/01/06 Dick Ketelle cut brush from Dry Sluice Gap intersection back past Charlies Bunion to base of climb to Icewater Spring. Bears have been breaking down blueberry bushes and ash trees for berries. Much hog rooting.
9/02/06 Jim Quick and Lynda Bryan started at Clingmans Dome and whacked weeds and cleaned waterbars for ½ mile northbound. (Note swing sickle handle broke shortening our work trip.)
9/09/06 Steve Higdon worked from Newfound to Indian Gap. He cut briars and weeds, removed two trees that have been leaning lower and lower over the trail, and ate blackberries.
9/09/06 Ron Beatty cut vegetation and removed small blowdowns between Yellow Creek Gap to High Point above Walker Gap.
9/15/06 Jim Quick, Lynda Bryan, Dave Bentley, and Caleb Ownby whacked weeds and trimmed branches from Clingmans Dome northbound for a little over a mile.
Anyone interested in volunteering for Appalachian Trail maintenance projects can call George Ritter (865) 483-9758 or email him at geo_ritt @ bellsouth.net for more information. ALSO, we still need more Section Leaders. Click here to volunteer online today!