i have big problems with the way the AMC runs the whole system. they say all their fees are a function of the fact that the Whites are so overused and they have to take such intense steps to protect them. However, I’m of the opinion that part of the reason the whites are so overused is that the AMC takes hundreds of people a night into what they’ll concede is fragile backcountry and gives them warm beds and hot meals. Without the AMC hut system the whole White Mtn Nat. Forest would get a loss less use.
And given the prices the AMC charges, they price non-affluent people out of the Whites. I just checked the AMC’s Web site: hut stays are now up to $75/night for adults and $46 for kids. If you want to have a fun night out with a family of four, you could probably stay at the Four Seasons on Boston Common for less than you could stay at an AMC hut out in the supposed “backcountry.”
Weekenders or people who don’t know about stealth camping might find themselves priced out of what most definitely are PUBLIC lands. Many times there aren’t $8 shelter/tent sites conveniently located for thru hikers or others, meaning you’ve got a choice of stealth camping or a hut stay.
Furthermore, there are always more thru-hikers than there are work-for-stay spots! Fortunately, hut croos are friendly enough and will usually recommend a good stealth site. But doesn’t that throw us into a twisted conundrum when the AMC has to recommend illegal and potentially destructive campsites to people who can’t afford the only legal places to sleep!
I say a good compromise is to tear down the freakin’ huts, replace them with regular old AT shelters or tent platforms and I’ll happily pay $8 to roll my sleeping bag out there.
mariachi.
ps: i wrote a series of stories in the travel section of the Boston Herald about my '02 thru. here’s a snippet of a story in which i addressed the AMC:
In addition to steep hills, the group that manages and maintains the trail in the heavily used White Mountains hits hikers with steep prices. I hiked more than 1,800 miles without ever paying to camp, but in the Whites I found almost no place to camp both free and legally.
The Boston-based Appalachian Mountain Club has a series of tent sites in the region where it charges $8 a person to unroll a sleeping bag, but most thru-hikers at some point find themselves at the end of the day at one of the AMCs eight huts. The huts are actually small trailside lodges where, for $69, a hiker gets a bunk and a tasty breakfast and dinner. The huts have environmentally friendly features, such as solar power and fancy composting toilets, but they’re targeted at the well-heeled. Most thru-hikers ditch jobs or school for half a year at a time to walk the trail, making them world-class penny pinchers. Few can afford to pay $69 a night to sleep on the trail.
It’s possible to trade an hour or two of work for a place to stay, but there are generally more thru-hikers than available work-for-stay slots, and thru-hikers had best be prepared to eat leftovers and sleep on the floor. The one night I did work for stay, the thru-hikers sat like a bunch of stray dogs on the floor near the restrooms while the paying customers ate. After clearing the tables, we ate what was left.
The system prompts lots of thru-hikers to “stealth camp” in sites of questionable legality. One evening I hiked up to a hut only to find they had no more work-for-stay available, and the next legal campsite was too far off. So, on the recommendation of the hut staff, I pitched my tarp in a clearing just off the trail, possibly risking a fine if a ranger happened by.
mindlessmariachi
