Dayhikers Need to Know, Thru's and Section hikers, please read as well!

imported
#1

I post this for Dayhikers on the AT due to a circumstance I encountered today that bothered me greatly. In anticipation of my section hike later this year I have been day hiking with fullpack (50+lbs) to train. When I do this I always leave stuff at shelters (cokes, beer, candy). Anyways today while out, I stopped at a shelter, left my offerings to the thru and section hikers and moved on. On my return trip I came across some female day hikers, no packs, etc., thought nothing of it. My wife and I then stopped at the same shelter I had left the offerings at, and lo and behold the day hiking ladies had signed the shelter journal, no big deal, but what was??? They had taken all the candy with the exception of one candy bar. Now dayhikers, I know this is the only way some of you will ever get to experience the AT, but the candy, soda, beer in the shelters is, and I REPEAT, NOT FOR YOU!!! Please do not take it, I do not spend my hard earned money to feed people who will be eating at home or a restaurant that night, I do it because I am a section hiker who hopes to get a thru hike done in the next ten years, and I believe in Karma, and hope that other generous souls will do the same for me in the future. Sign the register, by all means, it’s nice to hear from those out on a given day, but leave the food alone, if you know you will be getting hungry that day, here is a novel idea, buy some food and bring it with you. Long distance hikers can only fit so much into a pack, and generally burn 6000 calories a day. They rarely eat even 3000 calories, meaning every calorie has benefit. Leave the empty calories for them, and wait till you get home to stuff your face, they may not get a good home cooked meal for 4-7 days.

Thru’s and Sections please feel free to chime in. Maybe if enough people state that this is for those going more than 4 hours, then some of the dayhikers will pass on the wisdom and stay away from what is intended to be trail magic for those that “REALLY” need and appreciate it!

Professor

#2

LOL…thats funny

tribes

#3

I agree with the professor. My Wife and I spent the day driving to the trail today. We stopped in Franklin to purchase some trail magic for the thru hikers. We filled a five gallon bucket full of trail goodies for the THRU HIKERS. We left it just past the tower on Wayah Bald hanging in a tree over the trail. It is for thru hikers to help them on down the trail. We wrote a small note on the lid that it was for thru hikers only. Take what you need and leave the rest for others. I pray that day hikers won’t bother it. My wife wouldnt even let me have one of the Capri Sun drinks.LOL She said we will be in town in an hour, the hikers may not be in town for days. So I waited till we got to town to get a drink. If I can wait so can other day hikers. Enjoy the trail and the Magic.
Concerned Trail Angels.

Concerned Trail Angels

#4

How did you mark your offering? Why would you think that dayhikers would understand the intent? I suggest you put the offering in a plastic bag (which can be re-used!) and mark it “Trail Magic for Thru-Hikers”. I understand your feelings, but most people don’t read minds, and can’t read auras left on random objects that are strewn about. Despite your total involvement with the trail (good for you!), many people who hike the trail are not thinking that way.

The Elian

#5

How did you mark your offering? Why would you think that dayhikers would understand the intent? I suggest you put the offering in a plastic bag (which can be re-used!) and mark it “Trail Magic for Thru-Hikers”. I understand your feelings, but most people don’t read minds, and can’t read auras left on random objects that are strewn about. Despite your total involvement with the trail (good for you!), many people who hike the trail are not thinking that way.

The Elian

#6

Our offering was marked.We wrote on the lid That it was intened for nobos and sobos. we also wrote all over the outside that trail magic was inside. We also wrote to please leave the bucket when empty so that we may refill it next weekend.

Concerned Trail Angels

#7

I find this post funny because the Professor is breaking LNT rules by leaving these items behind. Maybe a armed guard checking the official thru hiker ID’s before dispension of candy or maybe even a combo lock that only thrus and section hikers have the combo too. Just kidding.

I understand leaving goodies is out of the goodness of heart towards long distance hikers, but it is still in violation with leave no trace ethics and probably violates every maintaining club’s rules on acceptable shelter ettiquette. Leaving a 5 gallon bucket filled with junk food is too. In theory the dayhikers were helping to clean up this violation. I understand your dissapointment, but long distance hikers only make up a small % of the hikers on the AT. And there is no real way to enforce your selective magic. If you are not willing to have this food be shared by everyone who hikes it, then maybe you should not leave it behind. I love trail magic, but I do not think you can be selective in who receives it, especially if you are not there to see who is getting at your goodies. Whether you like it or not, that is the way it is going to be on the trail.

Tribes

#8

To all of you Feburary Starters. Just want to let you know there is some trail magic out there on the trail. Just past the tower at Wayah Bald. My wife and I hung a 5 gallon bucket full of goodies, for thru hikers,in a tree. The bucket has teal fish painted all over the outside of it. Hope you all get there before the BEars

Trail Angels

#9

Hey Tribes,
You may be right about the leave no trace. We were just trying to do good for the thru’s. It’s our way of living the dream.

Concerned trail Angels

#10

Thru-hikers ain’t special. No hikers are special. They CHOOSE to be out there. They can fend for themselves. Leave your goodies at home. Friggin elitists.

Lone Wolf

#11

Wow such a touchy subject. Sorry to offend Just trying to help. Lighten up people.

Concerned Trail Angels

#12

Tribes, I know that you’re correct in this, but so many of us do it, and everyone knows what it’s about. Lone Wolf man, it has nothing to do with being elitist, it has to do with they can get their own. Basically what you’re all telling me and it’s something I’ve been thinking about, if I wanna give stuff out then do it by hand to someone I want to. Hey if that’s how it’s gotta be, then fine that’s what I’ll do. Part of it was tongue in cheek to see these three fat ladies waddling down the trail, knowing they had just stuffed their faces with the candy I had left on the trail, and, they hadn’t even been out for more than an hour and a half…tops. As for the special part, well, no one said they were special, just dealing with a completely different set of circumstances than what day hikers are dealing with. I do have a word for you, maybe you should change your name to Curmudgeon or Crotchety…Take your pick!:lol

Professor

#13

Tribes,
Your point is well taken, like I said, I think more than anything it was their appearance that bothered me, it was like the last thing they needed was some candy, as for breaking rules…that’s what life’s all about, perhaps in the future I’ll hang the food from a a bear cable, and then only the inquisitive will find it. Feel free to make fun, just don’t attack me for making my opinion known. You’ll hurt my feelings…and then I might cry.:bawling :tongue

Professor

#14

Its all good Professor.I find it funny that these statements are coming from people that will probably consume all the trail magic left for them as they come across it. Even if it is in a 5 gal bucket hanging from a tree. Don’t ya bet.
Signed The Elitist:tongue

Concerned Trail Angels

#15

Hah, Good one, Mr. Elitist, can I join your club and be an elitist too?

Professor

#16

You’re right. I would definitely indulge in Trail Magic, but would definitely leave some for my fellow hikers. Sorry to dissappoint you and your perceived image of who I am.

Tribes

#17

I was out section hiking once . . . also known as BACKPACKING :nerd . . . and I came across a cooler of treats left by the Pie Lady (narrows down the section, don’t it?). Inside were many cold root beers and many whoopie-pies, which probably took the better part of an afternoon to make, not to mention what it cost. It said on the cooler something like ‘hikers enjoy’. There were no other stipulations or requirements.

But it is where she placed the cooler that led me to think that she did not intend it to be consumed by day-hikers. I don’t mean that it was put fifty feet off the trail, I mean that it wasn’t put where day hikers congregate. Where the popular hikes are, in other words.

If I place a cooler full of treats way out by Third Mt, not too many day hikers are going to come across it. It’s a fairly isolated section of the AT in Maine, and not too popular with day hikers. If I’m really clever, I’ll take it out by Saddleback Junior, where I know day hikers won’t find it.

If I place a cooler full of treats at the foot of Moxie Bald, or Bigelow, or Old Speck and think that day hikers won’t find it, then I am stupid. In order to keep the peace (cause all too easily this could become a ‘purist’ thread) I’ll just say, Professor, that you aren’t being very realistic. If in fact you are placing goodies in a lean-to and they are quickly snatched up by day-hikers . . . maybe you left the food a bit too close to a road? That would explain the sudden presence of day-hikers.

A possible solution would be . . . you say that you have 50lbs of stuff that you carry in order to get in shape for a longer hike. Well, next time, instead of leaving the goodies at the nearest shelter, seek one out that is a bit more out of the way. And instead of just going out for a day hike, why not do an overnighter, and go about ten miles down the trail and leave the food there (providing that locale isn’t itself too near a road).

And at the risk being a doofus, I would say that complaining about day-hikers while you are day-hiking is . . . kind of goofy. And you know, I can understand the karma thing - I have been a trail angel myself from time to time and can see where you’re coming from - but it’s not something I’m consumed (snuck in a pun there!) with.

For instance, I give rides to hikers fairly often. One day, I see this guy. He looks a lot like a thru-hiker, so I pick him up. I took him from Greenville all the way to Kokadjo. As we were half-way there, I find out that this guy isn’t a thru-hiker; isn’t, in fact, a hiker at all. He was . . . I dunno, some kind of coast-to-coast walker. But I didn’t kick him out of the car all of a sudden. In fact it was neat to learn of his many travels as I took him to Kokadjo. I didn’t look upon the experience that I had missed an opportunity to live vicariously thru a thru-hiker . . . instead I looked upon it as what it was - an opportunity to give a gift to a total stranger.

But that’s just my two cents.

Kineo Kid

#18

Tribes, Im not at all disappointed. And my image of you wasn’t “pre” conceived, it was conceived after your post not before.

concerned

#19

I left a snickers bar under a rock a foot of the trail somewere past Neels gap. So if you see a semi-round rock 12 inches to the right side of the trail, Enjoy! I’m just glad I could help someone out. But it is for thru hikers only.

Buckwheat

#20

You know what everyone, let’s show a little love I guess, no offense intended to you Tribes, I think you were just being honest, my comments and I think concerneds were more for Lone Wolf, all I was saying is that I wish fat and happy day hikers would have a little discretion is all, I just went about it in my typical sarcastic manner. Kineo I agree that it is kind of funny, but I see it more as ironic, because while day hiking I would never partake, maybe it’s my own personal philosophy in conjunction with the fact that I carry enought to satiate myself out for the day, and I also have a nice meal waiting for me as I head home. I do plan on doing overnighters, but I like to hike with my wife from time to time and we are still in the process of gearing her up as I plan on doing some small weekend sections to get me to Hiawasee. From there I will have at least 15 days to hike this summer, I will use them to go from there to…Hot Springs. I’ve done the math and know my speed alone, easy to do, unless, weather becomes completely uncooperative, or physical injury limits my attempt. I have nothing but love for the hiking community, but it’s all a matter of need to me, and being realistic nobody out for 2-4 hours needs to glom off of others, but I will take the advice to leave stuff from now on deeper into the trail, or else when I do an overnight just stay near a shelter and share some goodies brought with me.Regardless, I thought I was the only one that attacked others in my Rants within my journal entries but from some of these responses I guess I am not the only one who likes to play the sarcasm game. Yes, the food is there, and yes technically anyone can take it, I concede the point. However, just as I tell my students almost everyday, just because you can doesn’t mean you should. Do you people get where I am going, or must I always be a realist, and just accept the fact that some people will always take advantage of a good thing? Can’t wait to see the replies on this one. If it keeps going the way it has been I will soon have to orifices to krap out of.:happy

Professor