[at-l] Re: ATML Sunscreen?

[Bob Cummings <ellen@clinic.net> (Bob Cummings)]

I think the need for sun screen may depend on your propensity to sun burns. I did not use it and
never felt the need, though perhaps my late start (April 13) may have helped. Still it was at least
a couple of weeks before there was significant leaf cover.

DelDoc, the medical doctor who has hiked the trail numerous times, did not list sun screen among the
things he carries on the trail. He spoke for a couple of hours at the ATC confernece this month and
I don't remember all the details, but I think he mentioned that sun screen usually was not necessary.

Though the leaves are not out in early spring in Georgia, just the branches of a deciduous tree
block a significant portion of the sun rays as people who design and live in solar homes know.

I strongly dislike being sun burned and worried about it on the trail. But it simply did not happen
in April and May in Georgia and North Carolina.

South bounders have more of a problem, because most tend to be above tree line for at least two
hours on Katahdin. If they haven't spent a lot of time outdoors first, a serious burn is probable,
as I've learned on a couple of occasions.

Of course, some argue that just getting a sun tan is harmful. May be. But if so, it has long been
too late for me to do anything about it.

Weary