[at-l] PROPOSED 'PURISM' LANGUAGE

[jplynch@crosslink.net (Jim Lynch)]

This is good food for thought.  Question: since we know pretty
specifically exactly what the AT is from time to time (and it does
change), would we put some equal specificity into designating which
blue-blazed trails are 'harder' and therefore qualify.  This might be
worth considering to alleviate any confusion and many calls to the ATC
office ("does trail xxx qualify").  I can even see a 'special' blaze to
designate an alternate AT route.  

"Bob C." wrote:
> 
> For what they may be worth, the following is how I would modify the Appalachian
> Trail Conference policies for issuing 2,000 miler certificates and patches. My
> proposed changes are in Capital letters.
> 
> "The Appalachian Trail Conference officially recognizes those hikers completing
> the trail either in one season or in sections through the years.
> 
> The ATC confers the designation of "2,000-miler" on any hiker who reports he or
> she walked the entire length of the Appalachian Trail. We use the term
> "2,000-miler" as a matter of tradition and convenience — that's the original
> length of the Trail, and changing the designation each time the length changes
> would be impractical.
> 
> Our recognition policy does:
> 
> give equal recognition to thru-hikers and section-hikers,
> 
> recognize blue-blazed trails or officially required roadwalks as viable
> substitutes for the official, white-blazed route in the event of an emergency,
> such as a flood, a forest fire, or an impending storm on an exposed,
> high-elevation stretch, and operate on the honor system.
> 
> IN ADDITION THE POLICY RECOGNIZES THE USE OF BLUE-BLAZED TRAILS LEADING INTO OR
> FROM SHELTERS, PARALLELING THE WHITE-BLAZED TRAIL, AS WELL AS BLUE-BLAZED TRAILS
> THAT TRAVERSE MORE DIFFICULT TERRAIN SUCH AS SUMMITS BYPASSED BY THE WHITE
> BLAZES AND LONGER LOOPED TRAILS LEADING TO WATERFALLS AND OTHER SCENIC
> ATTRACTIONS, PROVIDING THESE ARE LOCATED WITHIN THE OFFICIALLY DESIGNATED TRAIL
> CORRIDOR.
> 
>  Our recognition policy does not consider: sequence, direction, speed, or
> whether one carries a pack. ATC assumes that those who apply for 2,000-miler
> status have made honest efforts to walk the WHITE-BLAZED Appalachian Trail from
> Katahdin to Springer Mountain OR THE MORE DIFFICULT BLUE BLAZED ROUTES THAT ARE
> PART OF THE SYSTEM OF TRAILS KNOWN COLLECTIVELY AS THE APPALACHIAN TRAIL."
> 
>  Weary
> 
-- 
James P. ('Jim') Lynch
jplynch@crosslink.net