[at-l] Trail Etiquette

[rafe.bustin@verizon.net (Raphael Bustin)]

At 04:53 PM 5/30/2002 -0500, you wrote:
> > > And more people who should have
> > > stayed home and camped on the couch are out hiking
> >
> > Just out of curiosity, what exactly defines one of these people?
> > *G*  Anna
>
>I see the grin, but it's a true and serious statement.  A few newbies die
>every year, and mostly from being ignorant or ill-prepared to face the
>conditions they meet.  CNN reports that a rescue chopper just crashed on Mt.
>Hood while trying to rescue some folks.  When I was out west several people
>a year would die from exposure - both in heat and cold.


This happens a few times each year in the Whites, particularly
on Mt. Washington.  Check out the plaque in the Pinkham Notch
lodge next time you're there.  Through-hikers have seen it, I'm sure.

The main danger is hubris.  Some city slickers know that they
can't deal with the woods and don't like the woods anyway, so
they stay away.  Others figure that if they've clawed their way to
the corner office, they can deal with whatever the mountains
and forests might dish out.  These are the ones most likely to
end up dead or in deep trouble.


rafe b.
aka terrapin