[at-l] RE"Policing the Trail

[camojack at comcast.net (Jack)]

IOW, Weary, you're not just talkin' the talk...you're walkin' the walk. I 
knew that already.
-"Camo" (Who HA$ helped that there M.A.T.L.T. organization...)
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Bob C" <ellen@clinic.net>
To: <camojack@comcast.net>; "J. Lynch" <jplynch@crosslink.net>; 
<AT-L@backcountry.net>
Sent: Monday, May 23, 2005 8:42 AM
Subject: Re: [at-l] RE"Policing the Trail


I was a maintainer for 25 years and a volunteer overseer of 23 maintainers 
for seven years. I'm still a volunteer but not as a maintainer. I still 
think motors should be kept out of Congressionally designated wilderness 
areas except in very rare instances.

The Maine trail is probably the most remote of the 2,175 miles of AT and 
Maine has the smallest population base on which to draw for volunteers. But 
we manage to keep the trail maintained to a pretty good standard.

My major effort these days is to keep the trail remote and wild, now that 
all the land adjacent to the narrow corridor has been purchased by 
developers.

Our Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust has made it's first purchases, 
snatching from the jaws of the land speculators, Abraham, a mountain just 
off the Saddleback-Poplar Ridge range, and the southeastern slopes of 
Saddleback itself.

We still have a $200,000 mortgage on our $661,000 purchase. It comes due 
Oct. 1. You can help.

Just open:   http://www.matlt.org

There you will find the details.

Weary

> Here's the thing; when I (or most anyone else, for that matter) perform
> trail maintenance, it's VOLUNTEER work. So, it would behoove the
> organization(s) overseeing the maintenance to make it as easy as possible,
> lest it discourage people FROM volunteering. Make me wear a uniform? No
> thanks, I did that for years in the military. (I know, I still wear the
> camo pants, but that's by CHOICE) Limit me to hand tools? That's all
> right for some things, but when a BIG tree has fallen across the
> treadway, that's a job for a CHAINSAW. Does it make noise? Yes. SO?! The 
> bow
> saws, clippers, etc. are fine only to a point.
>
> It's real easy to TALK about restrictions on maintainers...but I say,
> get out there and DO some maintenance before rendering an OPINION.
> You're probably aware of what they say about THOSE...
>