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[at-l] re: Trail Blazes and trail preferences

Standards for blazing are set by the trail maintaining clubs.  Some have
well-developed standards, others give less leadership in this regard to
individual maintainers.

My own view is that the trail is over-blazed as a whole.  The Georgia
Appalachian Trail Club a couple of years back came to the same
conclusion and established a new blazing policy which resulted in a
drastic reduction (somewhere around 90%, as I recall) in the number of
blazes in that state.  They reduced the number of double blazes to
something like a dozen over the full 75 miles.  Single blazes in most
cases arrive every quarter mile or so.  With this few blazes, every one
is well-sited and well-maintained.   In my opinion it works.  I've
walked 20 miles there, with no trouble locating the trail.  Nor does it
seem that the thruhikers posting journals on the Trailplace website have
had a problem.

It can be a little unsettling at first, but you rapidly get used to it.
With blazes only at key spots, you become aware of the other clues that
keep you on the path (or let you know before you've strayed far from
it).  Just one more way to minimize the impact of trail traffic.

Blazes every 20 feet?  Yuck.  Feels like the white lines down the
highway.  Better to put the effort in proper grading and other
erosion-control techniques.

GATC members I know like to make the claim that they're the best
maintaining club on the trail.  I don't know about that (I've had the
privilege of working with several other fine clubs), but as far as
blazing goes, I'd agree.

- Priest


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