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



> From: 	Matt Perrenod
> 
> 
> 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.  
> 
> - Priest
> 
> 
> I agree that this would usually work, and I've been annoyed by
> over-blazing on occasion myself.  But at certain times of year a trail
> may be harder to follow.  I have in mind a section hike I did in CT/MA
> in the fall several years ago.  I got the timing close to perfect from
> both weather and leaf-peeping perspectives.  But at several points
> along the way, the uniform layer of several inches of freshly fallen
> leaves on the forest floor, made the location of the trail difficult
> to determine.  Since the blazes were generally no more than a few
> hundred feet apart, it didn't take too long to hunt one up.  But at a
> quarter of a mile, this could have been much more of a challenge.  
> 
> I haven't done any winter camping in many years, but I would imagine
> the same problem might occur with freshly fallen snow.  Which reminds
> me of another problem with AT blazes.  Surely I'm not the only person
> who has had trouble following a trail in winter because the blazes are
> the same color as the snow. I'd like to suggest changing the color of
> one or the other, which ever would be less controversial.
> 
> Peter 
> 
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