I last saw my college buddies in 2004 at Dan's wedding. We're pretty spread out these days and every so often we promise to all get together somewhere. Last year it was Washington DC. It didn't happen. The previous year it was Buffalo. Didn't happen. This year somebody suggested we start hiking the Appalachian Trail. Every year we'll get together and knock off a piece of the trail until we're little old men and cross the finish line in Maine. Never going to happen. I thought...
Well it turns out we're gathering in Atlanta at Dillon's house then setting out for 3 days on the AT. Now, I don't know much, but I do know that I haven't been on an overnight hiking trip since the 6th grade. There's a lot I don't know about hiking so I started doing some internet research when I came across this :
"Due to the recent bear activity and new FS policy, the AT from Neels Gap to Tesnatee Gap is now closed to any camping activity for one month, effective immediately."
Bear activity. What? So I continued with my internet research and found this. I think it will help:
http://bikesandguitars.wordpress.com/2009/04/15/instructional-video/
But seriously, let's talk anti-bear preparations. I have a bear bell. It will velcro nicely to my pack and it will notify bears of my presence as well as drive my fellow hikers insane. Probably not in that order. And so endeth my anti-bear preparations.
What about food? Can they smell food if it's freeze dried in those little foil packages? What if it's tuna fish in a sealed foil package. What about if it's a stick of gum in a little foil wrapper? Am I really going to have to suspend my food in a bag 15 feet off the ground and 4 feet from any vertical support? Really?
See the optimist in me says our ending point for this first phase of the AT will be Tesnatee Gap. That's 36 miles in 3 days. So we'll be hiking right through the middle of "recent bear activity." And what exactly is "bear activity?" Is this just bears walking around? Or is this bears unzipping tents and stealing babies under cover of darkness? It seems so ambiguous. Good thing I have my bell.
So for the record:
*departure date: May 24, 2009
*time on trail: planned 3 days (yes, I realize at this rate it will take 61 years)
*hikers: Me, Dan, Menna, Morris, Dillon
Yes, anything that has an odor has to be put in some backpack and hung suspended in the air. I would highly recommend attaching extra lines to the pack in case one or more is cut by said bear. They will show a little initiative with a few of the cords, but give up after a couple of tries.
ReplyDeleteSmellables include but are not limited to: film, toilet articles, ANY food, tobacco, and drinks. Having a sharp knife with you in the tent is a good idea too at night. It isn't to stick the bear with which only makes it mad, but to cut your way out if it decides to come for a visit.
Have fun! I would also familiarize myself the morphology of poison ivy and poison oak. Hyrdrocortisone is a good thing to bring.