June 2013 Trail Work Trip Report

Baxter State Park boundary to Deasey Mt. trail maintenance, and routine maintenance work at Katahdin Brook and Wassataquoik campsites
June 26-27, 2013
Day #1
Dave Rand proposed a ‘punch’ list of work for the crew at the annual meeting, and everything on Dave’s list was completed by a crew of seven: Cheryl and Kirk St. Peter, Earl Raymond, Julia Daly, Ruby Rockwell, Kelsey O’Connor and Don Hudson.
Don and Earl drove up from Portland area with Walter’s supply of Poland Spring water, as well as food and gear for the work trip. Julia and two students, Ruby and Kelsey, and Cheryl and Kirk arrived at the Irving Station at Sherman Exit at about 10:00 AM. Cheryl and Kirk had their ATV , chainsaw, clippers and other gear.\

The group drove 22 miles into Wassataquoik lean-to on the new access road just opened by EPI. Earl had a map and led the way with Don’s Volvo doing some serious scraping along on the new ½ mile section built to connect existing tracks.
The lean-to was in very good condition and Kirk quickly removed the fir tree that had fallen on it last winter, causing no damage.
After a quick lunch everyone went to the Wassataquoik Stream crossing to reinstall the rope. The rope had shrunk a bit over the winter and the reserve line wound around the tree on the south side of the river had to used to complete the job. Don scythed the grassy area along the river while the rest of the crew cut brushed the trail to the turn on the Keep Path to Deasey Mt. Here a new marker post was installed.

Don cooked a quick stroganoff for dinner, during showers and a downpour, and Cheryl provided strawberry shortcake. The day ended with a smoky campfire to match the multitudes of mosquitoes.
Day #2
Kirk, Julia, Ruby, and Kelsey O’Connor returned to the post set yesterday and worked all day on the trail to Deasey Mountain. The first group headed directly to the summit in order to work downhill. Don and Cheryl first cut a 100 yard detour around the new beaver pond just north of the lean-to on the Orin Falls Road, which Earl had scouted before breakfast. Don and Cheryl then headed across the river to work up the mountain towards the group coming down.
While the first two crews were working on the Deasey Mountain Trail, Earl headed to the Katahdin Brook lean-to. He hiked back up Gardner Road to check the post and blazes and found them in very good condition. The post and stones at old mile zero on the Gardner Road have been removed, now that a new trail is being built in the Park to connect Katahdin Lake with the new IAT campsite on Katahdin Brook. Earl returned to Wassataquoik Stream and hiked up the trail to meet the crew at the cut off to the Warden Cabin.
There were numerous blow downs along the trail, and it was hot and muggy day with ample mosquitoes. Hemlock and Pine are growing in thick along a couple of stretches of the Keep Path and another old road, and they will need trimming every year. The day was so hot that the girls went swimming when they got back to the crossing. Everyone pitched in with the last task of the day – to remove the slack from the safety line across the river. Julia, Ruby and Kelsey then left in the late afternoon to reach Farmington in time for a prior commitment.

During supper Mark Leathers visited with Lucas St. Clair, Tom Chase, the new Lunksoos Camps managers, Susan and Mark Adams, and several others. It was quite a surprise, and Don almost burned the chicken in all the commotion.
Day #3
The group broke camp after to breakfast and headed to Katahdin Brook campsite to build a fire ring.

Mark Learthers and EPI has placed a 30” wide steel bridge across Katahdin Stream, informally named “Walter’s Bridge” for easy access to the trail and campsite. The crew bumped in to Mark, Susan and Mark Adams, and Cathy Johnson at the top of the Gardiner Road as they were leaving. EPI is planning for greater public access to their lands now that a new loop road has been created from Whetstone Bridge outside Sherman Station.

The days were hot and muggy, the mosquitoes fierce, but all tasks on Dave’s list were accomplished. The new access road is in great shape. A number of moose were spotted. Earl claims that the food was good, but that the entertainment and the German singing was not up to par. A special thanks goes out to Julia Daly and her University of Maine at Farmington students Ruby Rockwell and Kelsey O’Connor for providing youth and energy.

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy Names New Chief Executive

Ron Tipton and Dick Anderson
On July 16, 2013, the Board of Directors of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy named Ronald J. Tipton the new Executive Director/CEO. Ron Tipton will begin leading the organization in late August. IAT Founder and Maine Chapter Board Member Dick Anderson had a chance to meet with Ron Tipton at the recent biennial conference and bring him up to date on the development of the trail in Europe.
For full announcement of Ron’s appointment:
Other Board of Directors News:
Cullowhee, NC (July 26, 2013) – On July 20th 2013, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) announced that Sandra Marra and Marcia Fairweather will serve on the board of directors. The board of directors is made up of 15 elected volunteers who are elected to serve two-year terms.
Marra of Alexandria, Virginia, is chair of the ATC and has been a volunteer to the Appalachian Trail (A.T.) for over 25 years. She has served in a variety of positions, including three terms with the former Appalachian Trail Conference board of managers, where she played an active role in the ATC’s reorganization process. Marra has also served on the Stewardship Council and the Development Committee. She also served two terms as president of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC). She is a life member of the ATC, an honorary life member of the PATC, member of the Benton MacKaye Society and the Appalachian Trail Legacy Society. Marra is currently serving as Chief Operating Officer for St. Coletta of Greater Washington, Inc., a Washington DC nonprofit organization that operates a school and adult programs for developmentally disabled children and adults. As a board member, Marra brings professional skills in nonprofit management and human resources to the organization.

Dick Anderson and ATC Board Chair Sandy Mara
Marcia Fairweather of Heathsville, Virginia, is an adventurer at heart and participates in many outdoor activities. After visiting the ATC headquarters on a rafting trip to Harpers Ferry in 1993, she caught the bug to hike the Trail. She completed the entire A.T. in August of 2008. She has initiated A.T. hikes for others as part of a mission to get as many people to hike at least 10 miles of the Trail in every state through her A.T. in Every State program (ATIES). As an avid Girl Scout, she was introduced to nature and the outdoors in her youth and has provided continued support as an adult leader and trainer. She plans outdoor adventure excursions through her Fresco Adventures program for adults and youth to explore nature by land, water, and even air with skydiving and hang-gliding adventures. She is a member of the PATC and Appalachian Mountain Club, as well as other outdoor related clubs, and is on the board of directors of Washington Women Outdoors. Her previous career in information technology and as a consultant in the business and real estate development industry provides professional experience to assist in the many development efforts required by the ATC.
“The board of directors plays a vital role in shaping the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and the Appalachian Trail by approving policies that govern the Trail and ensuring that the organization has the resources it needs to complete its mission,” stated Steve Paradis, acting executive director of the ATC.
The board is responsible for communicating the mission and the purpose of the ATC. They establish and maintain relationships with the stewardship council, clubs, partners, members, and other stakeholders. While enhancing the public standing of the ATC, they also ensure legal and ethical integrity and fiscal accountability.
Also elected to the board were new members Beth Critton, Edward R. Guyot, Carrie Rodriguez-Tweeten, Samuel J. Sarofeen, Nathaniel Stoddard, and Greg Winchester. Leonard Bernstein, Richard J. Daileader, Arthur Foley, Mary Higley, Terry Lierman, Elizabeth Pierce Thompson, and Clark Wright Jr. are all returning board members.
For more information on the AT and ATC, please visit www.appalachiantrail.org.

IAT Participates in the Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s 39th Biennial Conference

WCU Campus
Maine Chapter members Dick Anderson, Walter Anderson and Don Hudson traveled to Western Carolina University in Cullowhee on July 19th to participate in the 39th Biennial Conference of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. Cullowhee, North Carolina is nestled in the foothills west of Ashville, southeast of the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee. The crew from Maine managed a booth for the IAT in the exhibit hall and made a presentation about the history and growth of the trail on the last evening of the conference, July 23rd.
Conference participants were in residence from July 19-26. A full program of workshops, field sessions and hikes was organized by representatives of the five hiking clubs that maintain the southern end of the AT, the Carolina Hiking Club, the Georgia Appalachian Trail Club, the Nantahala Hiking Club, the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club, and the Tennessee Eastman Hiking and Canoeing Club. Longtime ATC board member, Lenny Bernstein, chaired the ATC 2013 Steering Committee. Lenny should be pleased with the results of all the effort that went into planning the conference. For more information about the ATC and the biennial conference, go to www.appalachiantrail.org.

IAT Maine Chapter President, Don Hudson at the IAT Booth
The IAT booth in the exhibit hall was festooned with the flags of the 20 chapters, and it attracted significant attention from the 938 conference participants. Maps and flyers for the North American chapters were in high demand, as were materials describing hiking opportunities across the arc of the North Atlantic. A pocket companion for the West Highland Way in Scotland, the first European trail to link to the IAT in 2010, flew off the table. As interest in the IAT grows in the United States, it will be important for each of the chapters to develop a simple flyer and map to introduce hikers to opportunities in Canada, Greenland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and the many chapters in Europe.

Dick Anderson congratulates Ron Tipton and his wife, Rita Molyneaux, on Ron’s appointment as Executive Director/CEO of the ATC
In addition to the enthusiastic response of the conference participants to the growth of the IAT in Europe, several ATC board members expressed interest in developing closer ties between the AT and IAT. A representative of the AT will attend the IAT Annual General Meeting in Loch Lomond, Scotland in September, and other collaborations will most certainly emerge in the virtual and real worlds.

Dick Anderson and ATC Board Chair Sandy Mara

Dick Anderson and ATC Board Secretary Betsy Thompson
The Maine crew also enjoyed catching up with Larry Luxenburg, Founder of the Appalachian Trail Museum, Bill O’Brien, Newsletter Editor, and Mike Wingert, Chair of the Board of the Appalachian Long Distance Hikers Association (ALDHA). The IAT has worked closely with ALDHA since 1995 to help promote the trail and long distance hiking. The ALDHA Gathering will be in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania in October.

Bill O’Brien, Dick Anderson and Mike Wingert
The 40th Biennial Conference of the ATC is scheduled for Shenandoah University in Winchester, Virginia, July 17-24, 2015. The IAT will be well represented.