ALDHA 2016 35th Annual Gathering, OCT. 7-10 Williamstown, Massachusetts

Highlighted by a blaze of fall colors, Board Members of the Maine Chapter of the International Appalachian Trail (MIAT) traveled along the Mohawk Trail (Rt.2) to Williams College, Williamstown, Mass. to attend the 3-day Annual 35th Gathering of the Appalachian Long Distant Hikers Association (ALDHA).

The MIAT participants; Dick Anderson, Walter Anderson, Cliff Young, Bill Duffy, and Josh Bowe, arrived Friday noon at Greylock Hall to assemble our assigned information/display booth, strategically located next to the ALDHA registration table and with prominent visibility and ready accessibility for visitors. Attendance at the “Gathering” was designated at 500 souls.
In addition to our information booth, the ALDHA program included two 1 ½ hour slots for five MIAT power point presentations: (1) IAT History & Deasey Mt. Historic Fire Cab Designation (Dick); (2) Pioneers in Appalachian Geology (Walter); (3) IAT AGM in Ireland & Northern Ireland (Walter); (4) Hiking the IAT in Greenland (Bill); (5) Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument (Walter). All were well attended. Attendance for presentations 4 & 5 were packed with standing room (50+) & well applauded. The mention of Roxanne Quimby was greeted with standing ovation and cheers!

A variety of interesting folks visited our booth over two days including, several of whom recently hiked the IAT in the British Isles on the West Highland Way, Great Glen Way, Cape Wrath and the Ulster Way. Ron Tipton, Director of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) and Sandi Mara, Chair of the ATC Board of Directors and her husband Chris honored us with a lengthy visit and discussion. A famous long distant hiker, trail name “Billy Goat” stopped by and informed us that he was 2300 miles short of a total of 50,000 miles hiked!
This ALDHA 3 day event was, as usual, a great way to meet and network with a lot of avid long distant hikers and inform them of IAT news and hiking opportunities.

Celebrating a National Treasure – Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument

Roxanne Quimby, Lucas St. Clair, and his twin sister Hannah Quimby hosted a grand celebration on the shores of Millinocket Lake at New England Outdoor Center’s Twin Pine Camps. The Natural Resources Council of Maine, The Wilderness Society, The Pew Charitable Trust, the National Parks Conservation Association, and the Conservation Lands Fund joined Roxanne, Lucas, and Hannah in thanking everyone who contributed to securing the designation of the Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument by President Barack Obama.
Don Hudson, Phine Ewing, Walter Anderson, Elaine and Eric Hendrickson, Lindsay and Michael Downing, Mark and Susan Adams, Bart DeWolf, former board member Eric Horschak, Aaron Meguier, Terry and Craig Hill, and numerous other IAT members and friends were on hand to bask in the great excitement and appreciation sparked by the Quimby family’s generous gift — the largest gift to the people of the United States since the days of John D. Rockefeller and Paul Mellon.
The New England Outdoor Center’s Matt Polstein welcomed nearly 300 people to the formal gathering, looking out across Millinocket Lake to Katahdin, shortly after 5:00 pm. Sunday, August 28th. The highlight speeches were made by Secretary of the Interior, Sally Jewell and Liliane Willens. Secretary Jewell spoke about the significance of the gift to the nation, the importance of land such as this to the health and well-being of all Americans, and the special qualities of the land — the East Branch of the Penobscot, the hiking opportunities — especially the IAT, and the richness of the geologic heritage.

Secretary Sally Jewell addresses the gathering mentioning the significance of geology to the richness of the area and to the International Appalachian Trail for helping to promote it.
Liliane Willens, Roxanne’s aunt, regaled the crowd with stories about her family’s path from Russia, through Shanghai, to the United States beginning after the Russian Revolution and concluding at the end of World War II. Lily believes Roxanne developed qualities of perseverance, grit, and determination from her maternal grandmother, who had lead the family through much of that trek. When Lucas St. Clair addressed the crowd he too raised a great laugh of appreciation when he spoke about the power and dominance of women in his family, and how at a young age he learned not to second guess either his mother’s wisdom or her determination to get a job done. Lucas was clearly relieved that this particular job was done!

Roxanne Quimby’s aunt Liliane Willens speaks to the crowd about the qualities of perseverance and grit her niece learned from her maternal grandmother.
The hard-working staff of NEOC provided the wonderful setting for the gathering, along with delicious food and drink. Dave Mallett and his band took the party deep into the night with an endless serenade for the party-goers.

Dave Mallett tunes up to serenade the crowd after a wonderful buffet dinner prepared by the staff of the New England Outdoor Center.
The first 31 miles of the IAT is now on land considered by President Barack Obama to be a national treasure, and we agree!

Obama signs order to create national monument in Maine’s North Woods

The president uses his executive authority to create the national monument on land donated to the federal government by entrepreneur and conservationist Roxanne Quimby.
President Obama designated more than 87,500 acres of forestland in Maine’s fabled North Woods as a national monument Wednesday in a historic but unilateral decision following years of bitter debate.
With the stroke of a pen, Obama created the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument – the second national monument in Maine history after Acadia National Park’s precursor – on land east of Baxter State Park in an area facing severe economic uncertainty. The move is likely to delight conservation activists and infuriate local opponents fearful the designation is trading potential industrial-based opportunities in the Katahdin region for mostly seasonal tourism jobs.
The designation is a substantial yet partial victory for Roxanne Quimby, the wealthy co-founder of the Burt’s Bees product line whose nonprofit, Elliotsville Plantation Inc., donated the land to the federal government this month. Quimby has pushed for years for a full-fledged national park in the North Woods but sought a lesser monument designation because it did not require congressional approval.

Roxanne Quimby donated 87,500 acres in the Katahdin region and advocated for its designation as a national monument.
“The new national monument – which will be managed by the National Park Service – will protect approximately 87,500 acres, including the stunning East Branch of the Penobscot River and a portion of the Maine Woods that is rich in biodiversity and known for its outstanding opportunities to hike, canoe, hunt, fish, snowmobile, snowshoe and cross-country ski,” reads a fact sheet released by the White House. “In addition to protecting spectacular geology, significant biodiversity and recreational opportunities, the new monument will help support climate resiliency in the region. The protected area – together with the neighboring Baxter State Park to the west – will ensure that this large landscape remains intact, bolstering the forest’s resilience against the impacts of climate change.”
Obama’s decision is unlikely to end the robust and often tense debate that has divided the Katahdin region’s business community and even some families, however.
While organizations such as the Katahdin Area Chamber of Commerce hope it will lure more tourists and create jobs, opponents warned it could further destabilize a forest products industry struggling to rebound from the closure of the Millinocket and East Millinocket paper mills. Many others have mixed views, seeing significant jobs potential but not in the industry that was once the backbone of the region.
Gov. Paul LePage as well as U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin, R-District 2, strongly opposed Quimby’s plan, based in large part on feedback from the forest products industry, sportsmen and others. The other members of Maine’s congressional delegation have been divided on the issue.
Residents in several Katahdin area towns such as East Millinocket and Medway have cast non-binding votes opposing a monument. Yet polls suggest the majority of Maine voters, including a majority in the state’s northern congressional district, supported a hypothetical monument designation.