After almost losing leg, Baldwin City man completes Appalachian trail - Lawrence Jour

[WhiteBlaze]

After almost losing leg, Baldwin City man completes Appalachian trail Lawrence Journal World Luke Weaver and his dog, Charlie, recently completed a nearly nine-month hike of the 2,185-mile-long Appalachian Trail. The 24-year-old Weaver said it was something he did to prove to himself he was recovered from surgery gone bad that nearly cost him ...

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[Chair-man]

In the article Weaver says
“The problem is the blazes are white and can be hard to see when a tree is blasted with ice or they get covered with snow,” Weaver said. “A couple of times I got lost and wandered 3 or 6 miles trying to find the trail. I trusted my hound dog with a real good nose. I wouldn’t have made it without Charlie.”

It's amazing how many keyboard hikers on whiteblaze say the problem of finding white blazes does not exist. Amazing.

[Lone Wolf]

It's amazing how many keyboard hikers on whiteblaze say the problem of finding white blazes does not exist. Amazing.

i've walked thousands of miles on the AT in all seasons and never got lost.

[Tuckahoe]

When blazes are covered over with ice and snow, what color are they?

[Slo-go'en]

People get lost when the blazes aren't covered with snow and ice and when they are, it really doesn't matter what color they would be.

[jj2044]

In the article Weaver says
“The problem is the blazes are white and can be hard to see when a tree is blasted with ice or they get covered with snow,” Weaver said. “A couple of times I got lost and wandered 3 or 6 miles trying to find the trail. I trusted my hound dog with a real good nose. I wouldn’t have made it without Charlie.”

It's amazing how many keyboard hikers on whiteblaze say the problem of finding white blazes does not exist. Amazing.

If this guy walked around for 3 to 6 miles looking for the trail, he is either an idiot or the conditions were so bad he shouldn't of been out there in the first place. when I completed the AT it snowed several times, I never had any problems. 99% of people have no problems at all... but there are idiots out there that walk all day in the wrong direction, get lost going to the bathroom, cant find the white blazes....

[Meriadoc]

It's amazing how many keyboard hikers on whiteblaze say the problem of finding white blazes does not exist. Amazing.

Not a keyboard hiker,

i've walked thousands of miles on the AT in all seasons and never got lost.

I have searched for trails before,

People get lost when the blazes aren't covered with snow and ice and when they are, it really doesn't matter what color they would be.

especially in fresh snow when the blazes and treadway are covered. If white blazes are partially covered then it can be harder to spot them. But white blazes are wonderful for showing up at night - especially when using a red headlamp. I consider the higher visibility in poor lighting to trump higher visibility in the very specialized case of a partially snow covered blaze.

I have searched for where the trail goes next before but I was never truly lost. The key thing my grandfather drilled into me is to stay found. Pay attention. If the trail is questionable, pay extra attention. We can't hand off responsibility to other people all of the time. (Note, I'm not saying that the hiker in the interview was inattentive. Considering that he just finished and the amount of snow we have had, I am sure he spent at least 6 cumulative miles searching for where the trail went next.)

[Sarcasm the elf]

It's amazing how many keyboard hikers on whiteblaze say the problem of finding white blazes does not exist. Amazing.

Or perhaps those of us who have been backpacking our entire lives believe that if you can't safely navigate in the woods then you shouldn't be hiking solo in the winter in the first place. The blazes are a convenience, they are in no way the only device that a hiker should be dependent on for their safety.

[Chair-man]

Or perhaps those of us who have been backpacking our entire lives believe that if you can't safely navigate in the woods then you shouldn't be hiking solo in the winter in the first place

I see, you must be a pro to go hiking? no rookies allowed?

Right now i know of 3 people who have started their thru. Here's an entry from one trailjournal page saying it's been hard to find the blazes.

[4eyedbuzzard]

In the article Weaver says
“The problem is the blazes are white and can be hard to see when a tree is blasted with ice or they get covered with snow,” Weaver said. “A couple of times I got lost and wandered 3 or 6 miles trying to find the trail. I trusted my hound dog with a real good nose. I wouldn’t have made it without Charlie.”

It's amazing how many keyboard hikers on whiteblaze say the problem of finding white blazes does not exist. Amazing.

Gee, so if the blazes are covered on one side of the trees from a blowing snow you don't turn around to see if perhaps you can see the blazes that go the other way to make sure you're still on the trail?
I've certainly "lost" the trail a few times - for 3 hundred feet maybe though, not 3 freaking miles. Maybe people should pay more attention to their surroundings and not rely on their dog to navigate.

[4eyedbuzzard]

I see, you must be a pro to go hiking? no rookies allowed?

Right now i know of 3 people who have started their thru. Here's an entry from one trailjournal page saying it's been hard to find the blazes.

Quoted from the 2nd sentence in the journal entry, "Being that there's was tracks to follow he was looking down and not looking for the blazes." Enough said.

[Chair-man]

Quoted from the 2nd sentence in the journal entry, "Being that there's was tracks to follow he was looking down and not looking for the blazes." Enough said.

If you read the whole journal there was another day where he had difficulty finding the blazes in the snow.

[4eyedbuzzard]

If you read the whole journal there was another day where he had difficulty finding the blazes in the snow.

Yep. Your point? It's winter. Every year a whole bunch of people think starting a NOBO in February is somehow a good idea, are advised to wait until April, and then wonder why they have difficulties. Same goes for those who want to start a SOBO in May, and then complain about trail conditions and bugs in ME and NH. People just don't listen.

[Sarcasm the elf]

I see, you must be a pro to go hiking? no rookies allowed?

Right now i know of 3 people who have started their thru. Here's an entry from one trailjournal page saying it's been hard to find the blazes.

Don't try to portray common sense safety advice into some sort of elitist straw man argument. If you can't find your way in the woods then you shouldn't be out there alone, especially not in the winter. Doing so is negligent and puts you and potentially search and rescue personnel in danger. If you're a rookie then start by going out with someone with more experience or sign up for a weekend basics course with a local trail club, it's not hard to learn the basics.

Now with all that said, maybe we can get back to the article that is the actual subject of this thread.

[Chair-man]

If you can't find your way in the woods then you shouldn't be out there alone, especially not in the winter. Doing so is negligent and puts you and potentially search and rescue personnel in danger.

This guy is not a rookie. Anyone can get disoriented, it can happen to the best of us.

[Sarcasm the elf]

This guy is not a rookie. Anyone can get disoriented, it can happen to the best of us.

We agree that anyone can get disoriented, but your suggestion that for some reason this is the fault of the blazes on the most well traveled long distance trail in the country is just foolish, this is the same thing that more than 90% of the people that responded to your poll said. You are really trying to portray a problem where there is none.

[4eyedbuzzard]

On his TJ "about me" page "Hudson" states that he sectioned the entire AT between 2004 and 2008 [entirely?]. He knows not to just be "following footprints" and to always be aware of blazes, and shouldn't be shocked that blazes can be obscured or trails hard to follow in winter. That he stopped and backtracked and found the trail shows that he knew exactly what to do once it happened. I'm sure he would admit he just wasn't paying attention. He did exactly the right thing. But you'll notice he only walked about 1/8 mile before he realized this - not 3 to 6 miles lost like the guy with the dog. The guy with the dog is a fool. People like that are the ones you read about in the S&R reports.

Do blazes get obscured in the snow? Sure. But you have to know in advance what to do. Blazes get obscured in the fog too. I've been up in the Whites in a 3 feet visibility fog when the only way to get down off the ridge was to find the next cairn while "tied off" to a length of cord. You go out and disappear into the mist, find the next cairn, and then everybody in the group follows the cord. Repeat until below the fog. Takes time and honestly can get a bit scary. And yeah, if you don't know how to do such things, you shouldn't be up there in the first place. Add just one more reason not to hike alone when other people aren't around.

[rocketsocks]

Gee, so if the blazes are covered on one side of the trees from a blowing snow you don't turn around to see if perhaps you can see the blazes that go the other way to make sure you're still on the trail?
I've certainly "lost" the trail a few times - for 3 hundred feet maybe though, not 3 freaking miles. Maybe people should pay more attention to their surroundings and not rely on their dog to navigate.

Now that's the second time in two threads I've seen this advice given, the other was by Alligator. This is the very first thing I do when I can't find the next blaze...turn around. This is hiking 101. The chances of blowing snow sticking to all 180 degrees of a tree at just the right angle to cover both blazes on the tree (while it can happen) is likely pretty slim...surly you'd be able to find one blaze to set ya back on track....remember the blaze your at should be with-in eye sight of the next blaze and vice versa. Don't venture to far till you find one, and just keep pluggin away.

[rocketsocks]

Now that's the second time in two threads I've seen this advice given, the other was by Alligator. This is the very first thing I do when I can't find the next blaze...turn around. This is hiking 101. The chances of blowing snow sticking to all 180 degrees of a tree at just the right angle to cover both blazes on the tree (while it can happen) is likely pretty slim...surly you'd be able to find one blaze to set ya back on track....remember the blaze your at should be with-in eye sight of the next blaze and vice versa. Don't venture to far till you find one, and just keep pluggin away.

Can't find a blaze..."Don't frown , turn around"

[Slo-go'en]

The thing is, the AT was never intended to be, nor is it designed or maintained to be a winter hiking trail. If you try to cross a bald in a white out, your probably going to be blown off course and finding where the trail goes back into the woods is not easy. Of course, often there are posts in the ground (or crains) to guide you across large open areas. You just have to keep track of them.

In the woods, you have to remember that the trail rarely takes a sharp turn and if it does, it should be pretty obvious in a short time that some thing is wrong.

I didn't read the whole story as I didn't feel like answering thier quiz to keep reading.