As I mentioned before, I stayed at the Gooch Mountain Shelter last week, on Thursday night to be exact.
I have hiked the Georgia portion of the AT countless numbers of times camping near every shelter area.
Never have I ever while on the trail met anyone like Kenneth. And the fact that he is the person in charge of the Gooch Mountain shelter makes it even more remarkable.
From the second I arrived at 3:30 pm, Kenneth was standing at the end of the shelter picnic table making snarky comments to the hikers. At first I thought he was just an obnoxious thru-hiker but he later mentioned he was the ridge runner.
He complained endlessly about picking up trash amongst other things and only left his spot by the table to step outside and roll a smoke.
He also took pictures of people which was somewhat annoying saying he got paid more if he could prove he spent the night at the shelter area.
You could instantly tell something wasn't right with Kenneth. His constant screaming and belittling nature made you fairly certain he was mentally unstable.
I spent many hours in my hammock during the night thinking about how best to confront Kenneth the next morning. I wanted to get his full name so that I could report him and his actions to the ATC.
In the end, I chickened out. For one, Kenneth used to build trails and is a big dude. I was right in the middle of a very enjoyable section hike on the Georgia Loop and didn't want to mess it up. I also didn't know how Kenneth would react. I literally worried that he would try to physically harm me.
So I decided to let sleeping dogs lie and let nature run its course. Which is why seeing this thread has brought me much relief.
Someone is going to have a very bad confrontation with Kenneth. That is almost certainly guaranteed.
The fact that the ATC was made aware of the problem and chose not to act now makes them culpable for Kenneth's actions.
Once the trial lawyers get involved, all it will take is one look at this thread and their case will be won.
I still can't believe Kenneth didn't lose his job. It absolutely blows my mind on a scale that I can't describe.
Some heads are going to roll on this one, unfortunately.