Good article about the new BSP director

[D2maine]

Very good point.

Do you have any theories why they would do such a thing?

nope i do not - i would love to understand their reasoning why...

[FreeGoldRush]

They appear to have capped total annual foot traffic from thru hikers. If the feeling is that walking thru hikers are creating erosion, then isn't appropriate trail maintenance to support the numbers more in-line with Mr. Baxter's intention of making the Park available to everyone?

So few thru hikers go through there anyway. The vast majority of NOBO's quit before getting there. Only 10% of thru hikers are SOBO. I'm just not believing that this small group of people is creating an unmanageable issue by act of walking.

And if a budget for trail maintence is the issue, then I suspect any thru hiker will gladly pay a small fee. Two days of walking by one hiker doesn't do much damage and won't require much of a fee for maintenance.

I apologize for feeling like they don't like thru hikers, but this does not appear very welcoming to someone that walked over 2,100 miles to get there. Down at Springer Mountain I love seeing the SOBOs on the trail late in the year. I can't imagine someone telling them they can't walk past Neels Gap because they are a nuisance on the trial.

[D2maine]

They appear to have capped total annual foot traffic from thru hikers. If the feeling is that walking thru hikers are creating erosion, then isn't appropriate trail maintenance to support the numbers more in-line with Mr. Baxter's intention of making the Park available to everyone?

So few thru hikers go through there anyway. The vast majority of NOBO's quit before getting there. Only 10% of thru hikers are SOBO. I'm just not believing that this small group of people is creating an unmanageable issue by act of walking.

And if a budget for trail maintence is the issue, then I suspect any thru hiker will gladly pay a small fee. Two days of walking by one hiker doesn't do much damage and won't require much of a fee for maintenance.

I apologize for feeling like they don't like thru hikers, but this does not appear very welcoming to someone that walked over 2,100 miles to get there. Down at Springer Mountain I love seeing the SOBOs on the trail late in the year. I can't imagine someone telling them they can't walk past Neels Gap because they are a nuisance on the trial.

if you really think that you have a better grasp than the park authority on Baxter's intentions then feel free to offer your input to them and to the new director. failing that you are free to take them to court and argue that they are not following the deeds of trust as they are legally bound to do.

i will warn you that the deeds of the trust, every writing, recording in fact every statement or act by Baxter dealing with the park is closely scrutinized prior to any shifts in park policy.

[rickb]

The only month-by-month breakdown on Katahdin hikers was in the park’s 2013 annual report.

1539 Hikers climbed Katahdin via in AT (Hunt Trail) in June that year
2759 Hikers climbed Katahdin via the AT in July
3213 Hikers climbed Katahdin via the AT in August
2046 Hikers climbed Katahdin via the AT in September
1214 Hikers climbed Katahdin via the AT in October


Some (not all) of these hikers were thru hikers. Some hikers (not thru hikers) submitted K via on of the other 1/2 dozen Trail leadingto the summit.

Not sure how a thru hiker cap — that would be probably applied in October — helps address peak usage.

In any event, it was Gove Baxter himself who cautioned future Superintendents that the park should be used to the fullest extent, but in a the right unspoiled manner.

I wish the new Superintendent the strength to find that balance in a way that honors those who walk into th Park, as well as those who car camp.

[D2maine]

The only month-by-month breakdown on Katahdin hikers was in the park’s 2013 annual report.

1539 Hikers climbed Katahdin via in AT (Hunt Trail) in June that year
2759 Hikers climbed Katahdin via the AT in July
3213 Hikers climbed Katahdin via the AT in August
2046 Hikers climbed Katahdin via the AT in September
1214 Hikers climbed Katahdin via the AT in October
Some (not all) of these hikers were thru hikers. Some hikers (not thru hikers) submitted K via on of the other 1/2 dozen Trail leadingto the summit.

Not sure how a thru hiker cap — that would be probably applied in October — helps address peak usage.

In any event, it was Gove Baxter himself who cautioned future Superintendents that the park

long distance hikers were the only group they had no control over the numbers of - until the permit process

[FreeGoldRush]

long distance hikers were the only group they had no control over the numbers of - until the permit process

So? Is control the issue then?? Silly me, I though it would have been something related to maintenaing the Park for everyone to use as Mr. Baxter said.

[D2maine]

So? Is control the issue then?? Silly me, I though it would have been something related to maintenaing the Park for everyone to use as Mr. Baxter said.

you just don't seem to grasp the fact that Baxter State Park has always and will always be a limited use park and this policy simply brought long distance hikers in line with the overall management polices of the park. unlimited growth in most definitely not in line with the intentions of the deeds of trust no matter how many different ways you try to make it so.

[Alligator]

How about linking the arguing specifically to the new director, which is ostensibly what the thread is about.

[Alligator]

How about linking the arguing specifically to the new director, which is ostensibly what the thread is about.

Oh and keep a laser narrow focus on any political interjections.

[TJ aka Teej]

How about linking the arguing specifically to the new director, which is ostensibly what the thread is about.

The new director would not have been selected by the Authority if he wasn't a supporter of the donor's intent of limited access.
This is unquestionably a good thing.

[Alligator]

The new director would not have been selected by the Authority if he wasn't a supporter of the donor's intent of limited access.
This is unquestionably a good thing.

Are there records of the interview of the new Director? Public statements of the Authority's deliberations regarding their choice? Not just what you think but proof of what you are saying?

I know the Authority is opinionated I've read their meeting minutes. I'm not really doubting what you are saying, just asking you to back it up since you're placing judgements at the end of your statement, yet the beginning isn't exactly proven. The original link about the new Director has only a few quotes from him plus a lot of other quotes and information that aren't directly about him.

[D2maine]

we do know that the last 2 directors were foresters first so that to me speaks to how they see the park

or from the mouth of one of the current members of the park authority Janet Mills

"the Park represents a different culture, a different psyche than the
national park phenomenon, different from other places of cultural refuge. It is a place with a
different mission, different values. It is not for everyone. We do not invite groups and crowds,
posses of civilization through the open gate and along the rough marked trails"

[rickb]

The new director would not have been selected by the Authority if he wasn't a supporter of the donor's intent of limited access.
This is unquestionably a good thing.

According to the article, the number of visitors to the park rose from 55,539 in 2008 to 73,243 in 2017.

That is an increase of 17,704 people.

From 2007 to 2017 the number of thru hikers climbing Katahdin grew from 533 to 1186.

That is an increase of 653 people..

The footprint of each group was most certainly different.

* Most of those addition 17,704 visitors entered by car
* Many explored different section of the park by car over scores of miles.
* Some of the additional 17,704 shared ponds with loons (in park provided canoes)
* Some of the additional 17,704 came upon wildlife in remote settings
* Many of the additional 17,704 burned firewood harvested in and provided by the park
* Some of additional 17,704 people stayed in one of the scores of private cabins
* Some of the additional 17,704 traveled the Perimiter Road by snowmobile
* Some stayed just a night or two, many longer
*.Many of the additional 17,704 visited and stayed in the park on peak usage days.

In contrast,

* Most of the additional 653 thru hikers staued a single night
* Most arrived by foot, very few explored different areas of the park by car
*.Most stayed in a single structure, sited to minimize impact on wildlife
* Most of the additional 653 arrived in the Park well past Peak usage times

The new director’s challenge will not be easily met. Baxter is special, and beloved by the people of Maine, and protecting it has a political as well as a resource management component.

Sharing the resource among the traditional camper and park supporter — some of whom are now returning to the same cabins with their kids, that their grand parents brought their moms and dads, with people from away naturally creates tensions.

But when Baxter said that he wanted the park used to the fullest extent, but in a right and unspoiled way, I cannot help but think he would have turned a kind eye towards those additional 653 men, women and kids who walked to his beloved Katahdin all they from Georgia — and perhaps do so to even a more welcoming degree, than to the additional 17,704 who who arrived in their air condition cars.

The new director will need to figure that out.

[Traveler]

They appear to have capped total annual foot traffic from thru hikers. If the feeling is that walking thru hikers are creating erosion, then isn't appropriate trail maintenance to support the numbers more in-line with Mr. Baxter's intention of making the Park available to everyone?

So few thru hikers go through there anyway. The vast majority of NOBO's quit before getting there. Only 10% of thru hikers are SOBO. I'm just not believing that this small group of people is creating an unmanageable issue by act of walking.

And if a budget for trail maintence is the issue, then I suspect any thru hiker will gladly pay a small fee. Two days of walking by one hiker doesn't do much damage and won't require much of a fee for maintenance.

I apologize for feeling like they don't like thru hikers, but this does not appear very welcoming to someone that walked over 2,100 miles to get there. Down at Springer Mountain I love seeing the SOBOs on the trail late in the year. I can't imagine someone telling them they can't walk past Neels Gap because they are a nuisance on the trial.

The issue with thru hikers is not trail wear and tear, its an amalgam of behavior and allocation of resource issues as has been pretty well documented. As I understand the thru hiker cap, its expandable, though if more people than the current cap allowance arrive and all at about the same time, regulating the number of people per day setting out to climb Big K will likely be where the pinch is.