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  1. #1
    Registered User Grampie's Avatar
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    Question Milage Marker Question.

    There is a stone milage marker, in New Hampshire, at around 1758. As I remember it it's about 5' tall, 10' square and is made from a finished piece of stone. On the side is inscribed what I believe is a milage distance.
    I know it's telling the milage from Springer, but why is it at that particular spot? Who put it there? It probably weighs a couple of hundred pounds and cost a few $ to make.
    The last time I passed it was in 2003. I presume it is still standing. I have thought about it several times since and asked other hikers about it but never got an answer that satisfid my wondering.
    Grampie-N->2001

  2. #2
    Punchline RWheeler's Avatar
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    That's about 80% of the way through the trail. Maybe it's some marker for that?

    "Only a fifth to go!"

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    I have not gotten that far myself yet, but "The A.T. Guide" lists a "concrete milepost at 1758.4, with water nearby, just south of Lyme-Dorchester Road. Before reading this confirmation, I wondered if perhaps the marker was for a year rather than a mileage.

  4. #4
    Registered User 4eyedbuzzard's Avatar
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    Probably just a past project from Dartmouth Outing Club - that's their sectionc(probably since the AT's inception). Mileage markers were historically made of stone before the automobile age, so they may have just been adding a nostalgic touch plus there's no shortage of granite up here. People up here like to play with rocks, hammers, and chisels, build oddly shaped shelters and privvies, etc. It's a New England thing, we're kind of special (take that however you wish).

  5. #5
    Registered User Grampie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 4eyedbuzzard View Post
    Probably just a past project from Dartmouth Outing Club - that's their sectionc(probably since the AT's inception). Mileage markers were historically made of stone before the automobile age, so they may have just been adding a nostalgic touch plus there's no shortage of granite up here. People up here like to play with rocks, hammers, and chisels, build oddly shaped shelters and privvies, etc. It's a New England thing, we're kind of special (take that however you wish).
    The problem is that someone did a lot of work to make and installit. It's quite a distance from a road. It's the only such marker I found on the trail.
    Grampie-N->2001

  6. #6
    Registered User 4eyedbuzzard's Avatar
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    I've emailed DOC to see if someone there can answer this riddle.

  7. #7

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    I don't "know" the history of the marker but I remember reading this about it somewhere once upon a time:

    The marker has 1730 on one side and 412 on the other. The sum of those numbers is 2,142. 2,142 was the mileage of the AT circa 1990. Ergo. someone placed the mileage to Springer and the mileage to Katahdin at that spot in 1990. I'll leave the who and the why to someone else.

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    DSC00614.jpg
    I didn't notice the 1730 on the opposite side just the 412 visible in the picture. Marker is made of carved granite, not concrete like the guide says.
    "Chainsaw" GA-ME 2011

  9. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by 4eyedbuzzard View Post
    I've emailed DOC to see if someone there can answer this riddle.
    I'd be kind of interested in the answer; it just doesn't seem to have much of a purpose, yet it's so permanent.

    This one atleast has some history that's easy to grasp



  10. #10
    Registered User Grampie's Avatar
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    I can't believe that no one has the answer. I posted the same question about 5 years ago and didn't get a answer then either.
    Grampie-N->2001

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    Maybe we should ask Laurie P.
    "Chainsaw" GA-ME 2011

  12. #12

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    Hmmm, gotta go check that out. I subscribed to this thread so I can learn if any answers are provided. mystery. mystery. mystery

  13. #13
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    This is the DOC we're talking about. I think you'll get no better answer than "because we could."

    These are the same people who decided that a mountain named Cube needed a five-sided privy and a six-sided shelter. And who put up the sign, "SPEED LIMIT 20 MPH" on a punishing upgrade. And the other one "SCENIC VIEW: BEWARE OF TOURISTS." And the one saying "PLEASE DON'T DISTURB THE BEES" on a tree that indeed contained an active honeybee colony.

    I'm a DOC alumnus, and I roll my eyes at some of the, uhm, subtle humor of that crowd.
    I always know where I am. I'm right here.

  14. #14
    Registered User Grampie's Avatar
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    Well it's been 8 years since I posted this question and I can't believe that I still don't know the answer. I am amazed that the thousands of hikers who have passed this marker haven't asked the same question.
    Grampie-N->2001

  15. #15

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    It indicates the last section of finished trail that connected all parts of the AT. I walked by it earlier this year. Some people have mistakenly thought it was the original northern terminus.

  16. #16
    Registered User 4eyedbuzzard's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by FreeGoldRush View Post
    It indicates the last section of finished trail that connected all parts of the AT. I walked by it earlier this year. Some people have mistakenly thought it was the original northern terminus.
    I don't believe that is correct. The AT in NH was routed over already existing trails in NH from the beginning. The DOC's section (75 miles at that time) was one of the earliest and part of the AT as of 1926. When the bulk of the AT was being routed and cleared/blazed in the late '20's and 30's, the largest section of the AT that had yet to be completed was in Maine - virtually the entire trail there. My understanding is that Myron Avery (and crew) cleared the last 2 mile section of trail on Sugarloaf Mountain in Maine in 1937, completing the entire AT routing as it then existed. After that, gaps appeared at times in the trail due to private ownership, road building, land disputes, etc., and the entire AT corridor was not on fully protected land until only a few years ago, in 2014, when issues with a section in southern VA were resolved. DOC now maintains an over 50 mile section of the trail from the CT River to Rt 112 in Woodstock.

    Quote Originally Posted by max patch View Post
    I don't "know" the history of the marker but I remember reading this about it somewhere once upon a time:
    Quote Originally Posted by max patch View Post
    The marker has 1730 on one side and 412 on the other. The sum of those numbers is 2,142. 2,142 was the mileage of the AT circa 1990. Ergo. someone placed the mileage to Springer and the mileage to Katahdin at that spot in 1990. I'll leave the who and the why to someone else.
    It's possible the monument/marker dates to 1990 - 1993, when DOC moved parts of their section of trail onto protected land.

    I have again emailed them to see if someone there knows the story behind the marker.
    Last edited by 4eyedbuzzard; 09-26-2019 at 23:36.

  17. #17

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    Quote Originally Posted by FreeGoldRush View Post
    It indicates the last section of finished trail that connected all parts of the AT. I walked by it earlier this year. Some people have mistakenly thought it was the original northern terminus.
    I believe you are referring to the Maine CCC plaque between Rangeley and Stratton that someone posted in the middle of this thread. The original thread is about some granite in NH.
    The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
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  18. #18
    Registered User Grampie's Avatar
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    I'm still looking for a logical answer. I thought by now , some curious hiker could provide me with a answer.
    Grampie-N->2001

  19. #19
    Registered User 4eyedbuzzard's Avatar
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    No reply from DOC. I'm guessing they either don't know or don't care to make the effort to find out.

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    "That's the thing about possum innards - they's just as good the second day." - Jed Clampett

  20. #20
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    It’s that granite marker right past the old Icecream Mans house. I’ve always wondered about it. It’s so fancy.

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