Carolina Mountain Club

Hike - Save trails - Make friends

October 26, 2007

Hunting Season

Oct. 15 to Nov. 17
Dec. 10 to Jan. 1

Hiking News | CMC Calendar

        Please read this: The schedule for the eNews has changed. The eNews will now come out on Fridays. So ... The next issue will come out on Friday, Nov. 9. This will allow the Sunday and Saturday hike leaders a little more time to send in their report; Wednesday hike reports for the hike just before the eNews comes out will be published in the next eNews.

So send me your hiking news, hike and maintenance reports by Wednesday evening at 9 P.M. before the newsletter comes out, that is, by Wednesday evening Nov. 7, 2007 to Danny Bernstein danny@hikertohiker.com. Include your email address at the end of your story. Thank you.

       The CMC Calendar is meant to answer the perennial question "When is this happening again?" It is also meant to prevent conflicts between competing CMC events. Please check it often.

How to join the Carolina Mountain Club
1. Go to www.carolinamtnclub.org
2. Click on “How to Join” (upper-left on web page)
3. Print out the “CMC Application Form”
4. Fill it Out, write a check for your dues and ...5. Mail to CMC, PO Box 68, Asheville NC 28802

       For CMC members only - Send all address and email changes to Jean Gard at jeangard@charter.net. If you are a non-member subscriber, you need to go back into "subscribe" and change it there yourself.

What's Happening in the Next Two Weeks

Annual Dinner on Saturday Nov. 3 - Final Notice

Friday, October 26 is the deadline for reservations for the Annual Dinner and Meeting Saturday, Nov. 3, for members and guests.

If you still want to go but don’t think your form and money will reach our mailbox by that day, please contact Becky Smucker at 828-298-5013 or bsmucker@charter.net. Social hour and appetizers is at 5:00, dinner at 6:00, Annual Meeting at 7:00 followed by a presentation of pictures and awards for our Club Photo Contest. Details along with a reservation form and directions to the event in the dining hall at the First Baptist Church of Asheville were inserted in our last Let’s Go.

Jack Fitzgerald is coordinating a Hendersonville carpool from the old Ingles on Fleming Street at 4:30 PM. Contact him at suejackfitz@bellsouth.net or 828-685-2897 to let him know you’re coming.

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Have you Completed a CMC Challenge?

Certificates and patches are awarded at the annual meeting for members who have completed one or more of the official CMC challenges during the preceding year. These challenges include climbing the forty (40) peaks over 6,000 feet (SB6K) and/or hiking the 400 miles of trails in the Pisgah Forest (P400). If anyone has completed these challenges during the past year and wishes to receive their award at the meeting, please submit the required documentation to Don Gardner, Chair of the Challenge Committee. Information regarding documentation requirements can be found on the CMC website. Thank you. Don Gardner.

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CMCAnnual Meeting and Nominations

The annual dinner and meeting will be held on Nov. 3. Have you sent you your reservations?

At the annual meeting, we vote for officers and the CMC council. The nominating committee has put up the following slate. Nominations are also accepted from the floor.

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Other Important News

MTS Workday on Saturday November 10

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South Beyond 6000 foot Challenge Program

The CMC Website has a bulletin board (aka forums) where members can post public messages about whatever hiking topics they like.  Examples might be experiences or recommendations of particular hikes and recruiting people for scouts or other unscheduled hikes. Anyone can post and reply to messages.  It's similar to email, but public.  Anyone including non members can read the forums.  Only registered users can post messages and replies.  The advantage of the forums is that they are interactive - anyone can get involved and express their thoughts.

One particular category that is in the forum is the South Beyond 6000 challenge program.  The CMC does not schedule hikes to some of those peaks very often. For those that are interested in getting to the top of those 40 peaks, finding others that want to do those hikes can be difficult.  This forum allows hikers to let each other know of their interest and to organize hikes among themselves.  One particular hike that is being discussed on the forum is a 3 or 4 day backpack to the Smokies to climb to the top of 8 6K peaks that are too far away for sensible day hikes.  (Actually they could be done in 4 or 5 very long and tiring day hikes).  The forum is the best place for people to let each other know that they want to do the hike and start organizing one among themselves.

This is a link to the SB6K forum: http://www.carolinamtnclub.com/forums/forums/forum-view.asp?fid=40
Feel free to post messages for other SB6K hikes such as the Plott Balsams or the Black Mountain Crest peaks.

To read all forum categories (without having to register): http://www.carolinamtnclub.com/forums/category-view.asp

To register (for posting messages): http://www.carolinamtnclub.com/forums/register.asp

Using the forums will be a very different way of communication for some people.  Most peoples experience of the Internet is similar to how newspapers deliver information - they feed it to you and you read it - end of story.  Forums are an easy way for your thoughts to be expressed and heard. After many years of face to face verbal communication and more recently email, using a public forum will seem unusual.  It takes awhile to get used to it. For those that need help getting started posting on the forums, Charlie Ferguson will provide some support.  Click here for detailed help in registering: http://www.carolinamtnclub.org/Hiking/forums/CMCwebsiteforumregister.htm

If you get stuck using the forums, call Charlie: 828-333-5165 or email ccf108@gmail.com.

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Fish Fry

Congratulations to All MST Maintainers

At the October 19, Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway Fish Fry to honor Blue Ridge Parkway volunteers, CMC received an award as Volunteer of the Year from the Blue Ridge Parkway Headquarters District. As CMC President (and an MST section maintainer) I accepted the award on behalf of the Club, but it really belongs to all trail crew members, section maintainers, and participants in our Saturday Work Day who year-in and year-out maintain our 130 miles of the MST. I’ll bring the plaque to the Annual Dinner and Meeting to show it off, then give it to our historian to keep with the Club’s records.

Individual CMC trail maintainers were also recognized. Sara Davis was honored for 30 years of service, and Jack Mazurowski, Dave Roberts, Skip Sheldon, Dwayne Stutzman, John Van Valen, Don Walton and Tommy Wilson were honored for 10 years of service. Lenny Bernstein. Photos by Charlie Ferguson.

John Hillyer Honored Posthumously

John Hillyer, long time CMC trail maintainer, who past away earlier this year, was honored posthumously by being recognized as an Ambassador Extraordinaire of the Order of the Long Leaf Pine. This award, North Carolina’s highest civilian honor, recognizes individuals for extraordinary service to the state. Other recipients include Michael Jordan, Charles Kuralt, Billy Graham and Maya Angelou. In addition to his service as a trail maintainer, John served for many years on the Advisory Committee for the NC Department of Parks and Recreations, and in other volunteer positions. The award was presented to John’s family by Dwayne Stutzman at the October 19 Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway Fish Fry. This was an appropriate place for the presentation since many of those present knew and worked with John for many years. Lenny Bernstein

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Conservation

Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy Programs

CMLC along with partners from Henderson and Transylvania Counties, is sponsoring two upcoming forums on open space, the role open space plays in our communities, and the economic benefits of conserving farms and open space.

Program in Brevard:
THE CO-EXISTENCE OF OPEN SPACE AND DEVELOPMENT
Tuesday, October 30, 2007, 7-9PM at the Rogow Room, Transylvania County Library, Brevard, NC
Moderator: Carroll Parker, President, Transylvania County Farm Bureau
Speakers: Gerry Cohn, Southeast Director, American Farmland Trust, Al Platt, Al Platt Architects, Brevard, NC and Mitch Renkow, Ph.D., Professor of Agricultural Economics, North Carolina State University

Program in Hendersonville:
THE ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF CONSERVING FARMS AND OPEN SPACE
Wednesday, November 7, 2007, 6:30-8:30PM
Kaplan Auditorium, Henderson County Library, Hendersonville, NC
Speakers: Susan Kask, Warren Wilson College, Tom Elmore, Land-Of-Sky Regional Council and Penn Dameron, Blue Ridge National Heritage Area

For more information, contact Suzanne Hohn, Outreach Coordinator at Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy
www.carolinamountain.org or 828-697-5777.

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Heard on the Ground

Changing of the Guard for CMC’s Portion of the AT

After nearly 11 years as CMC’s AT Supervisor, Howard McDonald has stepped down to take a new position as Manager, CMC Trail Facilities. Don Walton will be our new AT Supervision.

The AT Supervisor is responsible for organizing section maintainers and trail crews to ensure that our 92 miles of the AT are well maintained. He is also responsible for coordinating with the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and with the special crews that help us with heavy construction efforts. During his tenure as AT Supervisor, Howard organized work for the Firescald Bald relo and for the construction of the new Roaring Fork Shelter. As Trail Facilities Manager, Howard is already planning his first project – installation of bear cables at all of the shelters on CMC’s portion of the AT. These cables will be similar to the ones at shelters in the Smokies and allow hikers staying at CMC shelters to store their food well out of the reach of bears. As Trails Facilities Manager, Howard will also have responsibility for facilities such as bridges on other trails that CMC maintains.

Don is no stranger to AT maintenance, having maintained our maintenance issues and hours worked data bases for the past few years and having been an active trail maintainer for 10 years. Don is currently also our MST Supervisor, but will be handing over those responsibilities early next year. Lenny Bernstein.

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Adopt an MST Section

No pieces are available at this time. If you want a piece of the A.T., look below. If you have your heart set on the MST, put yourself on the waiting list by emailing Don Walton.

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Adopt a piece of the Appalachian Trail

DA new section needs adoption. A.T. sections don't come up too often. If you've always wanted to take care of a piece of the most trail in the world, this is your chance. The piece is:

Spring Mountain Shelter to Allen Gap, 3.7 miles.

If you're interested, email Don Walton.

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Maintenance Reports created by Don Walton

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