CMC Weekly News
05/28/03
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ATC Regional Office Job Opening
I am sorry to report that Deno Contos has decided to leave ATC to return to Georgia. His last day in the office with ATC will be this Friday, May 30. Please join with me in wishing Deno well in his new endeavors! I have begun the search for Deno's replacement. The job announcement has been posted on ATC's website. It is for the Associate Regional Representative job in ATC's Asheville office. <http://www.appalachiantrail.org/about/jobs.html>. ATC supervisor's, please be sure all your employee's have been copied with this announcement, inlcuding seasonals. I am conducting a joint internal and external search for candidates.Thanks very much! Morgan Sommerville Appalachian Trail Conference Regional Representative for Ga., N.C. and Tenn. <msommerville@atconf.org> 828/254-3708 828/254-3754 FAX P.O. Box 2750 Asheville, NC 28802
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: George Masa May 30, 2003
CONTACT: Rosemary Hallberg, UNC-TV, 919-549-7845 or rhallberg@unctv.org This release is available online at www.unctv.org/pressroom. Asheville Photographer Featured in National Documentary Program on the Life of George Masa Airs on UNC-TV In the early 1900s an obscure Japanese man came to North Carolina, championing the Great Smoky Mountains National Park through his photography. Shortly after his death, his name was almost completely erased from history and thousands of the photographs he had taken were lost. On Wednesday, May 28 at 9:30 PM, UNC-TV uncovers the story behind this nearly forgotten man in The Mystery of George Masa. Airing on UNC-TV and produced by Bonesteel Films, The Mystery of George Masa chronicles the life of Masahara Izuka, a quiet, unassuming Japanese man who came to Asheville, North Carolina, in 1915. The documentary unveils the shroud of obscurity about Masa's life through interviews with living acquaintances, historians' accounts, Masa's personal letters and journals, subtle re-creations and an astounding collection of his photographs. In addition to recapturing many interesting details about Masa's life, work and friends, the film also reflects on his lasting impact on the preservation movement and the gradual removal of his name from many of his works. Masa blended in with his surroundings and kept his personal matters away from the public eye. After settling in Asheville and working as a photographer and valet at the Grove Park Inn, he fell in love with the mountains and the residents, changing his name to fit in with his new American friends. His popular photography business eventually took him into the mountains in search of scenic vistas, and he discovered a world filled with endless subjects, many destined to become entries into his vast body of work. With a red bandanna on his head and a bicycle wheel calculating distances, Masa mapped out what would eventually become the Appalachian Trail. With his friend Horace Kephart and a group of hikers he dubbed the Carolina Mountain Club, he snapped photographs and collected information on the topography and mineralogy of the area that now is the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Despite his eventual successes in helping to found the national park and develop the Appalachian Trail, Masa's life was riddled with misfortune. The Great Depression and a series of other financial setbacks left Masa with massive debts, and after his death of influenza in 1933, other people began receiving credit for his work. Relatively few of his mounds of photographs remain. The Mystery of George Masa reveals a man who not only touched his companions but reached out to touch the world at large, as expressed by a Carolina Mountain Club bulletin following his death: "To those who have spent hours on the trail with George, climbing into the less accessible places of the Smokies, there is left the memory of a genius whose love of beauty was so intense that a hard hike of ten or twenty miles was not so great a price to pay for a photograph capturing some of the beauty to be found at the end of the trail." UNC-TV is North Carolina's only statewide broadcasting system, made possible through a unique partnership of public investment and private support. UNC-TV's commitment to producing and broadcasting local and national programs about our state resources make it one of the state's most important sources of information. For more information about UNC-TV and its programs, please visit www.unctv.org.
Notice to Hikers
I am now in the process of preparing the 4th Edition of NORTH CAROLINA HIKING TRAILS. I will be hiking some old and new trails for May, June, July, and August, September, and if necessary October. I would like to invite any hikers who could hike with me to let me know. The hikes could be for a couple of days to an entire week. Some of the new trails are in remote and adventurous areas of the mountain peaks, and costal savannahs. One need is for some shuttles to same time and prevent backtracking. I need someone to assist me on a new trail in the Great Smoky Mountains and a new trail where the fugitive Rudolph was last seen. I would take care of your food and camping expenses. Please call me at 919-496-4771. Allen de Hart
ATC Workshops!
The 2003 Training Season will be coming to an end soon in July. We still have three fantastic workshops available and are awaiting your participation. Please spread the word, post on your websites, list in your newsletters, shout from your roof tops...
#1 Natural Diversity Monitoring: Come learn about the rare and endangered plants along the A.T., and how you can take part in the important effort to safeguard these plants from harm. A.T. clubs are working with the NPS to make sure that these plants receive monitoring so that management action can be made for their protection. We will raffle off a GPS unit during the workshop and issue portable cameras to help document what's happening along the trail. I am signed up for this workshop and can't wait to learn more about the Appalachian Mountain's natural environment. Call the ATC Virigina office today to sign-up (540)961-5551 When: June 28-29, 2003 (Sat/Sun) Where: at the lovely Konnarock Trail Crew basecamp in scenic Sugar Grove, VA Lodging will be provided in our rustic cabins with access to hot showers and kitchen facilities.
#2 & #3 Basic Trail Maintenance: Are you a new volunteer or are looking to refresh your trail maintenance skills?...then this is the workshop for you. These one day workshops will cover such topics as worker safety, use and maintentance of hand tools, clearing waterbars, blowdown removal, overnight facility maintenance, and sanitation. When: July 12, 2003 Where: at the lovely Konnarock Trail Crew basecamp in scenic Sugar Grove, VA or When: July 17, 2003 Where: along the A.T. near scenic Bland, VA Call ATC at (540)961-5551 if you need more information or would like to sign-up. Look forward to hearing from you! Big smiles!
Firescald Knob Relocation Dedication
The Carolina Mountain Club is proud (and glad!) to announce that the dedication of the Big Firescald Knob relocation will be August 17, 2003. This ridgeline, scenic trail was started with a Konnarock crew in 1998 and will have a total of 17 weeks of Konnarock effort plus many hours of CMC work when completed. It took this long because of the large amount of rock work involved.
The ridgeline is the border between Tennessee and North Carolina and the view from this trail is the Tennessee valley towards Greeneville and the multiple mountain ranges of North Carolina. The present trail will become a blue-blazed, bad weather trail because parts of the narrow, rocky ridgeline of the new trail is where no one will want to be as the tallest thing in a storm.
To get to this relo, you first drive to the Camp Creek Bald area of the AT. >From Greeneville TN, go south about 18 miles on TN 70 and turn east at the sign for the Bald. From Asheville NC, go north on US 25-70 to NC 208, to TN 70 and east at the sign to Camp Creek Bald. The south end of the relo is about 2.5 miles north of the Bald. For further information contact Howard McDonald, AT Supervisor, at 828-693-8258, hamcdonald@cytechcis.net .
2003 Appalachian Trial Biennial Conference
A terrific volunteer committee is in the final preparations for Waterville Valley 2003. It promises to be an excellent week! If you haven't done so already, please help spread the word and early registration deadline reminder by sending the following announcement to AT enthusiasts in your area. (If you would prefer to receive printed registration forms, please just give a shout to myself or Steve Crowe at sunshine21@earthlink.net.) Thanks, and we all look forward to seeing you in July! Heather Clish Director of Trails & Riverways Stewardship Appalachian Mountain Club 5 Joy Street Boston, MA 02108 617-523-0655 x380 www.outdoors.org Come hike, celebrate, and learn about the Appalachian Trail! 34th Biennial Meeting of the Appalachian Trail Conference New Hampshire 2003 Hosted by the Appalachian Mountain Club July 25th - August 1, 2003 Waterville Valley, New Hampshire "Stewardship Through Education and Action" The Appalachian Trail is the country's premier long-distance hiking trail and a national treasure. To reflect the evolving needs for protecting the longevity of the A.T. and the experience it provides, the conference program will strive to focus attention on responsible use and management of the A.T., preserving the A.T.'s natural and cultural treasures, and keeping the spirit of volunteer stewardship strong. The weeklong conference is also a time to celebrate the A.T. and long-distance hiking. Over 160 organized White Mountain hikes 90 workshops in outdoor skills, conservation action, trail management and more Daily excursions to locations in the White Mountains and Lakes Region Great entertainment every night Over 300 people have already signed up to attend the conference, and the early registration deadline is May 25, 2003. Registration and general information is available at the conference Web site, http://www.atc2003.org . For information or questions about registration, call Geoff Weaver at (978) 297-0003 before 9:00 p.m. or send an email to Peter Lane at lanep@rcn.com . Please help spread the word by sending this invitation to other hiking and conservation enthusiasts.
How Long do CMC Officers Serve?
The bylaws officially say "Officers and six additional Council members shall be elected at the annual meeting of the Club each year and shall hold office for one year beginning on January First following their election." Unofficially, the President has been a two year stint. Secretaries and Treasurers sometimes have been in for a lifetime. Councilors usually are for two years sometimes more. The bylaws also say the the President shall appoint a Nominating Committee whose responsibility it will be to recommend to the general membership a slate of officers and council members to stand for election. Pete Sturer
Half Day Sunday Hike Scheduler(s) Needed!
Well, Richard, Anita, and Elizabeth Feil have had a talk as we "passed the schedule book". It's Elizabeth's turn to do the next schedule, and we usually discuss any issues that come up. This time we have all reached the conclusion that it is time for someone else to do the half day hike schedules. We realize how hard it will be to get a replacement (maybe not), so we are giving the club enough time to figure something out. Elizabeth will do the next schedule, and Richard and Anita will do the next. We would like to be training someone so that we will be finished by Jan 1, 2004. We have no recommendations as the half day hike people are quite noncommittal to any long term project. It's tough enough to get hike leaders. We will look at the the sign up sheets and see if anyone stands out. Anyway, it's time to pass the torch. Sincerely yours Richard Walkey