Carolina Mountain Club
Hike - Save trails - Make friends
May 6, 2011
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| Upcoming Hikes | Hike Reports |Maintenance Schedule |
| What's Happening Now | Several trails closed in the Smokies |
| Other Important News | Spring social a great success |
| Challenges | Danny Bernstein completes the MST |
| Interview | Meet Gary Eblen |
| Hep Wanted | Website help needed |
| Conservation | TVA cleans up |
| Heard on the Ground | MST and A.T. sections open for adoption |
| The Small Print | Deadlines, change of addresses and other details |
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From Your Editor The eNews has not been very regular these past few months. I've been walking on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail for a while but I've completed the trail. The eNews will be back on schedule, the last Friday of the month. Danny Several trails closed in the Smokies Several trails on the Tennessee side of Great Smoky Mountains National Park have been closed. The Park determined that a severe EF 4 tornado swept across the northwestern corner of the Park last Wednesday causing extensive damage to park trails. See the map on the trail closures. For more information, check the park website. CMC Social a Great Success Nearly100 CMCers and their guests enjoyed another great CMC Spring Social on April 23 at the NC Arboretum.
The event started with a five mile walk around Lake Powhatan led by Ken and Carol Deal. Ken and Carole started out with ten participants, but by the time they got back they had thirteen. While it is not unknown for hike leaders to lose a participant or two, it is unusual for participants to multiply on a hike. We figure that Ken and Carol now have a credit and are entitled to lose up to three participants on the next hike they lead.
After a barbeque dinner by Bubba Q, our guest speaker, Dwight McCarter, shown to the left, regaled us with the funny stories his publisher wouldn’t let him put in his book Lost! He told us how he tracked down two escaped murders and why he wouldn’t participate in the hunt for Eric Rudolph. Before you make any assumptions about Dwight’s political leanings, he said with all those people with guns combing the woods for Rudolph, he wasn’t going to take a chance of being shot by mistake -- especially after the FBI had him play the role of an Iranian terrorist in a reenactment of a kidnapping that had occurred in the Smokies. Dinner and Dwight’s talk were graced by the presence of a movie star who shall only be known as Rose. Thanks to Les Love and everyone else who made this event a great success. We look forward to the next one. Lenny Bernstein Photos by Lenny.
Nominations Requested It may seem painfully early, but we are starting to think now about who we might want to nominate for positions that will come open on Council next year, to be elected at our November membership meeting. If you are a member, we invite your input and your expressions of personal interest in these positions, although deliberations of the nominating committee will be confidential. The following positions will be open for two-year terms starting January 1, 2012: Vice-president If you are interested yourself, or have suggestions as to who you think would do a good job in one of these positions, talk with me or the appropriate committee chair. Remember, too, that these committees are always interested in gaining new committee members, so we would be glad to hear from you about that as well. CMC gets its strength from its many hard-working volunteers! Becky Smucker, Chair, Nominating Committee bjsmucker@gmail.com North Georgia Weekend - Sept. 30-Oct. 2 Save the date. I'm leading a weekend Sept. 30-Oct. 2 in North Georgia. You can camp, stay in a cabin or lodge. Hike in three North Georgia State Parks and into Chattahoochee National Forest. We'll stay at Unicoi State Park where you can also swim or boat in a lake. The hikes are easy and fun. More details later but for now save the weekend. Danny Bernstein Your editor completes the Mountains-to-Sea Trail
It was 985 miles, 95,200 ft. of ascent in 78 hiking days. Almost half of the trail miles are still on the road, but walking the road was fun - and flat. I walked 15 miles, day in day out on the road. The trail is still in its infancy, maybe where the A.T. was in the 1930s. It changes and improves, as more public land is acquired. If you want to read about my adventure, see my blog.Danny
Meet Gary Eblen by Danny Bernstein
Gary is the voice and face of Diamond Brand Outdoors. It's not easy to catch Gary sitting but I managed to talk to him just before he went to lead a hike at the Arboretum. Then he was off to a Wilderness First Aid course at Twin Creeks Education Center in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. [Photo by Tom Windham]
Fun New Volunteer Position Open! Come help shape the content of our new CMC website. If you like using the Web, you'll enjoy working on the CMC website - and you'll see what goes on behind the scenes. Do you have these skills?
The Communications Committee is looking for someone to assist with filling in new pages of the new website. Note that programming and website design skills will not be needed here, as the website is set up so that anyone can learn to do the input. We need someone to:
If you are interested, or know someone who might be, please contact Charlie Ferguson at ccf108@gmail.com. TVA will clean up its power plants The Tennessee Valley Authority today agreed to a $3 billion to $5 billion cleanup of its coal-fired power plants in three states, resolving claims North Carolina made in a 2006 lawsuit. The Environmental Protection Agency announced the settlement of Clean Air Act violations at 11 power plants in Alabama, Kentucky and Tennessee. It requires TVA to install new or upgraded pollution controls that will reduce smog and acid rain-forming emissions by more than two-thirds. The independent federal utility will also spend $350 million on clean energy projects, including $11.2 million for N.C. energy-efficiency and electricity demand-reducing programs. TVA will also pay a $10 million fine. See the whole story. Story first posted by Ruth Hartzler on the CMC Facebook page
MST sections for adoption 1. Doubletop to Old Bald access - Length is 1.1 miles 3. Bear Pen Gap Access to Haywood Gap - 2 miles If you're interested, contact Larry Sobil at lsobil@bellsouth.net A.T. sections for adoption Garenflo Gap to Deer Park Mountain Shelter. 3.2 Miles Big Butt to Flint Gap. 3.3 Miles Contact: Tim Carrigan, (828) 398-4211 before 6:00 PM
The eNews comes out on the last Friday of the month - except for this coming month. So ... The next issue will come out on Friday, May 27. Wednesday hike reports for the hike just before the eNews comes out will be published in the next eNews. Hiker leaders, please send all your eNews hike reports and photos to Dave Wetmore at dwetmore@citcom.netPlease see How to write a hike report. So send me your news and maintenance reports by Tuesday evening at 9 P.M. before the newsletter comes out, that is, by Tuesday evening May 24 to Danny Bernstein at 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. Westgate parking - Park in the northernmost part of the lot - past EarthFare, in the last row of parking spaces. How to join the Carolina Mountain Club If you are a non-member subscriber, you need to go back to the |
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Danny Bernstein
danny@hikertohiker.com
Paula Robbins led about two dozen people on a second walk to admire the native azalea garden and the other wildflowers growing along the trails in the Arboretum. Everyone said that the azaleas were at their peak and more impressive than in recent years. There were no reports of this walk either gaining or losing participants.
On May 4, I finished the 