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Non-Profit considers take over of Doyle hotel.

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    • it's not bad mouthing if its the truth.

      i stayed at the doyle. i hope to get up there later this summer and eat there. i recommend to thru's that they don't miss it. but after i recommend it i make sure they understand that its a dump.

      this thread is more real than the reviews on TripAdvisor.
      2,000 miler

      The post was edited 1 time, last by max.patch ().

    • Blue Jay La Fey wrote:

      Any chance we could hold down the bad mouthing of AT suppliers and providers, especially ones that have helped hikers for decades?
      Did I fall asleep and wake up over at TOS? We're not allowed to say what we think around here? Pardon the living HELL out of me, BJ, for being passionate about life safety or the lack thereof, and pointing out that a place is a friggin' deathtrap if a fire were to start. I'll just forget that I've dedicated my entire go**amned life to it and say nice things because I might hurt your bloody feelers and because the place has been around supporting hikers since Jesus was a packsniffer.

      <<Poops glitter and rainbows>>
      Do your duty in all things. You cannot do more, you should never wish to do less. - Robert E. Lee

    • max.patch wrote:

      JimBlue wrote:

      How old is the Doyle ? Wood buildings dry out over time.
      the original doyle was built in 1770, but in 1903 it -- oops -- burned to the ground.
      the doyle was rebuilt in 1905.

      now whats the odds the same building is gonna burn down twice? :)
      It is sad to see old dwellings bite the dust, one of the places I lived in when I was single was a large two story antebellum house built in 1838, the fireplace was large enough to lie in, still had the cooking apparatus on it....as the song goes...they took it down and put up a parking lot.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.

    • max.patch wrote:

      here's an excerpt from a yelper's review. he's not a fan...

      gonna have to get this image out my mind before my visit. although -- he makes a really valid point. i wonder if they have bottled beer. :)



      3) "But the food is great."

      This one is incomprehensible to me. If an owner can't manage to remove dead insects, mop, sweep, or vacuum, WHY-OH-WHY-OH-WHY would you assume they would maintain cleanliness in a kitchen? To eat at this place borders on madness, in my view. No, I did not order any food. Why would I? Nor did I order any beer on tap. Care to guess how often, if ever, they've cleaned the taps on this place? The tubes for the beer probably look like Ron Jeremy's urethra.

      Whether the food "tastes delicious" or not is totally irrelevant. It's about hygiene and this establishment makes its position on cleanliness totally clear.
      This my friend is fixable... just needs a little TLC and basic maintenance. Its more dangerous to eat a college pizza place. I could clean up any bug issues in two visits.

      I attempted to read this thread and had smoke coming out of my ears by page two... I am not going to take the time to read anymore Fire Trap BS on this. I spent quite a few years working for ADT for smoke detection design and sales for Restaurants to Hotels. I doubt the Hotel has ten grand for the upgrade. There is no way this place could be brought up to code, if its grandfathered that would be wonderful. If It changes hands it would be a disaster due to ADA, This would require a Elevator and maintenance plan. The hallways would have to be larger for the handicapped. The bathroom would need a huge area for the wheelchairs and clearly that won't happen. To read from fellow fire fighters, and hikers that this is a death trap...has the stench of defeat. As frustrating as this is the place does have a fire escape on the back. Yea I have been there, I like the beer and the grub. Nice to look at all the pics they have and good conversations with the owners, they could not have been nicer. Great place to meet like minded others... found a German Sheppard in the lobby once. I could not have been happier. Most of you watch SNL, Do you remember "Lowered Expectations" get over yourselves, it's a trail town...Dammit.

      That dark blur zig zagging down the back is your aged fire-escape. Thank's Google.

      [IMG:http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/gg275/MarkSwarbrick/Doyle%201_zpsotcxl5ey.jpg]

      Remember the MGM Grand was a fire trap too.
      Be wise enough to walk away from the nonsense around you! :thumbup:

    • Well, I try to stay out of death traps... I have been in a few old hotels over the years, some likely close to the age of the Doyle. Cleanup is a big problem when started, but regular cleaning that doesn't skip spots, is always a good idea. Heck, my grandparent's house in Texas was not particularly safe, but any of us could easily get out a window. No concrete foundation, just large rocks and cedar stumps holding up in the interior corners. each room was added over the years as more room was needed. They bought it from the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th family to own it about 1930 for around $5,000. Concrete porch, with a rose bush bed my grandpa made around 1940. All gone. Relatives said it was falling down and they didn't have the money to fix it up. The national ham radio convention was held, until this year, in a decrepit convention center where the plumbing, the lights, and the parking lot needed major overhaul. They finally decided, after at least 20 years, to move out and go someplace else.

      I guess what I'm saying is nostalgia is okay, but death traps need fixing or tearing down. Likely the Doyle could be saved and rebuilt to look like it does now. But be safer. And better sanitation. One of my relatives who went to chef school told me that even high priced restaurants have insect and rodent problems.
      --
      "What do you mean its sunrise already ?!", me.

    • I agree - I cleaned up a place on "avenue on the arts" just south of City Hall and the mice were drivin in from the Subway,,, by the thousands in a five star restaurant. I learned a lot from that experience. MY confidence is ten fold. I even discovered how the roaches were making their way from the "prestigious" hotel next door. Shocking.... I am discussing something three years ago, but I loved it ... I got it solved. That's my......SATISFACTION~!
      Be wise enough to walk away from the nonsense around you! :thumbup:

    • Speaking of roaches moving from building to building.

      I was about to step out of my work room aboard ship and one of the guys said to wait about 30 minutes as he was about to spray for insects.

      So I went back inside. I looked down, I was sitting on my work bench as I didn't have a chair, and I saw a group of roaches running along the floor heading in the direction of the crew's mess decks and kitchen.

      I thought that a bit odd. I left and went back to supply to order some parts. I was going to go through the messdeck to get back to my work room, and was told they were spraying in there. So I went out on the deck and got back into my work room.

      The roaches were scurrying back towards the wardroom, officer's mess.

      I thought this was funny and told several people who now believed beyond all doubt that i was indeed crazy, but in a nice kinda funny way. About that time, the guy spraying came by and they told me to tell him what happened.

      So I did. He didn't believe me. So he went up to the ward room and sprayed again. He was going to do it twice in each location anyway.

      As the E-8 and the other guys were kinda heckling me about this, I suggested they look down. There on the deck was a group of roaches scurrying from the wardroom headed towards the crew's kitchen.

      I then received several apologies. And I got to say 'I told you so'.

      Here comes the guy doing the spraying. He dared me to keep saying what I had told him earleir, but the others now corroborated what i had said.

      He was about to yell at me, when he noticed a smaller gorup of roaches scurrying along ther deck towards the crew's kitchen. He stood there with his mouth open, mumbled something, and headed for the crew's messdecks.

      I got the impression he thought I had set the entire thing up to make him look bad.

      He sprayed off and on over the next month. Everytime he did, a small insect parade would zoom through my work room headed for the other kitchen.
      --
      "What do you mean its sunrise already ?!", me.

    • Wise Old Owl wrote:

      I agree - I cleaned up a place on "avenue on the arts" just south of City Hall and the mice were drivin in from the Subway,,, by the thousands in a five star restaurant. I learned a lot from that experience. MY confidence is ten fold. I even discovered how the roaches were making their way from the "prestigious" hotel next door. Shocking.... I am discussing something three years ago, but I loved it ... I got it solved. That's my......SATISFACTION~!
      Whata Sluth! 8)

    • LIhikers wrote:

      You know, anyone who would take over the Doyle would become a non-profit whether they wanted to or not.
      That there is funny. I don't care who you are...

      I visited the Doyle twice - once on my section hike from the Mason-Dixon Line to the Susquehanna and again after the short section from the Susquehanna to Peter's Mountain. In fact, those were my only two visits to the town of Dumpcannon, even though it's only 35 minutes away from home. Not a lot of draw for the Central PA locals...

      My ex-brother-in-law's family used to own the Doyle. Not quite sure of the years but they weren't the ones that sold it to the current owners.

      On my first visit, Sox and I were sitting next to a NOBO thru that had started in late December. When we couldn't finish our large plate of chili cheese fries, the thru grabbed the plate and used my dirty fork to inhale them. On the second visit, I was standing in front of the urinal when one of the local residents came into the restroom. He took one look at me and made a nasty comment about having a tree out back for hikers to pee on. Classic!
      Trudgin' along the AT since 2003. Completed Sections: Springer Mountain to Clingmans Dome and Max Patch NC to Gorham NH

      "The days I keep my gratitude higher than my expectations...those are pretty good days." Ray Wylie Hubbard

    • My "once I win powerball" list includes Buying/silent partnering to restore the Doyle, among other cool old buildings.
      The current Jackpot is $164m I'll have to remember to buy a ticket after work.
      Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.

    • mental note wrote:

      SarcasmTheElf wrote:

      My "once I win powerball" list includes Buying/silent partnering to restore the Doyle, among other cool old buildings.
      The current Jackpot is $164m I'll have to remember to buy a ticket after work.
      If I win I'm gonna buy the AT and re-route it just off shore. :D
      Use an offshore account.

      The closest approach to the shore may be near NYC. You may have to find someone with a bridge for sale in that area.
      I am human and I need to be loved - just like everybody else does

      The post was edited 1 time, last by WanderingStovie ().

    • max.patch wrote:

      wasn't around when i thru'd; we just kept truckin til hot springs.

      the facebook algorithm states that if ya like the standing bear page you will like sevens hiker trash video page. that sounds about right.
      I was about to ask Rasty what he meant when he said he didn't like the vibe there, but I think you just explained it.
      Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.

    • Rasty wrote:

      jimmyjam wrote:

      I'll tell you another place that has seen better days and is now a "hole"- Standing Bear. I will put it in my next leg of my Damascus to Fontana trip report.
      I've been to standing bear twice for shuttles and the vibe isn't something I like.
      I intended to stay there for a night but decided to buy enough noodle to get to Hot Springs and left, it was a druggie place no doubt but I could handle that, it was the attitude I didn't like.
      I may grow old but I'll never grow up.