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    • CoachLou wrote:

      LIhikers wrote:

      Kathy and I got out and walked the boundary line of part of "our" section of AT lands.
      One part, on the western side of a ridge, there was a tremendous amount of trees blown down with root balls and all.
      There were so many that it changed the whole character of the area and making it hard to get through the area.
      I didn't dress warm enough for the day and my hands were freezing by the time we finished, a 5 hour work day.
      After finishing we drove over to Campmor. It was kind of sad to see what the store has become. The choice of items was limited, other items were deeply discounted and all departments were downsized. Also there wasn't a single bicycle in the place. I understand that because of Christmas the shelves might be bare, but this seemed like something more. There were still plenty of employees offering service and help in every department and they seemed to be in good cheer. I have no info about the future of the company, all I can say is that they've served many people well over a lot of years. Good luck Campmor.
      I thought I heard that the store was closing but remain a mail order house
      Now days probably a lot more online sales than mail order or walk in.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Astro wrote:

      CoachLou wrote:

      LIhikers wrote:

      Kathy and I got out and walked the boundary line of part of "our" section of AT lands.
      One part, on the western side of a ridge, there was a tremendous amount of trees blown down with root balls and all.
      There were so many that it changed the whole character of the area and making it hard to get through the area.
      I didn't dress warm enough for the day and my hands were freezing by the time we finished, a 5 hour work day.
      After finishing we drove over to Campmor. It was kind of sad to see what the store has become. The choice of items was limited, other items were deeply discounted and all departments were downsized. Also there wasn't a single bicycle in the place. I understand that because of Christmas the shelves might be bare, but this seemed like something more. There were still plenty of employees offering service and help in every department and they seemed to be in good cheer. I have no info about the future of the company, all I can say is that they've served many people well over a lot of years. Good luck Campmor.
      I thought I heard that the store was closing but remain a mail order house
      Now days probably a lot more online sales than mail order or walk in.
      from an article 5 years ago;

      75% online
      20% paramus nj store
      05% catalog

      i bet if they updated that article today the online would be even higher.

      i bought a lot of stuff from the catalog years ago. the last thing i bought from them (online) were 2 of their famous 20 degree down bags the year before they stopped selling them.

      never been to the store, but i've been to llbean in maine a couple times.
      2,000 miler
    • I love the personal store experiences with people and seeing and touching gear before I buy it. But the only time I have been in NJ is hiking the AT in 2015 and driving through a few times (always in a hurry and no clue how close I ever got to the store).

      Still fond memories of getting the catalog in the mail when I first started backpacking. I bought a lot of gear from them. Even with three degrees in Computer Science / MIS / Information Technology, I still prefer looking through a catalog before buying something online. I guess I am just old school (although in the end I enjoy the personal savings of shopping online). :)
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • LIhikers wrote:

      CoachLou wrote:

      It was an awesome store to just wander thru and wish you brought a sack of 20 dollar bills!
      And not because you just wanted the stuff, but because the stuff made adventures and dreams become realityI hope they survive as an on-line entity but I'll miss the actual store. It is/was a place where you could always count on good, to great, service.
      There selection of maps and guide books, I’ve never seen anywhere.
      Cheesecake> Ramen :thumbsup:
    • Astro wrote:

      I love the personal store experiences with people and seeing and touching gear before I buy it. But the only time I have been in NJ is hiking the AT in 2015 and driving through a few times (always in a hurry and no clue how close I ever got to the store).

      Still fond memories of getting the catalog in the mail when I first started backpacking. I bought a lot of gear from them. Even with three degrees in Computer Science / MIS / Information Technology, I still prefer looking through a catalog before buying something online. I guess I am just old school (although in the end I enjoy the personal savings of shopping online). :)
      that first day you met us, was probably the closest you were to it, while on the trail.
      Reading your post I and I’m sure Paul chuckled a bit.........Campmor on rte.17a in Paramus New Jersey is about as typical cityjambednoleftturnonlyturnright70mphparkinglot as you could find, even Paul from Lawn Guyland and me from southern Connecticut drive with white knuckles to get there! ;(
      Cheesecake> Ramen :thumbsup:
    • CoachLou wrote:

      Astro wrote:

      I love the personal store experiences with people and seeing and touching gear before I buy it. But the only time I have been in NJ is hiking the AT in 2015 and driving through a few times (always in a hurry and no clue how close I ever got to the store).

      Still fond memories of getting the catalog in the mail when I first started backpacking. I bought a lot of gear from them. Even with three degrees in Computer Science / MIS / Information Technology, I still prefer looking through a catalog before buying something online. I guess I am just old school (although in the end I enjoy the personal savings of shopping online). :)
      that first day you met us, was probably the closest you were to it, while on the trail. Reading your post I and I’m sure Paul chuckled a bit.........Campmor on rte.17a in Paramus New Jersey is about as typical cityjambednoleftturnonlyturnright70mphparkinglot as you could find, even Paul from Lawn Guyland and me from southern Connecticut drive with white knuckles to get there!
      White knuckle driving, naw, I just close my eyes so I can't see all the knuckle heads on the road 8o
    • CoachLou wrote:

      LIhikers wrote:

      CoachLou wrote:

      It was an awesome store to just wander thru and wish you brought a sack of 20 dollar bills!
      And not because you just wanted the stuff, but because the stuff made adventures and dreams become realityI hope they survive as an on-line entity but I'll miss the actual store. It is/was a place where you could always count on good, to great, service.
      There selection of maps and guide books, I’ve never seen anywhere.
      Now I would have enjoyed that too! :thumbup:
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Thought I'd post an e-mail I got today.........................................

      Forwarded EMail from Carin L. Farley, Acting Chief Ranger:
      Date: January 8, 2019 at 3:56 PM
      Subject: APPA Shutdown check-in
      All,
      I hope you all had a beautiful holiday with your friends and loved ones. It has now been 17+ days since the government shutdown began, and I wanted to check in. As you all have probably heard in the news, this unfortunately could be an extended situation. I need to remind everyone that the message I sent out on the morning of December 22nd is still in effect.

      During the shutdown, by law, all of our Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) Trail crews, seasonal staff, and A.T. volunteers must cease all work on the Appalachian National Scenic Trail and its side trails. Volunteer Service Agreements (VSAs) are suspended and any work done would jeopardize the A.T. volunteer program. So far, the trail remains open and accessible to the public. I am sure many of you have been out on the trail recreating and enjoying that connection to the AT that you all hold so dearly. While visiting the trail, if you observe any sections that are inaccessible or see any health/safety issues for visitors, please let your ATC regional office or I know so we can evaluate the need for closures. Your partners at APPA share the frustration this government shutdown has brought to so many and we look forward to getting back to normal operations. ATC RDs/regional staff will be reaching out to club leadership later this week to check-in. Thank you for your ongoing commitment to preserve and protect the Appalachian National Scenic Trail. We appreciate your continued cooperation and patience during this shutdown, as the situation is beyond our control.

      Sincerely,
      Carin

      Please make sure this message is filtered out to all individual volunteers at this time.
      Based on questions during the last shutdown, a helpful Q&A document that was created and is attached to this email.

      --
      Carin L. Farley
      Acting Chief Ranger
    • The weird thing about these orders is that a lot of the Trail is on state or private land, and the NPS is dictating to the landowners what they can do on their own property. "We won't insure the volunteers, and we've told the ones in our program to stop," that's fair. "We won't indemnify you against liability from Trail users," also fair. But, "you may not do cleanup on your own property because we have an easement" or "you may not allow visitors to enter your land because we're shut down," is surely a partial taking of the land from a (raising Fifth Amendment issues if the landowner is a private party and Tenth Amendment issues in areas such as state parks).

      I know that in the 2015 shutdown, when the Trail was closed, New York basically ignored the Federal government for the trails in its parks - long stretches of the Trail share treadway with other marked trails, anyway. The only real difference was that volunteer programs that got any sort of Federal assistance or indemnification were shut down.

      Even under the most generous interpretation, Uncle Sam owns only about 700 miles of the A-T. Unfortunately, in some areas the spots that it owns are the trailheads, making routing around them tricky. There are some miles of trail in Housatonic State Forest in Connecticut, for instance, are all state-owned, but the trailheads on West Cornwall Road and CT 112 are both Federal and there are only a couple of other, rather awkward, ways up onto the ridge.

      I probably need to work on updating whiteblaze.net/forum/showthrea…-formally-closed-NY-CT-MA - because similar nonsense is likely coming. I have more research sources available about the Trail east of the Hudson than I did when I wrote that.
      I'm not lost. I know where I am. I'm right here.
    • It's that time of year again, for Kathy and I to get out and do our corridor monitoring.
      On Saturday April 6 we went to our parcels, near Graymoor Spiritual Life Center, and followed the edge of several parcels checking on survey markers and other conditions. We spent 6 hours working and only covered 3.71 miles according to our GPS device. Most of that time was spent clipping brush along 2 lines so we could get from marker to marker. That was very slow going and used up a lot of time. It was a beautiful day with temps in the low 60s and we took an hour long lunch break that included a short nap while we lounged in the sunshine. We found that we've got some painting to do of trees that mark the boundary lines and witnesses of the survey markers. So we'll be going back to walk the same parcels, with paint brush in hand, before going on to other parcels.

      While out we saw a group of 8 or 10 day hikers and guess what. They all looked to be in their 20s so maybe there is some hope of younger generations getting out from behind their screens, gadgets, and devices. Also saw 2 young men who looked like they were out for a weekend or maybe a few days. We didn't talk to any of them since we weren't on the actual trail and they were. I'm already looking forward to the next trip.
    • LIhikers wrote:

      It's that time of year again, for Kathy and I to get out and do our corridor monitoring.
      On Saturday April 6 we went to our parcels, near Graymoor Spiritual Life Center, and followed the edge of several parcels checking on survey markers and other conditions. We spent 6 hours working and only covered 3.71 miles according to our GPS device. Most of that time was spent clipping brush along 2 lines so we could get from marker to marker. That was very slow going and used up a lot of time. It was a beautiful day with temps in the low 60s and we took an hour long lunch break that included a short nap while we lounged in the sunshine. We found that we've got some painting to do of trees that mark the boundary lines and witnesses of the survey markers. So we'll be going back to walk the same parcels, with paint brush in hand, before going on to other parcels.

      While out we saw a group of 8 or 10 day hikers and guess what. They all looked to be in their 20s so maybe there is some hope of younger generations getting out from behind their screens, gadgets, and devices. Also saw 2 young men who looked like they were out for a weekend or maybe a few days. We didn't talk to any of them since we weren't on the actual trail and they were. I'm already looking forward to the next trip.
      Thanks again for making the AT a better place. :thumbup:
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • I'm looking forward to Sunday as Kathy and I are planning to get up to Graymoor, where "our" AT section is. We did our boundary monitoring last this past April and haven't been there since. We know that a few of the survey monuments have been covered by trees blown down and can't be easily found, unless you know where to look. I wish I could use my chainsaw to clear the monuments but that's not allowed. You have to be a certified Sawyer to use a chainsaw on the AT. So I'll get a new blade for our bow saw and we'll work on it the old fashioned way. Hopefully the weather, and life in general, will co-operate and we'll be able to get away to work on it.
    • Greatings from the. AT. Kathy and I are doing our boundary monitoring and having a great time. It's sunny, in the 60s and with a gentle breeze. We did a lot of cutting with our bow saws so as to clear blow downs from survey monuments. We're taking a lunch and only have a bit more to do. I foresee a couple more trips up here this fall to do our other parcels of land.
    • LIhikers wrote:

      Greatings from the. AT. Kathy and I are doing our boundary monitoring and having a great time. It's sunny, in the 60s and with a gentle breeze. We did a lot of cutting with our bow saws so as to clear blow downs from survey monuments. We're taking a lunch and only have a bit more to do. I foresee a couple more trips up here this fall to do our other parcels of land.
      Thanks for all the volunteer work that y'all do. :thumbup:
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Yesterday was a beautiful day in southeast New York so Kathy and I decided to do some boundary monitoring before New York goes into lock down Sunday night. From a starting point on the grounds of Graymoor we worked our way down to route 9 checking boundary lines and survey marks and monuments. At route 9 we decided to take a break from monitoring and do some hiking. We crossed over route 9 and headed south on the A.T. After a bit the A.T. made a left but we went straight on a trail that was new to us. We followed some yellow and then blue trail markers. After a bit we made a right turn off the trail and went up a hill to an overlook of the Hudson River valley. We stopped there and had our lunch, after which we layed out in the sun and took a nap. Our dog's barking woke us up when 6 deer walked by and she wanted to chase after them. After packing up we headed down the hill and followed the trails back to route 9. From there we finished our work and drove home. Two things stood out from the day, first, traffic was super light, second, there were lots of people out on the trails. Old people, young people and families with children of every age, everybody was out to enjoy the nice day outdoors where they can get out of the house without coming in close contact with others. A warm shower and a good dinner were a great way to end a good day.
    • I hope if she chased the deer she didn't catch one like our dog once did. A hoof sliced her ear a little, more a literal "bloody mess" than serious, but a lesson that sometimes it is better if you don't catch what you are chasing. :)
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Yesterday Kathy and I walked the boundary of the northern parcel that is part of our section. There have been so many blow downs in the past couple of years that it has changed the character of the area. We now have to climb under, over and between many trees. We used to be able to recognize where the surveying monuments were but no more, in fact we missed. One and didn't realize it until we got to the next one. We didn't have time to go back to look for it so it'll have to wait until next time. It was a beautiful day to be out in the woods, but it was quite a workout too.
    • CoachLou wrote:

      I did not work at all in 19, for many reasons. I had planned to start up again this year.....but...... the Rona put that on hold. They are out working again, but now I have this new house that needs work every weekend!
      Sounds more like an ''old' house with a lot of "honey do's" to make it like "New". ;)

      I can relate my first two houses I bought were less than a year old. Building a house is a major cause of stress and therefore leads to divorce, which created oportunities that I twice capitalized on. Unfortunately my current house was around a dozen years old, so there have been plenty of opportunities to try to make it like new again over the past 17 years. :rolleyes:
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Earlier today I sent an e-mail to our boundary monitoring supervisor letting him know that Kathy and I are resigning from our volunteer position as A.T. Boundary Monitors. We've been doing it for about 14 years and have had a lot of enjoyment and satisfaction from doing the work. Maybe the most satisfying was the fact that we found a number of survey monuments that even the pro survey teams couldn't find. We just don't have the time to do it anymore, it's as simple as that. Any of you locals interested to take over ?
    • LIhikers wrote:

      Earlier today I sent an e-mail to our boundary monitoring supervisor letting him know that Kathy and I are resigning from our volunteer position as A.T. Boundary Monitors. We've been doing it for about 14 years and have had a lot of enjoyment and satisfaction from doing the work. Maybe the most satisfying was the fact that we found a number of survey monuments that even the pro survey teams couldn't find. We just don't have the time to do it anymore, it's as simple as that. Any of you locals interested to take over ?
      Thank you for all of the volunteer work you have done! :thumbup:
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General