Trail Blazes

PATH Agrees To Maintain Extra Miles

PATH has agreed to maintain an additional 7.8 miles of the AT near Burke's Garden on a temporary basis until a new maintenance club can be established to handle this stretch.

The Kanawha Trail Club was officially relieved of a 20.2mile section during the ATC board meeting in April. During the MultiClub assembly in late August, representatives from PATH, the Outing Club of Virginia Tech (OCVT), the Roanoke AT Club (RATC), and Mike Dawson from ATC met to discuss who would take responsibility of that section. The groups discussed their respective trail sections and how best to divide the extra mileage among the three clubs. The groups also discussed the possibility of helping establish, train, and nurture an AT maintenance club composed of residents of the Wytheville/Radford area, since they would have easy access to this 20.2mile stretch of the AT.

The groups agreed on the following plan:

• PATH will maintain the 7.8mile stretch from Route 615 north to Route 612 until the new group is established.
• OCVT will maintain the section from Route 623 on Garden Mountain (the dirt road to Burke's Garden) north to Route 615. OCTV will also maintain the section from the Route 460 bridge across the New River, north to the Pine Swamp Shelter. This will be a permanent assignment. On a temporary basis, OCVT will also maintain the section from Route 621, north to Route 611 (8.1 miles).
• RATC will temporarily maintain 4.3 miles of the AT from Route 611 north to Route 608.

The plan must still be approved by the ATC Board later this year.

AEP Power Line: Part Two

As many of you recall, the Appalachian Power Company, now American Electric Power (AEP), proposed building, in southwest Virginia, one of the largest
power lines in North America. The line would have crossed, or run parallel to, approximately 100 miles of the AT from Cloverdale to Dismal Creek, south of Pearisburg, VA. Several sections of the power line would have been in the Jefferson National Forest. Bill Damon, supervisor of the Jefferson National Forest, announced official support for the "No Action" alternative of the draft environmental impact statement last June, effectively supporting the position that the power line could not be built across the Jefferson National Forest.

AEP has revised the route of the power line and now plans to run it across the AT south of Pearisburg. Several members of the Roanoke AT Club are getting maps and information about the exact location, so they can decide what impact it will have and what they need to do. Updates on this issue will appear in the newsletter as information becomes available.

PATH Enjoys Neighborly Cookout

RURAL RETREAT, VA —PATH member Willie Hall and his family opened their doors Oct. 18 and invited PATH trail crews to a post-worktrip cookout. The hosts, Willie and Barbara Hall, own a dairy farm within shouting distance of the fairgrounds where many of the Multi-Club events over the Labor Day Weekend took place. The Halls had been instrumental in getting the fairgrounds opened for PATH's use.

The picnic was held in a meadow on the farm Saturday evening. The Halls had a bonfire going for warmth and cooking hot dogs and a large buffet table filled with homemade dishes of macaroni salad, sandwich fixings, desserts, and drinks.

Most of the PATH members attending rolled into the event directly form their work assignments that day. Major projects that day were side-hilling, bridge building, and blaze painting. The fire and the vittles were a welcome treat for the cold and hungry hikers. PATH sent the Halls a thank-you card after the event.