Saturday, July 5, 2008

To hikers, 3-day buffet is 'trail magic'

About 1,000 hikers will set out this spring from Springer Mountain, Ga., intent on making the 2,175-mile trek along the Appalachian Trail. About 450 of those will make it as far as the midstate, say officials with the conservancy that oversees the trail, with about 350 likely to climb Mount Katahdin at the trail's end in Maine.

TRAIL TERMS White blazing -- Purist style of hiking that mandates passing every one of the white rectangular blazes that mark the trail Yellow blazing -- Derisive term white blazers use for hikers who hitch rides or follow highways to skip sections of the trail Pink blazing -- Following female hikers on the trail in hopes of romance Through hiker -- Hikers out to complete the entire 2,175 miles in a single season Section hiker -- Hiker tackling one segment of the trail, with intent to hike the entire trail over the course of several years Day hiker -- Someone out for a one-day hike Slackpacker -- Hikers with automobile-based support that enables them to travel without carrying heavy backpacks Nobo -- Northbound hiker Sobo -- Southbound hiker Ga-Me -- Same as Nobo, derived from Georgia to Maine Me-Ga -- Sobo, Maine to Georgia Compiled by Chris A. Courogen Source: Appalachian Trail hiker interviews

For most of the trip, hikers are spread out in small groups, 10 or 15 passing through any point in a single day. But put out a big spread, throw in a free campsite and do it in one of the trail's legendary towns, and you are certain to gather something seldom found on the trail -- a crowd.

"I'm expecting at least 50, possibly as many as 75 hikers, and [others] say we will have even more," said Mary Parry, the woman hikers call Trail Angel Mary, who is organizing the three-day Billville Hiker Feed, which began Friday in Duncannon's Cooper Field park.

Started in 2002 in Schuylkill County's Port Clinton as little more than a cookout hosted by a group of trail alumni known as the Billvilles, the feed moved to Duncannon in 2005. It has grown in size and reputation, thanks in no small part to Parry, who prepares most of the food, much of which is donated by local businesses.

Many hikers plan their journeys to arrive in Duncannon for the feed, which is one of the largest events on the trail. Others will "yellow blaze" to get there, hitching rides from points along the trail and then hitching back to resume their hikes.

"I heard people start talking about it my second day on the trail," said Mike Yanchak, 56, of Cannonsburg, a section hiker who started his trek across Pennsylvania last Saturday. "Everybody was gearing up for Duncannon on the Fourth."

"I heard about it back in Harpers Ferry. They said it is good trail magic," said hiker James Davis as he polished off the traditional halfway-to-Maine half-gallon of ice cream on the porch of the Pine Grove Furnace General Store Tuesday evening. "Trail magic" is a term hikers use to refer to acts of kindness they encounter along their long walks. Davis, 59, of Wilmington, N.C., was planning to cover the 40 miles to Duncannon in time for the feed.

Many of the hikers in town for the feed will pitch their tents at the park for the weekend. Others will fill the 16 rooms of the Doyle Hotel downtown, an establishment with near mythic status among hikers for its inexpensive rooms, hearty meals, hot showers and cold beer.

The annual event helps enhance Duncannon's already lofty reputation among hikers on the trail.

"There are three or four towns that have a reputation for being trail towns," said Bob Sickley, an official with the Appalachian Trail Conference's Mid-Atlantic Region office in Boiling Springs. "Duncannon is one of them."

Duncannon, the last stop for northbound hikers before the rocky mountaintop ridges that make up the Appalachian Trail between the Susquehanna River and the Delaware Water Gap, is one of few places where the trail runs right through town.

"It's a friendly town. Everybody is real friendly, and I found everything I needed there," said hiker Larry Hughes, 62, of Dickson, Tenn., who passed through earlier in the week on his way south. "I try to stay out on the trail, out of towns, but I spent two nights there. I never spend an extra night somewhere, but I did in Duncannon. I liked the atmosphere."