The mission of the is to make the mountains play a ­larger part in the life of the ­people by ­protecting and maintaining the Long System and fostering, through education,­ the stewardship of Vermont’s hiking and mountains. Cheryl Byrne and ­Carrie Johnson at Quarterly of the ­Stowe Pinnacle vista Green Mountain Club HEBERT JOCELYN Mike DeBonis, Executive Director c o n t e n t s Jocelyn Hebert, News Editor Richard Andrews, Volunteer Copy Editor Winter 2015, Volume 75, No. 4

Green Mountain Club 4711 Waterbury-Stowe Road Waterbury Center, Vermont 05677 Phone: (802) 244-7037 Fax: (802) 244-5867 5 / Sandy Stare: BuilderFeatures of the Original Lost Pond Shelter E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.greenmountainclub.org 6 / Changes in the Vermont Forest The Long Trail News is published by The Green Mountain Club, Inc., a nonprofit organization found- By Caitlin Cusack ed in 1910. In a 1971 Joint Resolution, the Vermont Legislature designated the Green Mountain Club the 10 / Trees: A Photo Essay “founder, sponsor, defender and protector of the Long Trail System...” 12 / The Belated Party Contributions of manuscripts, photos, illustrations, and news are welcome from members and nonmem- By Ilana Copel bers. Copy and advertising deadlines are December 22 for the spring issue; March 22 for summer; June 22 13 / Farewell to Pete for fall; and September 22 for winter. By Jocelyn Hebert The opinions expressed by LTN contributors and advertisers are not necessarily those of GMC. GMC reserves the right to refuse advertising that is not in 14 / A Century of Town Forests in Vermont keeping with the goals of the organization. By Jenny Montagne The Long Trail News (USPS 318-840) is published quarterly by The Green Mountain Club, Inc., 4711 Waterbury-Stowe Road, Waterbury Center, VT 05677. Periodicals postage paid at Waterbury Center, VT and additional offices. Subscription is a benefit for GMC members. Approximately $5 of each member’s dues is used to publish the Long Trail News. 3 / From the PresidentDepartments 20–21 / Sections POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the Long 4 / Mountain Views 22–23 / James P. Taylor Series Trail News, 4711 Waterbury-Stowe Road, Waterbury Center, VT 05677. 16 / Field Notes 24 / Board Report Copyright©2015 The Green Mountain Club, Inc., 17 / Trail Mix 26 / Journey’s End 4711 Waterbury-Stowe Road, Waterbury Center, VT 05677. Permission to reproduce in any form any of 18–19 / Volunteers 27–31 / 2015 Annual Report the material in this publication without prior writ- ten approval of The Green Mountain Club, Inc. is granted only to individuals for their own personal Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation: Filing date, October 28, 2015. hiking ­convenience. Long Trail News. Publication No. 318-840, published four times per year. Office of publication, editorial and general business office located at 4711 Waterbury-Stowe Road, Waterbury Center, Vermont 05677. Editor: Jocelyn Hebert. Owner: The Green Mountain Club, Inc. Average number of copies each issue during preceding twelve months: Total number of copies printed, 7,700. Total paid distribution, 6,555. Total free distribution, 1,004. Total distribution, 7,559. Office use and otherwise not distributed, 141. Total, 7,700. Percent paid distribution, 86.72%. Number of copies of single issue Cover: Snowshoeing through winter forest to published nearest to filing date: Total number of copies printed, 7,200. Total paid distribution, 6,505. Total free distribution, 695. Total distribution, 7,200. Butler Lodge. Photo by Jocelyn Hebert Office use and otherwise not distributed, 0. Total, 7,200. Percent paid distribution, 90.35%. – Jocelyn Hebert, Editor

Long Trail News Winter 2015 2 From the President

n a gray Friday afternoon in Long Trail Lodge late October I enjoyed bush- whacking around the woods near with aboutO twenty-five members of the Green Mountain Club Ridgeline Society. Our quarry was the ruins of the former Long Trail Lodge, a rustic but elegant inn built for GMC in 1928 as a gift from Mortimer Proctor (an early club president and fu- ture Vermont governor), and his mother. As we poked around the foundation stones of the main lodge and examined several collapsed outbuildings, I felt a powerful connection between the ­Proctors, who were important early benefactors of the club, and my present companions.

Each of the ninety members of the VERMONT OF UNIVERSITY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, DEAN, COURTESY S. THERON Ridgeline Society contributes at least $1,000 annually to GMC’s coffers, totaling As it was in the beginning, Avery’s Gore in the Northeast Kingdom. about sixty percent of overall unrestrict- generous people stand We plan to manage these camps for year- ed giving. Many also donate generously round use by reservation only, as we to special projects such as land acquisi- behind every project, new have operated the popular Wheeler Pond tions, shelter renovations and, most trail and new shelter… camps in Barton for more than a decade. recently, bridge building. Together with Although our experience at Wheeler the sections, board members and staff, unteers who cut the trail and the donors Pond gives us confidence that we can our donors are the fourth leg of the GMC who financed their work. The donors of manage these new camps successfully, stool. We could not do what we do with- that era were appreciated as much as we they represent a departure from the long- out them. value ours today. standing model of Long Trail shelters As a twelve-year-old I visited the Today thousands of people give some- used primarily in summer and open to Long Trail Lodge after a hike over thing of themselves to the club every the public on a first-come, first-served ­Killington and Pico during the club’s year. Many do trail work with their sec- basis, free of charge unless there is a care- annual intersectional week in the mid- tions or as adopters. Others work on the taker. We are therefore planning slowly to 1960s. The dining room’s interior was board or its many committees. And many make sure that we have the right manage- finished with large boulders, birch bark contribute financially, as their means ment model. furniture and light fixtures, and a giant allow. It’s all important, but the financial For example, effective disposal of stone fireplace. It was sort of like be- support is essential. So when someone human waste during heavy winter use ing outdoors when you were indoors, from the club asks you to consider mak- requires a different system than the ones which no doubt was the architect’s intent. ing a donation, remember that for more we’ve created for our shelters used mainly Northbound, the Long Trail actually than a century the Green Mountain Club in summer. All three new structures need entered the back door, and left through has depended on people like you to fund remodeling to absorb wear and tear from the front door! A few years after that its work. constant use, and we need to ensure that visit, the Long Trail Lodge burned to the the wood stoves are safe and easy to oper- ground. GMC Camps Update ate. Finally, we need a business plan that Although the buildings are gone, the will make them financially sustainable. Proctors’ tradition of financial support Many of you know that GMC has All of this is under review by our lives on in the Ridgeline Society. As it acquired or assumed the management of talented staff and our new Camps was in the beginning, generous people three new camps and may be wondering Committee (ably chaired by former stand behind every project, new trail and when they will be open. The new camps President Jean Haigh), but time and new shelter—in fact, the entire mission are Bolton Lodge and Bryant Camp in patience will be needed. We hope Bolton of the Green Mountain Club. The earliest Bolton Valley, and Headwaters Camp on Lodge and Bryant Camp will be ready to records of building the Long Trail in the Unknown Pond, reached by a side trail open next year, and Headwaters Camp 1910s routinely identified both the vol- from the new Middle Mountain Trail in will come on line the following year. —John Page, President

Long Trail News Winter 2015 3 Mountain Views

Vital Education Because “ethics” can come sion of the GMC and its ideals across as daunting, stern, or were obvious from the moment Thank you for the timely restrictive. But “ethics” can be that we met him coming in article on Leave No Trace best used in an uplifting way, too: a from the cold rain. Additional- GMC Officers practices in the fall issue. This word that embodies a code of, ly, the discussion we had about John Page, President past hiking season saw a large as your headline put it, “best trail maintenance and steward- Tom Candon, Vice President Stephen Klein, Treasurer increase in the number of thru- practices.” Your article guides ship was extremely interest- Lee Allen, Secretary hikers with a corresponding us in how to carry out these ing. It was obvious how much GMC Directors larger impact on the Long Trail ethical best practices for the Adam not only cared about the Ted Albers, Burlington and shelters. Leave No Trace benefit of the mountain world trails and the environment but Lars Botzojorns, General education is vital to the con- and the hikers who love that also educating those who stayed Faith Brown, General tinued health of our trails and world. at the lodge. Marge Fish, Manchester facilities. Thanks to all of you at the This was an experience of a James Fritz, Jean Haigh, Northeast Kingdom —Bob Whitney, Green Mountain Club for your lifetime and we would thank Chris Hale, Laraway GMC Manchester Section thoughtful and caring work. you for your stewardship of and trail adopter George Hall, General —Laura Waterman this beautiful environment. Allison Henry, Killington —David Grossman Peter Hope, Ottauquechee Mountain Ethics Paul Houchens, General Natural Educator Lynda Hutchins, General What a great job Caitlin [Miller] Visitor Center a Anne Janeway, General and the other field staff mem- A good friend and I hiked to Valuable Resource Wayne Krevetski, General bers did with the Leave No the top of this Sheri Larsen, General Trace story in the fall issue. week after spending a night Thanks to Jen [Donley] for Ron Lucier, Sterling Doug McKain, Bread Loaf What struck me was the fre- at Taft Lodge. This hike was advice before our hike from Millie Mugica, General quent use of the word “ethics.” an absolutely fantastic experi- to Duxbury Road John Oliva, Worcester As a word, “ethics” packs a lot ence and I would like to thank along the LT. She wasn’t kid- Walter Pomroy, Northern Frontier of weight as it suggests a moral the Green Mountain Club for ding; it was a rugged section, Lexi Shear, General creating and preserving an but I had a blast. I’ve hiked Martha Stitelman, Bennington code of right behavior toward, Mike Wetherell, Montpelier in this case, mountain environ- environment that allowed us to long sections of primitive trails Richard Windish, Brattleboro ment and those who use it. enjoy nature in such an unin- in the Grand Canyon, Glacier, John Zaber, General Guy and I wrote two books terrupted way. The advice that and Yosemite, and I’ve never GMC Staff Directory that carry “ethics” in their we received at the trailhead had to work as hard as I did on Main Telephone: (802) 244-7037 titles. One of them, ­Wilderness (Underhill Campground) to the LT. It was a bear. Unfortu- Jason Buss, Business Manager Ethics, was reissued in 2015 take the Profanity Trail given nately, on our last day it was E-mail: [email protected] Phone: (802) 241-8214 with a new foreward by Ben the weather conditions was raining cats and dogs, so we Michael DeBonis, Executive Director Lawhon of the National Out- absolutely critical. We would opted not to try to summit E-mail: [email protected] door Leadership School for also like to thank and commend Camel’s Hump. We’ll just have Phone: (802) 241-8212 Outdoor Ethics. Backwoods Adam Joseph, who we met at to try again. Alicia DiCocco, Director of Development E-mail: [email protected] ­Ethics is to be re-issued next Taft Lodge. His fine company And thanks for such prompt Phone: (802) 241-8322 summer—Bill McKibben is and excellent stewardship of and informative responses to Jennifer Donley, Visitor Center Manager writing the foreward—but the lodge really made the trip my questions. I’ll be a Long E-mail: [email protected] Phone: (802) 241-8210 with a different title: The Green an educational experience that Trail advocate for life! Dave Hardy, Director of Trail Programs Guide to Low Impact Hiking and we will remember for years to —Mike Quillin, E-mail: [email protected] Walnut Creek, California Phone: (802) 241-8320 ­Camping. Why this change? come. His dedication to the mis- Jocelyn Hebert, Long Trail News Editor E-mail: [email protected] Phone: (802) 241-8215 Kevin Hudnell, Field Supervisor E-mail: [email protected] Long Trail News Phone: (802) 241-8321 welcomes your comments. Matt Krebs, Operations and Publications ­Letters received may be edited Coordinator E-mail: [email protected] for length and clarity. Phone: (802) 241-8321 GMC reserves the right to decline Caitlin Miller, Group Outreach Specialist E-mail: [email protected] to publish those considered Phone: (802) 241-8327 ­inappropriate. Not all letters may Jenny Montagne, Membership and Volunteer Coordinator be published. E-mail: [email protected] Phone: (802) 241-8324 Send to: Jocelyn Hebert, Meredith Naughton, Database Manager [email protected] or E-mail: [email protected] Phone: (802) 241-8325 Letters to the Editor, Stewardship Coordinator, Vacant GMC, 4711 Waterbury-Stowe Rd., E-mail: [email protected] Phone: (802) 241-8212 Waterbury Center, VT 05677

Long Trail News Winter 2015 4 Sandy Stare: Builder of the Original Lost Pond Shelter

olunteer Louis “Sandy” J. Stare Jr. of Craftsbury received special recognition for building the original Lost VPond Shelter on the Long Trail at the annual volunteer appreciation picnic in September. The club recognized Sandy fifty years later because his determina- tion, ingenuity, and passion for the Long Trail represent the characteristics of so many GMC volunteers. In 1963 Sandy saw the new U.S Forest Service shelters at Little Rock Pond, and was inspired to build one. Using a Forest Service blueprint, he constructed the shelter at his Cape Cod home in winter of 1965. He had to modify the design so it could be disassembled, transported to Vermont, and reassembled in the woods. When spring arrived he and a band of volunteers formed a convoy, and traveled Executive Director 250 miles to Vermont. Mike DeBonis and Sandy According to a 1965 Long Trail News article, “Mr. Stare and his father; his truck containing assorted shelter hard- The work is done. Now we shall reap the benefits. As hikers prepare their ware and tools; a big truck from Cape Cod meals at the shelter, breathe the pure Vermont air, enjoy the wilderness piled high with the shelter sections; a setting…gaze at the stars and the endless depths of the heavens above, watch huge Timberjack tractor and heavy-duty wagon from Manchester; and about 20 the dying embers of the evening campfire, and restore their strength with GMC and non-GMC volunteers from four refreshing slumber, we know that Mr. Stare’s wishes will have been fulfilled. states” arrived at USFS Route 10 in early May. —Ben Rolston Unfortunately, the original shelter built by Sandy burned in 2001. The club GMC members applauded Sandy, and Volunteers, like Sandy, were and still built a new shelter in 2006, but it also expressed their deepest gratitude for his are, critical to the health and success of burned. GMC did not give up, and built work. He was presented with a framed the Long Trail System. As Executive a third shelter in 2009. It stands firmly collection of images of the three Lost Director Mike DeBonis says, “We need today in , and Pond Shelters—GMC’s way of declaring more folks like Sandy Stare.” reminds us, once again, how devoted our that appreciation for the value of his hard —Jocelyn Hebert, staff and volunteers are to keeping the work and contributions to the Long Trail Long Trail News editor Long Trail experience special. has not diminished.

1966 2006 2009

Long Trail News Winter 2015 5 Changes in the Vermont Forest

Pasture and Mount Mansfield, Early Vermont Landscape

By Caitlin Cusack By 1830, seventy-five percent of New of the Northeast and Midwest. Logging England had been denuded of trees from operations initially focused on harvesting t is agreed by doctors that hiking logging operations and to make way for the best quality white pine. But accord- is the superior ­exercise and a good sheep and dairy farming. In fact, an es- ing to author Gordon G. Whitney, by the tonic, for all but most of us walk too timated 1.5 million sheep, more than ten early 1900s lumbering was “a desultory little. On the trail there is nature and times the Vermont population then, cov- mop-up operation of the few, small, re- Irelaxation where the tired brain may rest… ered the hillsides of the Green Mountain maining old-growth stands and a culling These words appeared in a Vermont state. of the second- and third-growth areas for newspaper on March 11, 1935, the It’s hard to fathom that early conser- their more valuable products.” twenty-fifth anniversary of the founding vationist George Perkins Marsh described Massive soil erosion followed defor- of the Green Mountain Club. True then, the hills of his native state in 1847 as a estation and the mountains were con- they are even more so today, with our place very different from the verdant sidered a biological wasteland. Entire (Verde Mont) we know hillsides washed onto muddy fields and

long commutes and desk jobs. Yet the VERMONT OF UNIVERSITY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, DEAN, COURTESY S. THERON experience of hiking the Long Trail has today: “They remain therefore barren and into streams and rivers. Habitat loss, the changed dramatically, particularly the unsightly blots, producing neither grain fur trade, unregulated hunting, bounties nor grass, and yielding landscape we walk through and see from no crop but a harvest of scenic overlooks. The changes to come noxious weeds, to infest may be hard for us even to imagine. with their scattered seeds Verde Mont, a Biological Wasteland the richer arable grounds below.” In 1909 James P. Taylor, often called Most mountain land the father of the Long Trail, first en- was too steep and rocky to visioned a hiking trail the length of be developed, so it often Vermont while gazing at Stratton passed from one timber Mountain. Taylor saw not virgin woods company to the next. The but second or perhaps even third use and abuse of mountain- growth—forest that had returned despite sides likely resembled the Vermont sheep farm

a century-long binge of land clearing. logging history of much OF CONGRESS LIBRARY

Long Trail News Winter 2015 6 on predators, and other factors dimin- in fire protection, donated funds to erect conservation. This coincided with the ished the number of wolves, deer, moose, the state’s first steel fire tower on Stratton beginning of a decades-long mission to beavers, martens, otters, fishers, bears and in 1914. Fire spotting by aircraft replaced protect the Long Trail from development. other wildlife. towers in the late 1980s, but Long Trail Along with the increase in forest came As forest cover increased, wildlife hikers seeking views can still climb the porcupine (perhaps Mother Nature’s returned. Today it would be hard to walk fire towers on Belvidere, Stratton and revenge on humans for the abuse of the through the woods without finding some Glastenbury Mountains. past decades). The damage to the regrow- sign of deer droppings or hoof prints. In When the Long Trail was completed ing forests caused by them was so exten- fact, in some parts of the state intense in the early 1930s the applied science sive that in 1958 the Vermont Division of deer browsing of seedlings makes it dif- of forestry in the United States was in Forestry reintroduced their main preda- ficult to establish the next generation of its infancy. One writer explained that tor, the fisher. trees. Severe browsing, combined with foresters have to “think about how forests Up until then, Long Trail diaries detail competition from nonnative invasive grow. They have to understand how best one misadventure after another and many plants and climate-induced or –acceler- to manipulate and at times preserve these sleepless nights due to the overpopula- ated changes, may prevent the survival landscapes.” tion of porkies. As one hiker described of some desirable tree species. A far cry in Arthur R. Koerber’s Footpath in the from the situation 150 years ago. ...the denuded hillsides of the Wilderness: “With sardonic humor or scientific curiosity, he (the porcu- Protecting the Next 1800s are memorialized by pine) chews away at almost anything.” Generation of Forests the stone walls and founda- Porcupine numbers were in check by the Social and political events of the mid- tions of abandoned farms 1970s, and the deliberate introduction of 1800s led farmers, en masse, to abandon the fisher was considered a success. their hardscrabble farms for the fertile, scattered through the woods. flat and stone-free soils of the Midwest. Vermont Forests Today In the wake of this mass exodus, white This shift in thinking mirrored a na- In areas where much of the forest pines easily sprouted in the depleted soils tional effort—launched with the creation canopy was left and only large, qual- of Vermont’s fields, and forests rebound- of the U.S. Forest Service—to manage ity trees were removed, shade-tolerant ed. rather than simply exploit land. The ob- sugar maples and balsam fir held on. As By 1910 the white pine, also known ject became to maintain soil productivity, forests matured, land managers protected as old-field pine, had grown to merchant- enhance timber quality and protect water seedlings and saplings, invested in the able size. They were not as tall, straight, resources. The Green Mountain National establishment of desirable species, and and branch-free as the legendary king’s Forest was established in 1932 to man- let trees grow larger. Vermont today is arrow pines reserved and cut for British age land for multiple benefits, including dominated by sugar maple, yellow birch navy masts before the Revolutionary War. timber, fuelwood, scenic views and soil and beech, largely as a result of these Still, they were extensively harvested to Continued next page meet growing commercial and residential needs. When they met their fate with the ax and two-man crosscut, hardwood saplings growing beneath were released from shade to begin the next generation THERON S. DEAN, COURTESY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT OF UNIVERSITY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, DEAN, COURTESY S. THERON of forest. However, logging slash (branches and waste wood) left from the extensive pine harvest through the early 1900s, coupled with drought, caused large tracts to burn. More than 5,000 acres burned in 1903, and 16,000 acres in 1908. While ashes still smoldered, Vermont established the Division of Forestry to coordinate a net- work of forest fire watchmen. The division and the newly formed Green Mountain Club (established in 1910) built a trail to the summit of Stratton Mountain to serve as a fire patrol and recreational trail. Several timber The landscape today

companies, who also had a vested interest HEBERT JOCELYN

Long Trail News Winter 2015 7 Continued from previous page like mountain streams for velocity and ferociousness.” Changes in the weather are not the only factors that will impact hikers’ experience. The Green Mountain Club has already faced threats to the Long Trail: changes in land ownership, a skyline highway proposed in 1933, and chairlifts and associated ski area infrastructure. In the future the club will have to contend with wind energy develop- ment on ridges, expanded backcoun- try ski trails, motorized recreation, mountain development, drones and impacts of changing markets for wood and wood-based products such as maple sugar and biomass. The maple sugaring industry is a prime example of a forest prac- Gathering sap in a maple sugaring camp, 1906 tice that can impact the trail and

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS LIBRARY the hiker experience. The days of collecting sap from buckets using a team of horses has been replaced by ­intentional choices. The ratio of forest derstorms. The magnitude and frequency maple monocultures, miles of plastic cover to cleared land is once again three- of these local storms will only increase. tubing, networks of high-standard roads to-one, and the denuded hillsides of the Changes to Come and the hum of vacuum pumps. Such 1800s are memorialized by the stone walls changes assault many peoples’ senses, and foundations of abandoned farms scat- If a crystal ball could show us the and hiking in some places is like weav- tered through the woods. next fifty years, it would probably pre- ing through a jungle gym. Time will tell While the risk of landslides and cata- dict a four- to six-week increase in the whether large-scale maple sugaring will strophic wildfires has abated, the risk of growing season, more hot days (greater grow even larger, or if warming winters severe storms has increased. Forest land than 90 degrees F.) and greater tem- will keep growth in check. has been disturbed before; the hurricane perature variability. Sandy Wilmont, the How do we balance societal demands of 1938 left much of New England’s for- climate change program manager in the and technological innovation with our ests flattened. Wind uprooted large coni- Vermont Department fers and hardwoods from saturated soils, of Forests, Parks and leaving pits where roots once anchored Recreation, summarizes trunks, and mounds where roots decayed. the prospect: “A longer “Lots of the country through which growing season will be the footpath winds was badly damaged by the hurricane of 1938,” a Long Trail great for hikers. Hotter chronicler wrote in 1941. “When a forest summers may not be so decides to get mixed up, the going is re- great, especially when ally difficult.” vernal streams dry up. Although it is unlikely that region- The increased fre- wide storms like the 1938 hurricane will quency of storms has become the norm, they will probably already shown to be increase in frequency. Over the past problematic for trails. twenty years at least two derechos, or Fixing remote access large-scale severe windstorm events, have roads, trails, bridges leveled thousands of acres of trees in New and culverts tends to York and . be a lower priority and In the last fifty years there has been a to take longer than ma- fifteen- to twenty-percent increase in pre- jor infrastructure. And cipitation in Vermont and a sixty-seven there’s nothing quite percent increase in gully-washing thun- VERMONT OF UNIVERSITY SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, DEAN, COURTESY S. THERON

Long Trail News Winter 2015 8 ­inherent need for wilderness experi- ences? For what John Muir described as “a place to go to hear the wind and little Building it Better else, see the stars and the galaxies, smell the pine trees, feel the cold water, touch The impact of Tropical Storm Irene to the Long Trail System was a wakeup call the sky and the ground at the same time, for trail managers. While we hope that we won’t see another storm like Irene, listen to coyotes, eat the fresh snow”? it is clear that larger and more intense storm events are the new reality and This will be a fundamental question for ­something that trail managers have to address proactively. the GMC. Trail Structures: A prime example is the newly constructed Winooski River An Ounce of Prevention is Footbridge that was designed after Irene hit Vermont. Club leaders invested Worth a Pound of Cure heavily in design and engineering so that the suspended walkway was above Assuring a resilient future requires Irene flood stage and major support towers and cables could withstand poten- preparation for extreme weather and un- tial flood events. The bridge was also designed so that other components such reliable water supplies. Hikers individu- as stairs, support cables, and tread could be repaired or replaced if damaged. ally can adapt by practices like carrying It took over a century to build the bridge. The club made a strategic investment bigger water containers and wearing in design and construction so that the bridge would last for another 100 years. quick-dry clothing and waterproof boots. A resilient future for Vermont's forests Trail Building: The Long Trail, while famous for its uphill ruggedness, shows requires planning and preparation too. signs of decades of erosion. New sections of trail, like the Long Trail north over For example, if we manage our forests Stimson Mountain, are built with an eye toward better management of human for a diversity of tree sizes and ages, we use and water flow by utilizing gentler grades, switchbacks, and larger, rein- create structure and encourage stronger forced water bars and drainage systems. root systems, better able to withstand the Overnight Sites: GMC’s historic and iconic shelters are some of the most impacts of strong winds and water from storm events. ­cherished components of the Long Trail System. When repairing existing, or Unfortunately, trail managers must designing new overnight sites, we consider management for increased hiker contend with trails and a network of use due to a potentially warmer, longer season, the availability of reliable former woods roads inherited from times water sources, and increased infrastructure that will protect sensitive natural when less thought was given to soil resources from impacts of human use. conservation and water quality. To avoid Stronger and better infrastructure is good for the Long Trail System, but comes washouts and erosion we must establish gentle grades when possible, and install at a cost. As trail projects become more complicated, time consuming, and erosion control devices to get water off expensive, managers will have to prioritize which project to invest in, and trails and into the woods, where it can be plan far enough in advance to identify the resources to complete projects absorbed. successfully. As GMC prepares for the next century —Mike DeBonis, Executive Director of change, we should be encouraged by the dogged efforts of trail builders, con- servationists and land managers before Cutting new trail on Stimson Mountain us. Though some changes to Vermont’s forests and their impacts to the trail experience may seem out of our immedi- ate control, others are the direct result of choices we make as land managers. As was true for those that came before us, today's Green Mountain Club lead- ers and partners have the opportunity and responsibility to make choices that maintain the Long Trail as one of the finest opportunities for hikers to experi- ence the mountains and natural beauty of Vermont. Caitlin Cusack is a forester and co- owner of Little Hogback Farm. She lives in Bristol, Vermont with her husband.

Long Trail News Winter 2015 9 It is not so much for its beauty that the forest makes a claim upon men’s hearts, as for that subtle something, that quality of air that emanation from old trees, that so wonderfully changes and renews a weary spirit. Trees —Robert Louis Stevenson

Long Trail News Winter 2015 10 Tree stands photographed on the Long Trail. Photography by Nika Meyers, Jocelyn Hebert, Susan Shea and John Predom.

Long Trail News Winter 2015 11 The Belated Party. . . by 150 Years

n August 22 hikers looked Trail. Pausing at the first vista, I gave an While we ate, Kevin and I pressed curiously as a group of overview of the area’s geological history everyone for stories of other reenact- fourteen Civil War era re- and an introduction to the rare alpine ments, and asked Laura about her time as enactors gathered at a cairn plants and animals of Vermont’s high a ranger with GMC. As Kevin and I left, knownO as Frenchman’s Pile on Mount summits. the reenactors thanked us for the guided Mansfield to recreate the 1858 Jerome B. Passersby paused to listen, some walk, and promised to let us know if they Thompson painting, “The Belated Party contributing their knowledge of the area. decided to make a tradition of reenacting on Mansfield Mountain.” When we reached Frenchman’s Pile, the moments in history on summits of the Depicting a group of young men, photo shoot commenced, replicating Northeast. women and children picnicking on the Harding’s painting right down to the So if you are on Washington or ridgeline, the painting caught the eye of pocket watch held by one of the men. Greylock next August, keep an eye out Connecticut resident Jessica Craig, who The reenactment concluded with for top hats and bonnets, and maybe a was so taken by the idea of having her a picnic at the lower parking lot, with few GMC caretakers tagging along! own nineteenth century picnic that she stunning views of Smugglers’ Notch and —Ilana Copel, recruited a group to join her on a drive plenty of room for wooden trestle tables Mount Mansfield Lead Caretaker up the toll road in full period attire. set with china on linen cloths. The party Laura Peterson, a Green Mountain had brought a feast of homemade breads, upper left: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Club ranger naturalist in the late 1970s jams, pickled eggs, cold meats, cookies, Rogers Fund, 1969, www.metmuseum.org, and early 1980s, participated. To the wine and lemonade, all wrapped in linen Jerome B. Thompson (1814-1886), The Belated delight of field staff, Laura contacted us, and carried in wicker baskets. Even the Party on Mansfield Mountain, 1858 and we made plans to meet the reenac- forks were in character, with three tines upper right and below: Reenactment in 2015. tors. The morning of August 22 found and intricate detailing! Photos by Ilana Copel Field Supervisor Kevin Hudnell wearing a tweed suit and cap at the Mansfield sum- mit visitor center. Suddenly women in bonnets and full bustle skirts, and men in top hats and long tail coats, appeared from the park- ing lot, carrying wicker baskets of glass water jugs and 1861 guidebooks (photo- copied). A boy in knickers and a pageboy hat darted amongst them. Needless to say, I felt distinctly underdressed in my bright green caretaker T-shirt. Kevin kicked off a guided walk by passing around GMC vintage history books and providing a brief history of Mansfield’s toll road and bygone summit houses. I followed with information about modern day mountain operations. Once oriented, we headed north on the Long

Long Trail News Winter 2015 12 Farewell to Pete

he Green Mountain Club was When I started as an eighteen comprehensively addresses human waste Pete Antos-Ketcham’s home year old caretaker in 1993, management on public land,” says Hawk. away from home for twenty- “Specifically, Pete has been the tireless one years. In mid-September, I had no idea that this trail, champion of designing an approved uni- Tas he left to become executive director of versally accessible moldering privy.” this organization, would come Energize Vermont, GMC colleagues and to define my life and my career Pete’s contributions to GMC expand- friends told him, “thank you and, this ed as he oversaw the club’s education isn’t goodbye—we’ll see you on the trail.” and become, for all ­intents program, land stewardship, and facilities Pete’s long history with GMC began and purposes, my home. management. when he tried to join the field staff at In 2003 a fire destroyed the South sixteen, but learned the minimum age –Pete Antos-Ketcham Barn, which housed the office staff in was eighteen. Unwilling to wait two ­Waterbury Center. Pete was a key years, he signed on as a volunteer participant in planning and rebuild- shelter adopter and “counted the ing after the fire. Former Executive days” until he was old enough to ap- Director Ben Rose credits him for ply again. “GMC’s beautiful and ­ecologically When that day came in 1993, responsible headquarters.” GMC board member Lars Botzojorns, “He was essentially our clerk then director of field programs, of the works during construction helped Pete pack into his long- and worked tirelessly to ensure that awaited post at Skyline Lodge in the GMC would harness sun, wood and . efficiency rather than fossil fuel to “I remember being im- operate,” Ben says. pressed with this young lad from Today, visitors can take the Green Middlebury, a hockey player I Energy Tour through the building believe, who exhibited a strong that embodies Pete’s vision. Energize environmental ethic,” says Lars. “He Vermont, a statewide nonprofit that was persistent at gaining employ- educates and advocates for small scale ment and when he was eighteen, he and community supported renew- and I packed into the site in early able energy solutions, will benefit June with a fresh 4-inch snow cover. from Pete’s experience in lowering He didn’t seem daunted when I left the carbon footprint of GMC’s entire him in the wilderness that day—he Waterbury Center campus to near seemed right at home.” zero. “A childhood dream realized,” Executive Director Mike DeBonis Pete says. Pete Antos-Ketcham puts it like this: “Pete grew up work- For the next six field seasons ing for GMC, but we could also say he worked as a caretaker gaining juggled composting priorities which that the club grew by working with experience in both the Green and White soon led to his groundbreaking work on Pete. During his tenure, GMC experi- Mountains. In 1999 he became GMC’s ­ Conservancy’s sanita- enced tremendous success. Pete can add fulltime field supervisor under Dave tion manual for backcountry privies.” the construction of the headquarters Hardy, who became director of trail pro- In fact, Pete became a leader in building, innovations in backcountry grams that same year. backcountry sanitation and was the sanitation, and the Winooski Valley Long “Pete’s work hiring and managing the principal author of the first (2000) Trail Relocation to his long list of accom- caretaker staff was essential to a smooth and second (2014) editions of the plishments. The club is a better, stronger turnover in 1999,” Dave recalls. “We both Backcountry Sanitation Manual. Pete and organization because of his work.” had steep learning curves with agency the ­Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s If you find yourself hiking to Skyline partners and new volunteer leaders and New England Regional Director Hawk Lodge next summer, don’t be surprised if office staff transition.” Metheny cooperated on both manuals, you meet Pete, now the volunteer shelter “Our work in the field was only ac- which describe how to manage human adopter, hauling bark mulch or clearing celerating with restoring Butler Lodge, waste in the backcountry. blowdowns along the trail. building Stratton Pond Shelter, complet- “Public land managers and trail Thank you Pete. ing work on the Pico West relocation, and organizations from around the world fre- recovering from Hurricane Floyd. Pete quently refer to the manual since it is the —Jocelyn Hebert, quickly mastered caretaker logistics and only publication that we are aware of that Long Trail News editor

Long Trail News Winter 2015 13 A Century of Town Forests in Vermont By Jenny Montagne

his year marks the one- “are parcels that are forested or partially against the unregulated use of natural hundredth anniversary of the forested that are owned by municipalities resources: “When I came home [from 1915 Municipal Forest Act, and are open to the public. They include studying abroad] not a single acre of which effectively created town forests, community forests, water- Government, state, or private timberland Tthe robust town forest system we see in shed forests, school forests and conserva- was under systematic forest management Vermont today. tion areas.” anywhere on the most richly timbered of Vermont’s forests have played a central The Municipal Forest Act enabled all continents … the common word for role in shaping its communities. From towns to purchase land for the produc- our forests was ‘inexhaustible.’ To waste logging to maple sugaring to hiking, the tion and sale of timber. The law rose timber was a virtue and not a crime.” state’s forestlands are vital to our econo- from necessity: the nineteenth century As early as the 1860s Vermont towns my and the wellbeing of those who use was a time of unprecedented growth that began designating tracts for community them. The opportunity to be immersed in placed intense pressure on the landscape. use. Westmore’s pastor Charles Gill asked nature minutes from the bustle of a town By the late 1800s eighty-five percent his friend Pinchot for a donation to pur- center is unique to Vermont. Town forests of Vermont’s forests had been cleared chase four hundred acres for the town’s and managed lands like the Long Trail for agriculture and timber. The loss of Congregational church. One hundred System provide refuges easily accessible trees caused soil erosion, flooding and twenty-five acres of cleared land behind and free to the public. the eradication of wildlife habitat and the capitol was donated for Montpelier’s Uses for town forests are as diverse ­species. Hubbard Park in 1899, and L.R. Jones as the towns themselves, but all share State Forest, the first in Vermont, was the goals of protecting town lands from Turning Point established in Plainfield in 1909. development, preserving wildlife habitat At the same time, the conservation The Municipal Forest Act designated and providing space for recreation. movement was gaining momentum. town-purchased forest land as “school According to Danielle Fitzko, urban The establishment of the United States endowment forests,” but a 1917 amend- and community forestry coordina- Division of Forestry in 1881 marked a ment reclassified them as municipal for- tor at Vermont Department of Forests, turning point in attitudes toward forests. ests, an important distinction that made Parks and Recreation, municipal forests U.S. Forest Service Chief and conserva- way for the current town forest system. tion advocate Gifford Pinchot cautioned According to the Vermont Urban and Community Forestry program, forests es- tablished under the law had to be greater than forty acres and managed by the state COURTESY OF THE VERMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY VERMONT HISTORICAL THE OF COURTESY

Long Trail News Winter 2015 14 forester. The state forester was per- mitted to buy and distribute 150,000 seedlings for each town forest from the Forest Legacy Program state tree nursery, and forest sites were planted with fast-growing softwood Twenty-Five Years of Land Conservation species like red and scotch pine and white spruce, preferred because they he federal Forest Legacy Program, which supports state efforts to protect grew faster than hardwoods and could environmentally sensitive forest lands, is celebrating twenty-five years of yield a quicker return. Tconserving almost 2.5 million acres in fifty-three states and territories. A Common Vision We can thank Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, a member of the Senate Over the next several decades Agriculture Committee who was instrumental in writing the 1990 Farm Bill. Vermont’s Forestry Division grew, and Cow Mountain Pond, a 1,660-acre parcel in the Northeast Kingdom, was the with growth came improved town for- first property in the nation conserved under the program. While not the biggest or est management and oversight. In 1930 most famous conserved tract, it was under threat of development, and possessed Vermont reported forty-two municipal high ecological, recreation and economic values—all elements characterizing forests spanning almost 9,000 acres. By ­Forest Legacy conserved properties. the 1950s the state’s municipal forest land had nearly doubled with 16,000 The Forest Legacy Program has conserved more than 66,000 acres in Vermont acres in sixty-eight towns. Today town alone. Several properties, including ones in Jay, Eden, and Bolton, have helped forests cover more than 65,000 acres in preserve the backcountry hiking experience of the Long Trail. 168 ­municipalities. Fitzko believes that town forests are Land and Water Conservation Fund a boon to the quality of life in Vermont: “The public values of these town Since 2004 the Forest Legacy Program has been funded by the Land and Water forests are diverse, from watershed Conservation Fund. But on September 30, 2015, after fifty years, Congress failed to protection, wildlife habitat and forest reauthorize the program, and it expired. The Land and Water Conservation Fund is products to outdoor classrooms and neighborhood gathering places.” funded not by taxpayers but through revenue from offshore oil and gas royalties. The Long Trail is also a place for The Green Mountain Club supports the Land and Water Conservation Fund and communities to come together and for Forest Legacy Program, and strongly encourages Congress to continue funding individuals to find solace in nature. these important conservation programs. In fact, the Long Trail System and —Mike DeBonis, Executive Director town forests meet at the Rutland City

COURTESY OF THE VERMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY VERMONT HISTORICAL THE OF COURTESY Forest, the Johnson Town Forest, and along the trail leading to the newly constructed Winooski River Footbridge in the Sara M. Holbrook Town Forest in Bolton. Hiking trails in some other town forests are described in the GMC publications Day Hiker’s Guide to Vermont and Walker’s Guide to Vermont. Vermonters use town forests to play, exercise and find peace in nature. They have evolved and grown from their original design in large part because of a community desire to use and protect these places for generations of residents to enjoy. Another century of town forests depends on continued commu- nity ­engagement to help their legacy endure. Jenny Montagne is GMC’s Membership and Volunteer Coordinator.

Long Trail News Winter 2015 15 Field Notes

Caretakers: Beautiful weekend weather at Stratton Pond Shelter, and built kiosks to the Appalachian Trail if the new ATV this fall resulted in an all-time high of at the U.S. Route 2 parking lot near the connector trail is approved. We have 87,000 visitors to Mount Mansfield, Winooski River Footbridge. visited the site, and believe the proposed Camel's Hump, and . ATV connector trail will not affect the Shelter Construction: The staff is apply- We’ve chosen a good time to better moni- Appalachian Trail hiking experience. ing for permits for future shelter projects. tor alpine area conditions! Backcountry skiing initiatives on We have a site chosen for rebuilding Green Mountain National Forest have The Long Trail Patrol, guided by Crew Tucker-Johnson Shelter, which was lost also been an issue. Designated backcoun- Supervisor Matt Shea, reconstructed to arson in 2011. We are planning repairs try glading areas have been proposed parts of the Sterling Pond Trail, the to Butler Lodge and Taft Lodge on Mount for three sites south of Brandon Gap. Monroe Trail, Waterbury’s Hunger Mansfield next year. The proposed glades would depart the Mountain Trail, and the Bucklin Trail We plan to renovate Bryant Camp and Long Trail between Sunrise Shelter and thanks to the Vermont Recreational Trails Bolton Lodge in Bolton Valley after we the Chittenden Brook Trail junction. Fund. They also cut part of the Long Trail conclude the permit process next sum- This stretch of the Long Trail is already relocation along the Winooski River just mer. These cabins will become part of the used for cross country skiing between south of the new suspension bridge in Long Trail System, via side trails which Brandon Gap and the Mountain Top Inn Bolton. Appalachian Trail Conservancy are under consideration. Let us know and Resort ski center in Chittenden. We support allowed us to spend a week if you’d like to help with either of these will conduct winter and summer site reclaiming the boundary of the corridor cabin projects. visits to see whether backcountry skiing protecting the Vermont Appalachian Trail Management: GMC has participated and glading create problems for the Long Trail near Thundering Falls Boardwalk in resolving several public lands and trail Trail. in Killington, and clear the Upper Lewis corridor management issues over the past Decisions regarding use of public field above the Gulf Stream bridge in year. lands require thoughtful and respon- Woodstock. The Vermont Agency of Natural sible planning. The club has expressed The Volunteer Long Trail Patrol completed Resources has initiated a rulemaking conditional support for the proposed ATV tread hardening on the Long Trail on the process for designating all-terrain vehicle and backcountry skiing projects, based Peru Peak-Styles Peak ridge, and started connector trails on Vermont state lands on continued monitoring of impacts to rebuilding the old trail from East Dorset linking ATV trail networks on adjoining trail resources and the hiking experi- up Mad Tom Brook to Mad Tom Notch private land. The agency is addressing ence. Public land is managed to provide with US Forest Service funding. a proposal for an ATV connector trail multiple benefits, including clean water, across part of the Les Newell Wildlife timber, wildlife habitat, and recreation, The Construction Crew, led by Kurt Melin, Management Area near the Appalachian but it is important to maintain adequate replaced the roofs on Story Spring Shelter Trail in Stockbridge. separation of uses whenever possible. (with the help of the Connecticut Section) Designation of motorized trails on and Sucker Brook Shelter. They also —Dave Hardy, public lands clearly requires a very open started repairing Boyce Shelter (closed Director of Trail Programs and deliberate process to hear and ac- for safety reasons), installed railings and commodate the concerns of all interested leveled the tilting deck of the Pomfret parties. GMC will monitor the impacts Stage Road Appalachian Trail bridge, built a new drying rack for composting

Long Trail News Winter 2015 16 Trail Mix

Staff Update Meredith Naughton and We are excited to have Meredith Manager Meredith Naughton finished in Alicia DiCocco at WDEV Naughton join us as GMC’s new database August, a week prior to joining the staff. manager. Her inquisitive nature and dedi- Research Coordinator Elisabeth Fenn trav- cation to data management has made her eled southbound with her dog Sybil and a welcome addition to our staff. Meredith finished in September. And, Long Trail immediately began helping with member- News Editor Jocelyn Hebert completed ship and development phone-a-thons and her third thru-hike, also finishing in streamlining some of our data processes. September. She came with a strong background in The club would also like to recog- data analysis, and most recently was nize Karalyn Mark, whose passion for database manager and program coordi- Vermont’s history was reflected in her re- nator for the Bonnyvale Environmental cent volunteer work cataloging the club’s Education Center in Brattleboro. historical materials and processing new Tune in to GMC! Her enthusiasm for the outdoors is donations. Karalyn has a bachelor’s de- contagious! If you have questions or gree in photography from Ithaca College, une into WDEV Saturday would like to welcome her, she can be and is well-versed in photographic mornings at 7:30 for the reached by phone at (802) 241-8325 or by preservation and archival methods. She TGreen Mountain Club e-mail at mnaughton@greenmountain moved to Warren this summer to work as Report. Listen as we talk about our club.org. an archives intern at GMC, and has since favorite topic: hiking in Vermont! We are pleased to announce that Matt become immersed in its history. We share hiking stories and tales Krebs is now operations coordinator, Karalyn says she feels privileged to from the Long Trail, interview working closely with the business man- be working with the archives, which specialists on nature topics, and ager and executive director to improve includes cataloging a set of glass slides address hiking safety, recommenda- and manage the club’s internal operations by Herbert Wheaton Condgon (in whose tions for gear and trails, and how and headquarters facility. He has worked honor Congdon Shelter was named). She to have fun in the woods. Visit the for the Green Mountain Club since 2009 feels connected to the Long Trail through WDEV website (www.wdevradio. as an information specialist, stewardship her work, and looks forward to experi- com) for local listing areas. assistant, publications coordinator, and encing the mountains and sites captured interim business manager. His attention in old prints and documented in trail to detail and organizational skills are logs in the club’s collections. A native of great assets, and he has already signifi- suburban Philadelphia, she is drawn to Planned Giving cantly improved fleet management and the natural beauty, tranquility and con- vendor contracting. He will also continue templative hikes that Vermont’s woods lanned gifts enable donors to to manage the club’s publications. provide. Her photographic work can be make contributions in ways GMC had an exceptional 2015 field viewed at karalynmark.com. Pthat accomplish their finan- season in large part due to our field cial goals while ensuring the long- staff under the attentive leadership term financial strength of the Green of Field Supervisor Kevin Hudnell. We Mountain Club. The generosity of extend our appreciation to Kevin, Field donors enables the Green Mountain Assistant Emily Benning, Long Trail Club to protect and maintain the Patrol Supervisor Matt Shea, Long Trail Long Trail for the enjoyment of cur- Patrol Leader Max Crystal, Volunteer rent and future generations. Long Trail Patrol Coordinator James Types of Planned Gifts: Robertson, Volunteer Long Trail Patrol Leader Meghan Paugh (Meg also served Charitable Bequests as fall Long Trail Patrol Leader), Mount Charitable Gift Annuities Mansfield Lead Caretaker Ilana Copel, Charitable Remainder Trusts Camel’s Hump Lead Caretaker Camille Gift of Life Insurance Robertson, and Construction Crew Retirement Plan Foreman Kurt Melin. To learn more, please contact And finally, congratulations to three Director of Development Alicia GMC staff members who completed Karalyn Mark DiCocco at (802) 241-8322. Long Trail thru-hikes in 2015! Database

Long Trail News Winter 2015 17 Volunteers

Volunteers Honored at Annual Appreciation Picnic taff, board members and volun- GMC Trail Angels Special Tribute: Sandy Stare teers from all over New England (See page 5, Sandy Stare: celebrated another successful Builder of the Original Lost year of hiking trail steward- Pond Shelter) Sship in Vermont at the annual Volunteer Appreciation Picnic on September 26 at Special Tribute: GMC hero club headquarters in Waterbury Center. Doris Washburn was hon- Volunteers present included trail ored with a special tribute. maintainers, section presidents, outreach Though she couldn’t attend, ambassadors and landscape photogra- friends and fellow volunteers phers, to name a few. Each played an wished her well, and offered important role in keeping Vermont’s trails written thanks for her years available to the public, and supporting Group of the Year: GMC Trail Angels of service on a large poster the work of the GMC. GMC Trail Angels are volunteers who board card. The tribute commemorated Cider House Pub & Barbecue of shuttle people from point to point so Doris’s decades of volunteer service to Waterbury catered lunch, and Rock Art they can hike the Long Trail and Vermont the club and her willingness to be one of Brewery and Diretor of Trail Programs Appalachian Trail. They often provide the club’s greatest ambassadors on and Dave Hardy generously donated bever- this service free, or suggest that their pas- off the trail. Her passion inspires volun- ages. Local band, Two Cents in the Till, sengers become GMC members or make a teers, members and staff. Doris recently played old time bluegrass through the donation to the club. Their assistance— took a step back from volunteering, but afternoon, and the celebration concluded another form of trail magic—is invaluable we know we will be seeing her around with ice cream donated by Ben & Jerry’s. to hikers, especially those from out of the club and at section events in the Sincere thanks go to our wonderful state or abroad. future. Thank you, Doris! community of volunteers! Thank you to GMC Trail Angels: Green Mountain Award: Phil Hazen Don Groll, Dick Andrews, Doug Given to volunteers who have done exem- McKain, Pat Spielman, Joan Gilbert, plary work on a specific program or who, Dot MacDonald, Linda Reynolds, over the years, have been tireless in their Louanne Nielsen, Kathleen Byrne, Andy commitment and devotion to the Green and Carlene Squires, Leigh Hunt and Mountain Club. Jonathan Wahl, Jen Kenney, Bill and Amanda Brink Julie Frascino, Jim Stead, Noah Kanter, Inge Brown Tim Heath-Swanson and Rick Swanson, Stephanie Frederick, Dave and Louise Gary Sawyer Ransom, John Selmer, Jeff and Nancy Harry Temple Comstock and Steve Merrill. (If you Heinz Trebitz would like to be added to our trail angel Inge Trebitz list, please contact Jenny at jmontagne@ Howard Van Benthuysen Volunteer of the Year: Phil Hazen greenmountainclub.org.) Phil has served in almost every volunteer Trail Blazer Award: capacity since joining the GMC more than Special Recognition Awards: Given to relatively new GMC volunteers twenty years ago, including an eight- Dick Andrews and Bill Lyons who have gone well beyond the norm on year run as Burlington Section president. Executive Director Mike DeBonis present- the trail, off the trail, or anywhere else Today, Phil serves on the Development ed Dick and Bill with special recognition that benefits the Long Trail and Green and Membership Committees, and is an awards for their continued support of and Mountain Club. enthusiastic trip leader for Burlington dedication to GMC. Both Dick and Bill Chris Diegel Section outings. Phil has a special ability have volunteered over the years in many Lee Eastman to draw in other volunteers and new different capacities, including serving on members with his entertaining stories the club’s Executive Committee, which Adam Heckle and inclusive and friendly spirit. they left in 2015.

Long Trail News Winter 2015 18 Volunteers

Trail Magic Day Get Involved! n August 8 the Green Mountain Club celebrated the first Trail Magic Day in the Green Mountains! Volunteers from GMC sections set up at Long Trail Volunteer Opportunities and Vermont Appalachian Trail road crossings and greeted hikers, provided O Winter Trails Day Hike Leaders trail magic in the form of tasty treats and hiking information, and discussed the work of the club. GMC members and staff enjoyed the chance to connect with hikers and Hike leaders are needed for our trail supporters in our shared love for the mountains of Vermont. We look forward to ­annual Winter Trails Day in early Feb- more wizardry next year! ruary. Experience leading hikes and My fourteen year old son and I were on a six day backpacking adventure in south- familiarity with local trails is required. ern Vermont at this time. We were toward the end of our day on one of those 80-degree days, and I remarked that we would soon cross a major road, and wouldn’t it be great if Thursday Office Volunteers there were an ice cream stand on the road... you know how food fantasies take over when Come join our wonderful Thursday vol- you’re backpacking... It was magical to encounter GMC vols across the road with chairs, unteer team! Thursday volunteers assist lemonade, cookies and candy bars—my son thought that he had died and gone to heaven. with membership mailings, preparing I proudly reported to them that we are long-time members and regular users of many marketing materials, envelope stuff- trails and shelters. Thanks for all you do! ­—Kate Belluche, Burlington ing, and supporting GMC staff projects. Volunteering in the office is a great way to connect with hiking enthusiasts and Save the Date for support the club in an indoor capacity. Come be a part of this fun and hard- GMC’s Winter Trails Day! working crew! MC and long-time club supporter and business member CC Outdoor Trail and Shelter Adopters Store will combine their hiking expertise at this year’s Winter Trails As a trail or shelter adopter you can Day celebration. G care for the trail and keep it in good con- Bring friends and family to CC Outdoor Store on Saturday, February 6 for an invigorating day of guided hikes and walks through the forest. We’ll have hikes dition for others to enjoy. Adopters trim for every experience level, provide hiking information, and demo the latest in brush, clear drainage channels, maintain winter traction options. Of course there will be trail snacks for the hikers and blazes, make minor repairs, and report hot chocolate for all! problems. GMC provides tools, signage, Winter Trails Day is being held in conjunction with the Waterbury Winter and training. Several trails and shelters Festival, a ten-day series of events including running and ski races, broom- currently need adopters. ball, ice skating, art, food, snowshoeing, hiking and much more, in and around downtown Waterbury. It begins Friday, January 29, and runs through Volunteer Corridor Monitors Saturday, February 7. For the latest schedule of Waterbury Winter Festival As a corridor monitor, you help ensure www.waterburywinterfest.com. events visit that conservation requirements are For more information please contact GMC Membership and Volunteer met and help steward Vermont’s lands. Coordinator Jenny Montagne at [email protected]. Monitors walk the boundaries of GMC- 2015 Winter Trails Day hike to conserved land at least once a year, .Wind Gap on Camel's Hump and report back to the club. Practice your navigation and mapping skills, gain conservation experience, and provide an essential service to GMC’s conservation mission.

To learn more about volunteer opportuni- ties and programs, please contact Jenny Montagne, membership & volunteer ­coordinator at jmontagne@green mountainclub.org or (802) 241-8324.

Long Trail News Winter 2015 19 Sections Section Directory Bennington Maintenance: Harmon Hill to President: Martha Stitelman, (802) 442-0864 County in California. Barbara and Al, E-mail: [email protected] Bread Loaf Section Website: www.bennington.com/outingclub GMC’s stewardship of the Long Trail has Brattleboro The GMC Bread Loaf Section gives been strengthened by your service! Maintenance: Winhall River to Vt. 11/30 tremendous thanks and appreciation to President: George Roy, (603) 381-7756 —Ruth Penfield, E-mail: [email protected] Barbara and Al Stiles of Middlebury. Bread Loaf Section President Website: www.brattleborogmc.com Since moving to Middlebury in 1976, Bread Loaf Barbara and Al have been consummate Connecticut Section Location: Middlebury area volunteers—active members of GMC Maintenance: Sucker Brook Shelter to Emily Proctor Shelter From September 18 to 20, eleven vol- President: Ruth Penfield, (802) 388-5407 almost forty years as well as volunteering E-mail: [email protected] for several other outdoor organizations. unteers from the Connecticut Section and Website: www.gmcbreadloaf.org four members of the GMC Construction Burlington Trail users in the Moosalamoo Crew put in 277 work hours replacing the Maintenance: Jonesville to Smugglers’ Notch and other parts President: Ted Albers, (802) 557-7009 roof of Story Spring Shelter. E-mail: [email protected] of the Green Mountain National Forest Website: www.gmcburlington.org have benefited from their many hours The work party hauled equipment, Connecticut work on the Long Trail, side trails (nota- tools and supplies in and then back out Location: Hartford, Connecticut bly Skylight Pond and Lake Pleiad Trails) on packboards. Frank Maine performed Maintenance: Glastenbury Mountain to trail magic by bringing in and cooking Arlington-West Wardsboro Road and the Wilkinson Trails. Al has been President: Jim Robertson, (860) 633-7279 sixty hot dogs for us and all hikers who E-mail: [email protected] building trails for the Middlebury Area Website: www.conngmc.com Land Trust’s Trail around Middlebury passed through. Killington (TAM) since it was founded in 1996. He Members of the work party were Location: Rutland area Kevin Breton, Bill Brodnitzki, Kevin Maintenance: Vt. 140 to Tucker-Johnson Shelter site is especially known for his work with President: Barry Griffith, (802) 492-3573 wood: a zigzag footbridge on the TAM, Burke, Peter Finch, Dick Hart (section E-mail: [email protected] vice president), Dennis Himes, Frank Website: www.gmckillington.org his own small kayak, many wooden Maine, Jim Moore, Jim Robertson (sec- Laraway puzzles and even his unique wooden Location: St. Albans area hat! Al has also volunteered at the Lake tion president), and Adam and Mike Maintenance: Vt. 15 to Vt. 118 Shaw from Connecticut; and Dave Hardy President: Bruce Bushey, (802) 893-2146 Champlain Maritime Museum for almost E-mail: [email protected] thirty years. (GMC Director of Trail Programs), Kurt Manchester Married sixty years in September Melin (GMC construction crew foreman), Maintenance: Vt. 11/30 to Griffith Lake and crew members Justin Towers and President: Marge Fish, (802) 824-3662 (Barbara recently turned ninety) they E-mail: [email protected] Dillon Hancock. Website: www.gmc-manchester.org remain active and take brisk daily walks. We wish them all the best as they —Dick Hart, Connecticut Montpelier Section Vice President Maintenance: Bamforth to Jonesville and move from Addison County to Santa Cruz Smugglers’ Notch to Chilcoot Pass President: Reidun Nuquist, (802) 223-3550 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.gmcmontpelier.org Northeast Kingdom Location: Northeast Kingdom Maintenance: Willoughby and Darling State Forests and the Kingdom Heritage Lands. President: Luke O’Brien, (802) 467-3694 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.nekgmc.org Northern Frontier Location: Montgomery Maintenance: Hazen’s Notch to Journey’s End President: Jane Williams, (802) 827-3879 E-mail: [email protected] Ottauquechee Location: Upper Valley, and New Hampshire Maintenance: Appalachian Trail from Maine Jctn. to the New Hampshire line President: Dick Andrews, (802)-885-3201 E-mail: [email protected] Website: http://gmc-o-section.org Sterling Location: Morrisville/Stowe/Johnson Maintenance: Chilcoot Pass to Vt. 15 President: Greg Western, (802) 655-6051 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.gmcsterling.org Worcester Location: Worcester, Maintenance: Arlington-West Wardsboro Rd. to Winhall River Barbara and Al Stiles of Middlebury President: Patricia Faron, (508) 892-9237 E-mail: [email protected] Long Trail News Winter 2015 20 Connecticut Section

Manchester Section

Northeast Kingdom Section Cathi Brooks

Northeast Kingdom Section Connecticut Section Replacing the roof on Story Spring Shelter Manchester Section Replacing puncheon on the Long Trail north of Bromley Brook crossing. L: Rick Ladue, Katie Adams Brooks and Katie’s dog. R: Dave Ratti and Jayne Dellaratta. Northeast Kingdom Section The Wheeler Pond Camps annual wood stack- ing extravaganza. Wood crew volunteers, stacked almost four cords in two and a half hours. Front L-R: Lenny Targonski and William Gratton. Rear L-R: Nina Church, Judy Anastasia, Cathi Brooks, Michael Chernick, Angela Marquis and daughter Brooke, Andrew Bouchard, Luke O’Brien and Lisa. Montpelier Section Members of the Montpelier Section, joined by Montpelier Section four UVM students, on their fall work hike in Smugglers’ Notch. Long Trail News Winter 2015 21 24th Annual James P. Taylor Outdoor Adventure Series

or more than one hundred years the Long Trail has inspired run across Iceland from the trails of the United Kingdom. Vermonters to seek adventure in the Green Mountains and Atlantic to the Arctic Ocean The paths wind through the beyond. The James P. Taylor Outdoor Adventure Series, named covering 240 kilometers and best landscapes of the realm: F more than 6,000 meters of across sweeping downs, along after the man who first envisioned the Long Trail, brings such elevation gain. Learn about rugged coastlines and over ­adventures to you through stories, photographs and videos. Join Iceland’s unique landscape, its craggy mountains. Instead of us for inspiring presentations that will transport you to moun- connection to climate disrup- following white blazes, you tains and waterways near and far as we celebrate twenty-four tion, and the lessons endurance track signposts with acorns or sports can teach us about our- thistles. Endlessly fascinating years of the Taylor Series—a great way to spend an evening! selves and our world. Climate for history buffs, they skirt Run brings together athletes Roman forts, village churches Admission is $5 for members and $8 for nonmembers; kids from a range of sports to build and castle ruins. Best of all, under 12 are free. Tickets are available at the door only. Proceeds resilient communities in the says Andrew, each day starts ­support local sections and the GMC Education Program. face of global climate disrup- with a big meal cooked by a tion. Pavel hopes to inspire friendly bed and breakfast audiences, transform think- host. The slideshow will feature mous mosquitoes. She also was 1,000 Miles across Alaska ing, and build a more resilient England’s Hadrian’s Wall Path lucky enough to see part of the Kristin Gates approach to local ecology and and the Cotswold Way, and ­Porcupine caribou herd migra- the global climate. Scotland’s Speyside Way and Monday, December 21, 7 P.M. tion and the last great wilder- Arran Coastal Way. GMC Visitor Center ness in our country. Come listen Waterbury Center They Call It Walking: as she shares stories and photo- ­Exploring the Trails of Three Poems and a Parkway At twenty-six Kristin Gates graphs from her adventure. You the United Kingdom became the first woman to can also check out her blog at Bruce Post trek solo across the trailless www.milesforbreakfast.com. Reidun and Andrew Nuquist Friday, March 11, 7 P.M. Alaska’s Arctic Brooks Range. Friday, February 26, 7 P.M. Richmond Free Library She mapped a route herself, and Climate Run: Iceland GMC Visitor Center Richmond; Sponsored by the bushwhacked the 1,000-mile Pavel Cenkl Waterbury Center ­Burlington Section distance from the Canadian Friday, February 19, 7 P.M. Join Montpelier Section mem- The 1936 rejection of the Green border to the Chukchi Sea. GMC Visitor Center bers Reidun and Andrew Mountain Parkway is embed- During the expedition she Waterbury Center Nuquist to explore legend- ded in the Green Mountain endured grizzly bear and wolf ary long-distance hiking Club’s creation myth. History pack encounters, perilous river Join us for an evening of stun- crossings and Alaska’s infa- ning images and stories from Climate Run: Iceland—a solo

1,000 Miles Across Alaska

They Call it Walking

Long Trail News Winter 2015 22 24th Annual James P. Taylor Outdoor Adventure Series

The “Other” Out on a Limb Mount Meru

trips to Ngorongoro Crater of social behavior that may and Tarangire National Parks, parallel early human behavior. and highlight time among the They show evidence of recip- locals: planting trees on prop- rocal altruism, food sharing, erty soon to host housing for and early group formation of retired porters, meeting a rifle unrelated individuals. Bears can ranger in Arusha National Park, live for as many as forty years, singing with school children, which allows them long term and hiking with their outstand- benefits from forming relation- ing guide, Yusuf. ships with fellow cooperators. Cecilia is a GMC hike trip Ben Kilham is a wildlife and Archives Committee mem- The “Other” Mount Meru leader and a former Bread Loaf biologist from Lyme, New ber Bruce S. Post uses poetry, and Mount Kilimanjaro: High Section board member, and Hampshire. His love of and photos, maps and movies to Hopes in Tanzania maintains nearly four miles of devotion to black bears has plumb the Parkway story and trail on the Long Trail System. enabled him to study their hab- Cecilia Elwert to ponder the consequences Long ago she worked as a GMC its and interact with them for of its defeat. With the spirit of Thursday, March 31, 7 P.M. hut caretaker and ranger natu- more than twenty years. He and GMC founder James P. Taylor Ilsley Public Library ralist (now summit caretaker). his wife Debra have accepted as a hiking companion, Post Middlebury orphaned bear cubs into their will take us on a virtual trek Sponsored by the Bread Loaf Out on a Limb: What Black home, and enabled them to Section along the proposed Parkway Bears Have Taught Me about return to the wild. Ben has route, examining then and now Join Cecilia as she takes you Intelligence and Intuition been the focus of news articles photos, showing alternate trail through her nineteen-day trek Benjamin Kilham and documentaries includ- locations, and uncovering the to Mount Meru, the fifth high- ing National Geographic’s A club’s little known role in the est mountain in Tanzania, and Friday, April 22, 7 P.M. Man Among Bears and Animal GMC Visitor Center fate of what could have been the warm up trek, 19,340-foot Planet’s Papa Bear. He is also Waterbury Center one of America’s most visited Mount Kilimanjaro. While co-author of the book Among national parks. her focus will be on the two Black bears, often thought to be the Bears: Raising Orphaned major peaks, she will take side solitary, have their own types Cubs in the Wild.

The Taylor Series is sponsored by GMC’s Major Supporters of our Taylor Series * fourteen sections, local businesses and other friends of the club. To learn how you can sup- $1,000+ Business Contributors $500 – $999 Business Contributors port this important community outreach effort, 802 Cars.com Alchemist Brewery please contact Membership & Volunteer ArborTrek Canopy Adventures Coordinator Jenny Montagne at jmontagne@ Long Trail Brewing Company greenmountainclub.org or (802) 241-8324. Stoweflake Mountain Resort & Spa CC OutdoorStore.com Vermont *This is a partial list of business contributors Trapp Family Lodge to the GMC Annual Fund. A complete Vermont Smoke and Cure Rock Art Brewery listing and information on how businesses can The Waterwheel Foundation (Phish, Inc.) Thread Rolling, Inc. support the GMC can be found at Woodchuck Hard Cider www.greenmountainclub.org.

Long Trail News Winter 2015 23 Board Report

n his first report as president at the Treasurer Stephen Klein reported that would begin the process of updating its September 26 board meeting, John fiscal year 2016 income and expendi- strategic plan. Page said the club is in good over- tures are on track with the budget. Steve Director of Development Alicia all health thanks to the committed pointed out that this year’s budget is ­DiCocco reviewed the club’s development Iefforts of both staff and volunteers. John one of transition, because the Winooski of a new web presence to replace our listed the following goals for his presi- Valley Long Trail Relocation project is outdated ten-year-old website. dency: completed, so special contributions and withdrawals from reserve funds associat- The board: • Strengthen the club’s financial health. ed with the project will no longer be sup- • Voted to approve chair and member • Take advantage of opportunities to porting club operations. The fiscal year assignments for eighteen GMC com- protect the last five miles of unpro- 2015 audit was completed on schedule mittees for fiscal year 2016. tected Long Trail; with no adverse findings. Bret Hodgdon, • Voted to increase the club’s short term • Build a strong and vibrant camps pro- a principal of the accounting firm of operating line of credit from $200,000 gram. Davis & Hodgdon, presented highlights to $250,000. • Maintain a strong program of trail and of the audit. • Voted to approve initiating a review of shelter construction. Executive Director Mike DeBonis the club’s internal governance. • Complete the one-hundredth anniver- provided thoughts on how the club fared • Authorized the staff to support the sary edition of the Long Trail Guide. in meeting the six goals outlined in the 2015 Les Newell ATV connector trail • Maintain, repair and reconstruct tread- 2010-2015 Strategic Plan. Overall, the and rules as proposed by the State of way to high standards across the Long club made great progress, but budget Vermont. Trail System. cuts and shifting funding streams af- —Lee Allen, Secretary • Review the club’s governance structure fected internal capacity and program to provide for a self-sustaining future. continuity. Mike announced that the club

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Long Trail News Winter 2015 25 Journey’s End

Journey to GMC

eople often ask how I be- the map that afternoon. And in 2007 came involved with the Green I did complete a thru-hike. In 2010 I Mountain Club. I always pause walked the trail again to raise awareness momentarily because my of Parkinson’s disease and in memory of Pconnection to the Vermont Mountains my late father, who had struggled with it started when I was very young—before I for more than a decade. When I finished could truly understand it—but I became that hike I stopped at the GMC Visitor connected with GMC much later in life. Center, and dropped off a thick journal A faded color photograph of my fam- detailing my adventure. The post and ily on the summit of Camel’s Hump taken beam building was beautiful, spacious in 1974 captures what must have been and had a fragrance of wood, reminiscent my first hike. My father points into the of the trail. ­distance, most likely at our house in the Camel's Hump, 1974 That spring I found myself working rolling green landscape for my brother at the visitor center, helping people plan Kyle. My other brother and I face the hiking adventures. Five years later I still camera for my mother, the family pho- I was slow to realize that work in that beautiful spacious building, tographer. We were six, seven and eight there would be no Long new wonderful friends from the GMC years old; I was the youngest. hiking community stream regularly into I am sure our family hiked together Trail to hike without the my life, and I better understand how more, but my next memory is of a Green Mountain Club. the Green Mountain Range has kept its hike up Camel’s Hump with the GMC’s natural beauty. Montpelier Section. Details are fuzzy, imagine the time, energy and skill that I sometimes ask myself why it didn’t but I recall a newspaper ad for the hike, must have gone into building features occur to me to become a member sooner. meeting at Montpelier High School to like stone staircases—to make them And I thank Kyle, who had the foresight carpool to the trailhead, wearing blue functional, yet blend into the landscape. to give me the gift of GMC membership cotton soccer shorts and burgundy Mother Nature would be pleased. that Christmas morning. It changed my striped tube socks, and being about four- My interest in day hiking expanded perspective, and my life. to thru-hiking when another friend told teen. I didn’t fully understand who I was —Jocelyn Hebert, hiking with, or what the Green Mountain me he had recently finished a Long Trail Long Trail News editor Club did. section hike. I became so intrigued by A westward adventure in my ­twenties the idea of walking the length with Kyle, who was on his way to grad of Vermont that in 2006 I told school in Alaska, exposed me to big my family I was going to thru- mountains. We backpacked in Grand hike the Long Trail! Teton National Park for a few days and That Christmas, as is tradi- learned a lot—especially that we had a tion, our family gathered by lot to learn about backpacking. I wanted the fireplace in our formal to learn more, but I really didn’t until I living room to open gifts. I joined a group of central Vermont hiking was handed a package signed, enthusiasts in my thirties. Their mission “Love, Kyle, Suzanne, Zach was to explore a different peak on the and Niko.” It was a member- Long Trail weekly between early June ship pack­ et from the Green and late September. Mountain Club, a shiny new With each excursion my appreciation waterproof Long Trail Map of GMC’s work increased. A friend loves and the Long Trail Guide. to exclaim, “Mother Nature provides!” After more than thirty every time he approaches a stone stair- years of hiking Vermont’s case on the trail—a fantastic, if indirect, trails, I was a Green Mountain compliment to the Long Trail Patrol. And Club member! well-deserved. I have often stopped to I flipped through my new Kyle, Jocelyn and Calais, 2015 guidebook and pored over

Long Trail News Winter 2015 26 Green Mountain Club ANNUAL REPORT  MAY 1, 2014 – APRIL 30, 2015

hat an incredible fiscal year 2015 was. Two words The club finished the year in the black, and contributions Wcome to mind: accomplishment and change. to the endowment continued. Through generous bequests, we were able to retire the mortgage on the club head- Our major accomplishment was completion of the quarters building enabling us to devote more funding to Winooski River Footbridge, first officially crossed by protecting and maintaining the Long Trail System. project supporter and former Taft Lodge Caretaker Daan Zwick. The smile on Daan’s face as he finally achieved his We owe much of our success to the more than 9,000 voting dream of walking across a bridge connecting the Long members and volunteers who are the club’s backbone, Trail through the Winooski River Valley from Camel’s Hump providing thousands of hours of labor to support trails, to Mount Mansfield was almost worth the 103-year wait. shelters, and organizational functions. This project was made possible by 1,400 generous donors, Next year hikers will enjoy hiking on two miles of new committed partners and an amazing amount of work by the trail winding through the Winooski River Valley south of club’s dedicated volunteers and staff. the Winooski River Footbridge. We will begin renovating We also had significant change at the club, including the Bolton Lodge and Bryant Camp, update and redesign the hiring of several new staff members and the conclusion club’s website, and develop a strategic plan which will of Jean Haigh’s three-year term as president. We are in- lead the club through the next phase of accomplishment. debted to Jean for her wisdom, leadership and hard work. I am proud of our work, and confident we will continue to What I’ve always admired about the club is its ability to grow and strengthen together. I look forward to reporting maintain the Long Trail as a free world-class hiking trail, more progress next year. Thank you for your support of the even with organizational, ecological and economic chal- Green Mountain Club, and for your help keeping the Long lenges. Last year was no different—we helped provide Trail free and open to all. hiking opportunities to more than 200,000 visitors, and congratulated almost 200 long distance hikers for complet- Sincerely, ing the Long Trail.

Mike DeBonis, Executive Director

Daan Zwick

Green Mountain Club 2015 Annual Report 27 Because of your support this year… We Communicated Our Mission:

• The club’s flagship publication, the Long SOLO Wilderness First Aid, and our popu- Trail News, was produced and mailed lar live broadcast end-to-ender panel. quarterly to approximately 6,700 house- • Our group outreach program helped holds. The magazine was also distrib- 38 organizations develop low impact uted in our visitor center and at events itineraries on the trail by using desig- throughout the year. nated group overnight sites, minimizing • Our visitor center staff provided more overcrowding, and encouraging Leave than 4,500 visitors with hiking and rec- No Trace practices. This improved the reational information. They also directed backcountry experiences of nearly 1,300 hikers to the Short Trail on our campus, youth and college-aged hikers. ordered new GMC merchandise, shipped • Our volunteer coordination staff wel- 1,500 orders, managed more than ninety comed nearly 400 eager attendees to the Wheeler Pond Camp reservations, regis- club’s annual Mud Season Egg Hunt and tered participants for outdoor skill edu- Winter Trails Day events, held at club cation workshops, and answered your headquarters. phone calls and emails. • Our communications staff kept our online • More than 200,000 people enjoyed a presence strong. The club’s monthly hike on the Long Trail System. 186 hikers electronic newsletter, eBlaze, reached were awarded End-to-End certificates for an average of 9,900 readers. Social completing the entire Long Trail. media support steadily increased with • Our publications staff and volunteer more than 12,000 followers on Facebook, committee members were busy! They 3,000 on Twitter, and rising numbers on finished text for the seventh edition of 50 Instagram, our newest platform. Hikes in Vermont, and prepared the next • Our stewardship staff worked with editions of the Long Trail End-to-Ender’s the Appalachian Trail Conservancy Guide, Vermont’s Long Trail Map, and the to produce the second edition of the Northeast Kingdom Hiking Trail Map. The The Long Trail embodies the spirit of Vermont ATC-published Backcountry Sanitation Green Mountain Club now publishes 18 Manual. This manual explains best prac- and the people who call the state home – its hiking books and trail maps. tices for treating human waste to safe- beauty, solitude, camaraderie, generosity and • Our education staff held 10 work- guard the backcountry environment and the fact it has been sustained through the shops with 155 participants, including trail users. generations by dedicated, passionate people Introduction to Backpacking for Women, who know its significance.

—Adriane Edwards-Bacon

Green Mountain Club 2015 Annual Report 28 We Protected and Stewarded Land:

• We reclaimed nearly thirty miles • We obtained the 123-acre Thomas Parcel of boundary line on the Vermont in Bolton, a critical piece of upland now Appalachian Trail from Bartlett Brook part of the Long Trail Relocation north of Road in Pomfret to Elm Street in Norwich. the Winooski River. The parcel has been This was accomplished in addition to transferred to Mount Mansfield State regular mowing, cutting brush and sap- Forest with GMC retaining a conservation lings, and burning of debris. easement. • We reclaimed two acres from overgrown • We completed our fifth season of sus- native and non-native woody vegetation tainable timber management on the on Woodward Hill in North Bridgewater Meltzer Tract in Lowell. We acquired and Merrill Hill in West Hartford. GMC forty cords of log-length firewood to manages fifteen open areas along the heat the Visitor Center, the Back Forty Appalachian Trail between Route 12 and field staff housing and cabins, and the the —the largest con- Wheeler Pond Camps in Barton. centration of open areas along the entire 2,168 mile AT.

We Cared for the Trails and Mountains:

• Our summit caretakers guided and edu- • The Long Trail Patrol repaired and cated more than 57,000 hikers on Mount improved the Haystack Mountain Trail on Mansfield, a thirty percent increase over the Green Mountain National Forest in last year, and 21,000 hikers on Camel’s Dover after a bulldozer trespassed and Hump. Our Long Trail/Appalachian Trail damaged the treadway. The LTP com- backcountry caretakers hosted 1,700 pleted additional work along the Vermont hikers at Stratton Pond, Griffith Lake and Appalachian Trail corridor and built a Little Rock Pond. And more than 4,000 solid rock staircase just north of Skylight hikers made their way to the Stratton Pond in the Breadloaf Wilderness. Mountain summit and fire tower. • The Volunteer Long Trail Patrol worked • Caretakers and volunteers composted for eight weeks making structural It’s the perfect way to get off the 2,600 gallons of raw sewage, protecting improvements to the muddy areas on the beaten path; to take the path less the environment and creating sanitary Peru and Styles Peak ridgeline and relo- traveled. Thank you for all you do to and pleasant hiking conditions at high cating the Old Job Trail away from Lake maintain the trails! use areas. Brook in Peru.

—Terry Paquette

Green Mountain Club 2015 Annual Report 29 Thank You… To Our Members

Our members are the foundation of the GMC afternoon outings on , Bald and the reason for our success. This year Mountain, Deer Leap, Kent Pond, and more. we had over 9,000 voting members! GMC’s fourteen sections led hikes and The Killington Section hosted the 104th GMC outings, represented the club at commu- Annual Meeting on June 14 at Mountain nity events, and recruited new members. Meadows Lodge in Killington. President By section the member numbers were: At Jean Haigh presented the Honorary Large, 5,825; Bennington, 136; Brattleboro, Life Membership Award to former GMC 134; Bread Loaf, 253; Burlington, 1,071; President and current Manchester Section Connecticut, 200; Killington, 266; Laraway, President Marge Fish for her commitment 60; Manchester, 162; Montpelier, 574; to the club. Doris Washburn and Bill Lyons Northeast Kingdom, 195; Northern Frontier, received President’s Awards for stead- 67; Ottauquechee, 299; Sterling, 126; fast service. Attendees took advantage of Worcester, 123.

To Our Donors

We are continually amazed at the generos- • 56 Long Trail Legacy Society members ity of our donors, who are committed to who pledged gifts to the club, either by protecting Vermont’s celebrated trails and including us in their estate plans or by mountains. This year we had: naming us as a beneficiary of a chari- table gift annuity or life insurance policy • 90 Ridgeline Society members who donated $1,000 or more to support our • More than 5,000 individual donors who general operating budget recognized the value of their hiking experiences with financial contribu- • 25 donors who supported GMC on a tions (for a complete list, please visit monthly basis ww.greenmountainclub.org). To Our Volunteers

Dedicated and talented volunteers gave GMC staff planned the annual Volunteer countless hours to keep the Long Trail Appreciation Picnic in September to System and the Green Mountain Club thriv- celebrate and recognize our force of ing! They spent their weekends clearing unwavering volunteers. Killington Section waterbars and drainage ditches, carrying members Barbara and Barry Griffith were shavings and bark mulch to backcountry named Volunteers of the Year for their privies, serving on committees, participating service to the club as trail maintainers, in fundraising phone-a-thons, and keeping section officers, fundraisers, meeting I know it takes a lot of support and our office running smoothly on Thursday organizers and hike leaders. Dot Meyer hard work to maintain the Long Trail Volunteer Days. received the Special Recognition Award in for all of us to enjoy. As a former honor of nearly fifty years as a Burlington caretaker, I am so thankful to current Section hike leader. trail crews and caretakers for their work, and I want to see the GMC thrive into the future. —Ryan Morra, 2011 Caretaker

Green Mountain Club 2015 Annual Report 30 Fiscal Year 2015 Financial Report

The Green Mountain Club fiscal year ended Trails, education and member services. GMC Officers April 30, 2015, with an operational surplus. Fundraising, facilities and administration Jean Haigh, President Total net assets increased by 5 percent to account for the rest. Due to the receipt of John Page, Vice President $11.2 million. The value of our endowment a major bequest we were able to retire our Stephen Klein, Treasurer decreased from $4.5 million to $4.4 million, outstanding loan on the headquarters build- Tom Candon, Secretary a loss of just under 0.5 percent, as a result ing and, coupled with additional contribu- of market withdrawals exceeding market tions, we expect to complete Winooski GMC Directors performance and contributions. Valley Long Trail Relocation funding in fiscal Ted Albers, Burlington Total assets consist of land and ease- year 2016. Lee Allen, General Michael Chernick, Northeast Kingdom ments, $2.82 million (24 percent); endowment In conclusion, the club finished fiscal year Marge Fish, Manchester funds, $4.4 million (38 percent); headquar- 2015 on a sound financial footing. Fiscal Chris Hale, Laraway ters, field housing, Lamoille River bridge, and year 2016 will be our first post-Winooski George Hall, General Winooski River bridge construction in prog- Footbridge fundraising year, which means Allison Henry, Killington ress, $3.48 million (30 percent); with pledges we will need to rely on other activities to Paul Houchens, General receivable, cash, accounts receivable, support field operations. Contributions by Lynda Hutchins, General Wayne Krevetski, General prepaid expenses and inventory accounting our members and organizational grants will Sheri Larsen, General for the remainder (8 percent). Total assets be important sources of revenue. Ron Lucier, Sterling were $11.59 million, offset by liabilities of Thank you again to the many members Doug McKain, Bread Loaf $381,509. and other supporters who have contributed James Mitchell, General Total revenue and support as compared to to the Green Mountain Club and its mission Millie Mugica, General John Oliva, Worcester total expenses showed a surplus of $527,470. in so many ways! We count on this con- Walter Pomroy, Northern Frontier Total contributions and program in- tinued support for annual revenue and to Dick Ruben, Ottauquechee come increased by 5.7 percent, while total build the endowment which will, over time, Lexi Shear, General expenses increased by 6 percent. In fiscal contribute even more to our financial stabil- Laurene Sorensen, Connecticut year 2015, 77 percent of the club’s operat- ity than it does today. Martha Stitelman, Bennington ing expenditures were in direct support of —Stephen Klein, Treasurer Mike Wetherell, Montpelier the Long Trail System, Northeast Kingdom Richard Windish, Brattleboro GMC Staff Operating Revenues & Support 1Michael DeBonis, Executive Director Membership & Support 32% Pete Antos-Ketcham, Director of Land  and Facilities Management  Trail Management 44% 1Jason Buss, Business Manager  Long Trail Protection/Stewardship 4% 1Alicia DiCocco, Director of Development  Publications & Sales 8% Jennifer Donley, Visitor Center Manager  Education Program 2% Jill Haas, Database Manager  Facilities 2% Dave Hardy, Director of Trail Programs Kevin Hudnell, Field Supervisor Endowment Distributions 9%  1Jennifer Montagne, Membership and Volunteer Coordinator Operating Expenses Jocelyn Hebert, Long Trail News Editor and Communications Assistant Membership & Support 17%  2Maisie Howard, Director of Development  Trail Management 35% Matt Krebs, Publications Coordinator  Long Trail Protection/Stewardship 7% and Stewardship Assistant 2  Publications & Sales 9% Thorin Markison, Group Outreach Specialist 1Caitlin Miller, Group Outreach Specialist Education Program 3%  2Joe Sikowitz, Member and Volunteer Coordinator  Fundraising 9%  Facilities 10% 1 Started in FY 2015 2 Departed in FY2015

 Administration 10% Publication Credits: Editor: Jocelyn Hebert / Copy editor: Dick Andrews Design: Brian P. Graphics Arts Green Mountain Club 2015 Annual Report 31 Periodicals Postage PAID Waterbury Center and Additional Offices

PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER

Our Wishes for You This Holiday Season: Peace Found in the silent winter woods, navigated using our redesigned and waterproof Vermont’s Long Trail Map Community Built by sharing your commitment to the mountains and the Long Trail and giving the gift of GMC membership to a loved one Time To explore the Northeast Kingdom mountains with GMC’s new Northeast Kingdom Hiking Trail Map Warmth Felt by wearing a new GMC logo fleece zip-up, or sipping hot tea from a GMC coffee or travel mug Good Health Enhanced by winter hiking when days are short and nights are long, using the Winter Hiking Guide to Vermont The Spirit of Giving Through a financial donation to your favorite hiking club, endowment of a shelter on the Long Trail, or donation of a vehicle to support the work of the Long Trail Patrol

Beginning this holiday season, GMC members receive 20% off all GMC merchandise and publications. www.greenmountainclub.org MARY KEENAN MARY