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October 30, 2007
Trail Magic: What is it? Is it all good?
When I hiked the Appalachian Trail in 2000, I was the lucky recipient of something commonly referred to in the hiking community as "trail magic." Trail magic can manifest itself in many ways. In early March barely 50 miles into my trip, I met a woman named "Coosa" at a place known as Unicoi Gap in north Georgia. She was handing out cookies and candy to hikers - including me! People like "Coosa" are commonly referred to as "Trail Angels." Trail Angels are the folks who dispense trail magic. Needless to say, I was thrilled and delighted at her generosity. Two days later a group of elderly men from Toccoa, Georgia who were out on a day hike found me sitting despondently on the side of the trail just north of Kelly Knob. (Don't get me started about Kelly Knob!) I was trying unsuccessfully to dress some deep heel blisters that had formed days earlier. They asked me how I was and I said, "not very good." With that, two medical doctors stepped forward and offered me advice, bandages, and some ibuprofen. They also loaned me a cell phone to call a family member to fetch me so my blisters could heal properly. It was the tonic that I needed at just the right moment.
The next five months saw many similar instances of serendipity, which was defined to me long ago by a mentor of mine as an "unexpected blessing." There were rides from strangers into towns, the offer of a piece of fruit or cold soda by a stranger after we exchanged a brief greeting as our paths crossed. Then there was the amazing incident where a trail crew from the Maine Appalachian Trail Club (MATC) gave me M&M's as I passed them by. Imagine that! People making the trail better for hikers like me, and they were handing out goodies to boot! Simply put, there was hardly a single state of the 14 that the Appalachian Trail traverses where I didn't receive some sort of kindness from a stranger.
After my hike was over, I decided to return the favor. One hot day in 2001 I left a Styrofoam cooler filled with ice cold soda at a trailhead near my home in Warwick, NY. Written on the cooler in magic marker was a note instructing hikers to take one, and to place the empties back in the cooler when they were finished with their beverage. When I returned the next day to retrieve the empties, I found that the cooler had been smashed to pieces, and my gesture, which was intended as a kindness, had resulted in unsightly litter. This caused me to pause. The unintended consequences of my actions had probably diminished someone else's hiking experience. I was bummed.
In the last few years, trail magic along the Appalachian Trail has seemingly become less spontaneous and more planned. This has raised some legitimate concerns and questions. Are there places along the trail where that kind of event is inappropriate? What sort of impact, if any, does this have on the hiking experience?
In the last year or so, a dialog inspired by the Appalachian Trail Conservancy has begun to discuss both the positive and negative implications of trail magic. Some think it's "all good." Others, like me, think that there should be some thought give to when, where and how trail magic is dispensed. Does that make me a curmudgeon? Gee, I hope not. I'm just a hiker with an opinion.
This past summer a 3-part series on Trail Magic written by Trail Angel Noah C. Kady appeared in the Record-Herald in Waynesboro, PA.
After reading the articles, you might want to visit the Appalachian Trail Conservancy's Trail Magic web page.
Afterwards, we welcome your thoughts and comments on the issue. You can add your thoughts by submitting a comment below.
Happy Trails!
Conservation | By Jeffrey Hunter | 01:18 PM
