[at-l] Maintainer's Journal - War of the Weeds

[Karen Koontz]

Thought I'd do more than lurk for once and post this article I wrote for our
club newsletter. I've maintained for about 10 years and there's nothing I
love more than being out on my own 2 mile "little piece of heaven".  The
rewards of maintaining are solid gold, whether you can cash them or not.

inca


THE MAINTAINER'S JOURNAL - NOTES FROM THE TRAIL

Weed - a plant whose virtue has not yet been discovered.  (Ralph Waldo
Emerson)

Swing, swing, forward and back, swoosh, swoosh, clang!  This is the
maintainer's litany from June through August as they weed-whip, weed-whack,
weed-eat, or just plain swing their way through the weeds along the trail,
hitting more than the occasional rock as they go.  The War of the Weeds
begins in late May or early June while the growth is still tender and before
weeds can "get a jump" on the maintainers.  Monitoring of weed conditions
continues through the summer with two or more trips required to keep the
weeds at bay.  Nettles, briars and poison ivy are the worst offenders and
seem to thrive, regardless of weather conditions.  Even in a dry year, all
it takes is a thunder storm or two and our trail's weed garden flourishes to
the extent that "lush" would be a suitably descriptive word.

For most maintainers, waging war on the weeds is one of their least favorite
jobs and is generally hot, extremely tiring, unpleasant, and sometimes
boring.  Bugs whine around your head and poison ivy juice spatters your
clothes.  Blisters form under gloves, hands are frozen into claw positions
from gripping a swing blade for hours, and backs and shoulders can ache for
days, whether using a motorized weed-eater or a swing blade.  Heat
exhaustion is a constant lurking threat and sunburn is an occupational
hazard.  So, you will certainly ask, why in the world would anyone want to
do this?

There are many rewards that keep us swingin', sweatin' and coming back to
the trail month after month.  There are the tired grins of thru hikers as
they round a bend on the trail and see no weeds to fight ahead, most
expressing a heartfelt "thank you for your work" as they pass by on their
journey to Maine.  There is the elderly section hiker with the gray beard
and twinkling blue eyes who stopped to rest and say "you must be one of
those trail angels who keeps the trail nice for people like me".  There is
the comic relief provided by a tourist-type when they ask if the government
is paying us to keep the trail clear.  There is the pride of being able to
tell these folks that we are volunteers and the fun of watching their
surprise when they learn this trail is the famous AT that goes from Georgia
to Maine, it's entire length maintained by volunteers!

There are amusing stories, such as the day several years ago, deep in the
woods and swingin' hard, when above the whoosh of the blade through the
weeds, new sounds were heard.  Bang, bang, clank, bang, bang, clank, coming
down the trail.  What could it be?  It was a young backpacking couple,
banging their metal cups and cooking pots to frighten off the big bear they
thought was thrashing through the weeds up ahead.  What a relief for them to
discover two maintainers with swing blades could make so much noise!

There is the grouse that makes your heart jump when it explodes from the
weeds when you swing too close and the stomach lurch that occurs when a
snake suddenly slithers by your feet.  There is the beautiful butterfly that
keeps trying to land on your arm during a water break and the discovery of a
wildflower that you never thought you'd be lucky enough to see.  There is
the satisfaction of knowing, for this month at least, your section of trail
is well trimmed and in good condition.  There is the pleasure of drinks on
ice back at the car, driving down the Blue Ridge Parkway with the windows
open and the air conditioning on, washing up in the cold, cold water back at
the Humpback Visitor's Center, and dry, clean, poison ivy free clothes.
There is the anticipation of next weekend when you can go hiking, while some
other maintainer somewhere is swingin' and sweatin' through the weeds so
your hike will be a more pleasant one.  These are but a few of the reasons
why we do it, why we keep coming back to the trail month after month, and
year after year.

As seasons go, summer is a very busy one for the maintainers who have more
than just the weeds to contend with.  The winds and lightning of summer
thunderstorms will continue to provide plenty of blow downs for the chainsaw
crews, heavy downpours will fill the water bars with debris, and the sites
of future projects will be revealed as the trail washes in new places.  The
storms will pass, the sun will shine, and the weeds will flourish until late
August when the maintainers are happy to see their growth slow down.  As
nights in the mountains grow cooler and the season begins to change, the War
of the Weeds ends with the first frost of September.