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TEHCC History
Stan
Murray:
Long-time TEHCC member and Chairman of the ATC Board of Managers from 1961-1975
Frank
Oglesby:
Tennessee
Eastman Hiking Club Founder
Ray
Hunt:
Long-time
TEHCC member and Chairman of the ATC
Board of Managers from 1983-1989
Our
Beginnings
The
54 Mile Relocation
Early
Maintenance Practices
National
Leadership - Stan Murray and Ray Hunt
Relocations
and Today's Maintenance
Our
Beginnings
The AT
was originally envisioned by Benton MacKaye as a trail
connecting Mount Washington in
New Hampshire
with Mount Mitchell and the
Black Mountains.
In the 1920's Paul
Fink, from Jonesborough, was invited to a meeting of the
fledgling Appalachian Trail Conference through an association
with the president of the Appalachian Mountain Club.
Mr.
Fink told the president, "You are missing the best if you go to
Mitchell only.
The best route is
along the state line."
Thus the route
through the Smokies was proposed.
Paul Fink went on to
play a major role in the entire southern routing of the AT with
a 1922 map of the southern end of the Trail, helped found the
Smoky Mountain Hiking Club, and was the last surviving founder
of ATC.
In 1945
Frank Oglesby convinced the Tennessee Eastman Recreation Club
that a club geared towards outdoor recreation would be valuable
for Tennessee Eastman employees.
The first hike was
held on April 28, 1946 to
Buckeye
Falls,
on Clark Creek in Unicoi
County.
What would become
known as the TERC Hiking Club sponsored numerous hikes and
social activities, with many single members, in those early
years.
Perhaps this social
component was behind the following statement, in part of a
description of the Club by the 1953 Steering Committee.
"It is
customary to elect at least one girl to the steering committee
every year.
The advantages of
this should be obvious."
By this
time the Appalachian Trail had already been established in
Tennessee
and throughout its route.
However, the route
was very different than it is today, or even than it was 40
years ago.
Most of the AT from
the Nolichucky
River to
Damascus
followed roads, not only forestry roads in the mountains but
also automobile roads between Limestone Cove and Winner
community in Stoney
Creek valley.
The only current long
section of the AT which was part of the original Trail route is
the northernmost 18 miles, from the junction of Cross and
Holston Mountains to near Damascus.
It would be 2 more
years (1948) before Earl Shaffer would become the first person
to hike the entire AT, at the time 1400 miles long, in one
continuous journey.
In
1946, the AT on what is now our section was maintained by three
different organizations.
The Roan Hiking Club,
based in Greeneville, was responsible for the section between
Damascus and Winner,
and from Limestone Cove to the
Nolichucky River.
Paul Fink was
responsible for marking the 28 mile road walk between Winner and
Limestone Cove.
The northernmost
section of the Carolina Mountain Club was between the Nolichucky
River at Unaka Springs and Spivey Gap, a little over 6 miles.
This was a
considerable distance from Asheville
and CMC had some difficulty finding enough people to maintain
their section.
On
November 11, 1946, delegates from TEHC met with ATC Board Chair
Myron Avery at a "Class D membership meeting" in Knoxville.
At that meeting, the
groundwork was laid for us to take over maintenance of a section
of the AT.
Our first work trip
was in May of that year, and on July 12, 1947, members joined
CMC for a scouting trip of the Spivey-Nolichucky section.
On August 13, 1947,
we were invited to take over this section, and TEHC is shown on
a September 1947 ATC list of Trail-maintaining organizations.
Our linkage with
other AT-maintaining clubs grew when Frank Oglesby proposed the
first southern Multi-Club meet, attended by representatives from
CMC, SMHC, GATC, and TEHC in August 1947.
It did
not take long for our maintenance responsibility to grow,
significantly.
In October 1947 we
reached agreement with the Roan Hiking Club to take over both
their sections, increasing our responsibility to over 57 miles.
In a December 1947
letter from Myron Avery to Frank Oglesby documenting this
assignment, Mr. Avery stated that the northern end of our
section is at the "Virginia-Tennessee line (Damascus)".
That discrepancy has
caused considerable confusion and occasional consternation
through the years, but has settled into the current boundary on
Reynolds Street
in
Damascus.
Later, in 1948, Frank
Oglesby became the first TEHC member to join the ATC Board of
Managers, replacing Paul Fink.
The 54 Mile Relocation
From
the early days, there was a desire to move the AT off of roads
to a more primitive setting in the woods.
For no section was
there a stronger desire to do so than the road walk between
Limestone Cove and Winner.
In addition to the
long road walk, another problem was the increasing number of
electronic facilities atop Holston
Mountain.
During construction
of an omni-range radar system, the FAA cleared 5 acres for the
site and obliterated the Trail.
However, the bigger
driving force was the opportunity for improvement.
A vision of a major
reroute to take the AT on up the state line, across the Roan
Highlands, down White Rocks Mountain, through Laurel Fork Gorge,
and on up Iron and Cross Mountains to reconnect at Holston
Mountain took hold.
Some of
our old documents credit the idea for what we sometimes call
"the 54 mile relocation" to Frank Oglesby.
Others credit a newer
member,
Stan Murray.
Stan, a native of
Maine, began hiking
in the Smokies when stationed in Oak Ridge
during World War II and came to Tennessee Eastman in 1949.
In May 1952, Frank
introduced Stan at the biennial ATC meeting where Stan proposed
the relocation (Stan was our Steering Committee Chair at the
time).
The relocation was
approved at the meeting.
That was all the
approval necessary!
Not
everyone agreed that the 54 mile relocation was a good thing.
In a 1952 photo Stan
is shown pointing out the proposed route of the relo to Club
members Ed Gill and
Ray Hunt.
Ray, like many other
Club members through the years, was recruited by Stan, and his
first work trip was on this relocation.
Ray later wrote of
telling Stan that "he didn't know where we were going, what we
were doing, or why", that "he thought it was awful", and that
"he didn't see the point of it and thought it would be the
ruination of the Club"!
In that same passage
though, Ray said "I was wrong of course and am glad I was."
Relocations in those days consisted mainly of finding a route
and blazing a path.
There was no digging.
Little consideration
was given to the Trail going straight up and down knobs – it was
steep in New England so it
could be steep here too!
A major difference
though is instead of the bedrock granite of
New England,
there is soil in our mountains.
Through the years
erosion occurred, especially in the soft organic soils, high
precipitation, and high use of the Roan Highlands.
We continue to this
day tinkering with the Trail route to improve over that initial
massive project.
One of Frank
Oglesby's many memorable comments was, "I'm now relocating my
relocations!"
But, in no manner
should this take away from the vision and hard work those
pioneers put forth.
The result is
Trail-wide recognition for having one of the most scenic
sections of the entire AT.
Early Maintenance Practices
When
completed, the 54 mile relocation gave us a Trail section of
over 110 miles, close to the current length.
We had a lot of work
to do!
One of those tasks
was to measure the length of the Trail.
We inherited a
measuring wheel used by Myron Avery which was in our possession
until just a couple of years ago.
We donated it for the
new Appalachian Trail
Museum in
Harpers Ferry.
During
this period, some of our current maintenance practices were
developed, with Stan, Frank, Hugh Thompson and others among the
leaders.
Our section was
apportioned into 13 maintenance teams to do the needed blazing
and clearing.
The teams moved 4
sections north each year, providing a change of scenery as well
as providing an avenue to see our entire section over a 13 year
period.
Although much of our
section is now "adopted" by individuals and teams having the
same section each year, the opportunity to have a rotational
assignment continues.
Other
practices that originated during this period continue to this
day.
Collins Chew
invented a "sponge bucket" that could deliver a perfect 2" x 6"
blaze.
In addition to his
exemplary service in just about every capacity for TEHCC,
Collins' deep knowledge of geology led to his authorship of a
popular book, Underfoot: A Geologic
Guide to the Appalachian Trail.
Creative use of tools
for Trail maintenance has always been a TEHC hallmark.
A lightweight but
effective tool for cutting briars was known as "the Lively Lad".
Although some
maintainers preferred heavier mowing scythes or weed eaters as
they became popular, it was hard to match the Lively Lad for
weight and efficiency.
We began to recruit
retirees for the Trail maintenance teams.
Many of our stalwart
maintainers of today and the recent past joined during this
time.
Hiking
popularity began to grow in the 1960's.
There was a desire to
establish a continuous chain of Trail shelters, located no more
than a day's hike apart.
Most of the shelters
along our section were constructed by the Forest Service in the
early 1960's.
The cinder block
structures draw a few comments today, but they have stood up
exceptionally well through the years, with periodic maintenance
to the roofs, flooring, and a fresh coat of paint.
In 1966 it was our
turn to build one, again in Laurel Fork Gorge mostly out of
native stone.
This effort required
hauling 800 pounds of cement, 2500 pounds of sand, and 200
pounds of hardware, along with several tons of rock, to the work
site, requiring about 100 trips.
We could have used
student groups and thru-hikers in those days!
A sad story is our
Don Nehlen Shelter in Sugar Hollow, a beautiful shelter
constructed of native logs in 1981 but was burned in 1989.
It took nearly 20
years to find a good location for a replacement shelter, our
newest at
Mountaineer
Falls.
National
Leadership - Stan Murray and
Ray Hunt
Management of the
Appalachian Trail goes beyond
the on the ground maintenance, and we can be proud of our
contributions in those respects.
Through the years we
have had several ATC Board members, including Frank, Collins,
Paul Worsham, and Steve Wilson.
Two TEHC members have
not only been on the Board but chaired it, both in outstanding
fashion – Stan Murray and Ray Hunt.
Stan,
from
Maine,
had been an avid participant in both the Club's recreational
hike and maintenance efforts since joining Eastman in 1949.
His role in the
relocation across Roan
Mountain
and his dedication to the AT led to his election to the Board in
1955.
Stan led the push for
the string of shelters or campsites at regular intervals along
the Trail.
He was elected Board
Chair in 1961 and served in that position until 1975; only Myron
Avery chaired the ATC Board longer.
In the spirit of
Benton Mackaye's vision for the AT, Stan pushed the greenway
concept for true protection of not only the footpath itself, but
the Trail environment.
A quote from the last
year of his life: "If the Appalachian Trail is to survive as a
continuous footpath along the Appalachian mountains and if it is
to offer a wilderness experience, then more than a narrow path
winding through second-home developments, with background noises
of chainsaws and barking dogs, a trail hidden in underbrush and
trees away from panoramic scenery – more than this is needed."
This dedication to
conservation helped lead to many things – passage of the
National Trails System Act, blocking of a proposed road across
the Smokies, efforts to protect the view shed along the Trail,
and the formation of the Southern Appalachian Highlands
Conservancy to protect lands in the Roan Highlands and
elsewhere.
All the while Stan
remained a Trail maintainer, not only establishing the first
committee on Trail maintenance standards, but also stressing the
importance of volunteers, championing the "free spirit of the
individual worker, without whose continued care and stewardship
the Trail might become something without a soul".
Ray
followed not far behind Stan with active involvement in both
TEHC and ATC.
Ray was a strong
advocate of publications and edited the local guidebook and
created the first AT Data Book in 1977.
He originated the AT
Committee as a body of experienced TEHC members to oversee AT
management, without the frequent turnover of our Steering
Committee.
Ray was elected to
the ATC Board in 1979 and very soon thereafter, in 1983, was
elected to the first of his three terms as Board Chair.
In 1984 Ray signed
the MOU delegating management responsibility for AT lands to
ATC.
Ray, with his
typically wry wit, called this agreement "the most important
document that I ever hope to sign", but later added, "I had
overlooked my marriage license".
Ray was a tireless
champion for land acquisition to protect the AT, with the
federal protection afforded to it with the National Trails
System Act, and helped to spearhead the Optimal Location
Reviews.
This
led into the program of relocating the AT to improve the Trail
experience, a job that continues to this day.
Relocations and
Today's Maintenance
The
Optimal Location Reviews (OLRs) identified the preferred route
of the Trail, the land protection needed, and the relocations
that would be required.
An early example of
use of this process was the Hump Mountain Relocation in the
early 1980's.
The Trail climbing
Hump from Highway 19E had followed Pink Winters Road through Mr.
Winters' yard, climbed steeply from there to Doll Flats, then
climbed very steeply to the top of Hump.
The reroute got the
Trail off the road and into woods, climbing by Apple House
Shelter initially alongside private land, then climbed Hump on a
side hill grade which was one of our first projects with the
Konnarock Crew.
In later years some
of the steeper sections below Doll Flats were further relocated,
in part to move away from the private land.
There was an
unforgettable sign along this part of the Trail for many years,
"Beware of Shootgun"!
Along with Ray, Ed
Oliver, Darrol Nickels, Jeff Siirola, Jack Young and others were
leaders in these OLR activities and developed prodigious trail
routing and construction skills.
In the
late 1980's and early 1990's, it became apparent that we needed
to do more.
With our long section
– now the 3rd longest on the AT - we regularly finished near the
bottom of all clubs in hours of maintenance per mile of Trail.
We received
complaints.
There was a small
group of 6-10 people who were doing almost all of our work.
Then, several things
happened that turned this around.
The first was our
Trail adopter program.
Ted Malone had the
vision of reaching out to the community and finding people who
might not want the rotating assignments, but might be willing to
adopt a favorite or nearby section.
This has led to about
¾ of our Trail section being adopted.
That enthusiasm also
brought in several strong new maintainers from both inside and
outside of Eastman.
Another very
enthusiastic maintenance coordinator followed Ted, Bill Stowell.
Bill continued to
reach out to the community, and started the first contacts with
student groups which continue today.
During this period,
our annual hours spent on AT maintenance zoomed from less than
2000 hours to over 10,000 hours.
We are very fortunate
to have another enthusiastic and highly organized maintenance
coordinator today in Carl Fritz, and in 2006 we set a record
with over 11,000 hours which we also surpassed in 2007.
Since Jeff Siirola
started his very diligent record keeping in 1992 through October
31, 2007, we have had 3144 volunteers work 127,737 hours!
The relocations begun
during the 1980's continued in earnest through the 1990's, carry
into today, and many more are planned in the future.
One of our longest
and most appreciated was the Pond Mountain Relocation, which
actually shortened the Trail by over two miles and eliminated
steep ups and downs on the north side of
Pond
Mountain and a trashy walk
in a narrow corridor between
Watauga
Lake and
Highway 321.
It took five years and 11 weeks of
Konnarock Crew time to complete this 3.4 mile relocation in
1993.
Relocations between Highway 19E and
Doll Flats in 1994 and 1999 turned a slick, steep hike abutting
private land into a pleasant walk through forests of tall trees
and rocky outcrops.
A dangerous steep
descent of Cliff
Ridge above the
Nolichuckey
River
was replaced in 1996 by a series of switchbacks into a nice
hemlock forest while preserving great views of the gorge.
The Little Rock Knob Relocation in
1998 replaced an awful climb up a waist-deep trench with a
well-constructed sidehill grade with the upper portions full of
spring wildflowers.
A long relocation
down to the Elk River enabled us to get the Trail off a road
walk with the inherent potential for conflicts, route the Trail
by what may be the highest waterfall, Jones
Branch
Falls,
provide a nice river walk along the
Elk River, and
allow construction of the Mountaineer Falls Shelter in 2006.
That
year we also completed a handicap-accessible relocation across
the Osborne Farm on
Cross
Mountain.
Relocations between Bitter End and
White
Rocks
Mountain
took out many steep, pointless up-and-downs with no views.
A similar project on
Unaka
Mountain
is scheduled for completion in summer of 2008.
No project was more
involved than a relocation of the Trail up Round Bald.
For many years the steps up Round
Bald, described as the "Stairway to Heaven", were regularly
bypassed by hikers, resulting in erosion ditches which worsened
every year and were considered to be a visual blight from
Carvers Gap, and the "back" side Trail north from the summit
also became badly eroded with the high use, soft soils, high
precipitation, and steep grades.
In 1991 we constructed a "standard"
sidehill relocation between Round Bald and Engine Gap.
This relocation quickly eroded as
badly or worse than the old Trail.
In 1995 we
experimented with hardening about 85 feet of this relocation
with gravel.
It held up great, but with 85 feet
requiring 10 tons of gravel, obviously we needed advanced
engineering to make this work over a nearly one mile stretch.
ATC came through with money for
gravel and geotextile, and we were able to use motorized
wheelbarrows to haul gravel and build Trail going up the
mountain.
Club founder Frank
Oglesby celebrated his 90th
birthday by loading the motorized wheelbarrows with his tractor,
becoming what we believe to be the oldest person ever to earn a
Konnarock T-shirt, and uttering one of his unforgettable lines,
"I'm getting tired of relocating my relocations!"
A vehicle akin to a Sno-Cat was used
to haul gravel over Round Bald to harden down to Engine Gap in
the winter of 2001.
We receive many compliments about
what a pretty and pleasant section of the A. T. this is, where
it had become an ugly scar.
Another
boon to our Club has been Bob Peoples.
Bob brought Trail
maintenance experience with the Green Mountain Club with him to
Carter
County,
but much more, he brought a spirit of ambassadorship reminiscent
of Stan and Ray.
Bob regularly gets
out hikers to help during through-hiker season, and especially
with the Damascus Hard Core event which has gained notoriety
throughout the Trail.
Many
of the hikers come back not just to give back to the Trail but
to show their appreciation to Bob and Pat.
We must
thank the many volunteers who have shown such diligence through
the years to keep our maintenance efforts going.
Our challenge for the
future is to keep this up and bring in new blood.
We have a proud
legacy.
by Joe Deloach
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