After suffering astronomical damage from summer and late fall storm, and months of arduous repairs, the Appalachian Trail is back on track and ready for winter hikers.
"This year was probably one of the worst years in our (the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference's) history for damage to trails," the said Chris Ingui, New Jersey Program Coordinator for the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference.
The trail conference was established in 1920.
Ingui said Hurricane Irene left the Black Creek Bridge in Waywayanda State Park "uncrossable" and hundreds of feet of the Pochuck Board destroyed.
"The water had risen so high — two feet above the 500-year flood line — and the boardwalk was actually lifted off the piers and were displaced," Ingui said.
To date, the Black Creek Bridge is still washed out, but the boardwalk has been reset — a several-week repair project. Ingui said most of the recovery effort was spent "cutting blow downs" or downed trees that fell directly across the Appalachian Trail.
The Appalachian Trail then came face-to-face with the late October snowstorm. Ingui said the heavy snow and ice "took down a tremendous amount of trees."
"(The Appalachian Trail) was completely blocked by one fallen tree after another," Ingui said.
http://www.njherald.com/story/16351496/appalachian-trail-ready-for-winter
"This year was probably one of the worst years in our (the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference's) history for damage to trails," the said Chris Ingui, New Jersey Program Coordinator for the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference.
The trail conference was established in 1920.
Ingui said Hurricane Irene left the Black Creek Bridge in Waywayanda State Park "uncrossable" and hundreds of feet of the Pochuck Board destroyed.
"The water had risen so high — two feet above the 500-year flood line — and the boardwalk was actually lifted off the piers and were displaced," Ingui said.
To date, the Black Creek Bridge is still washed out, but the boardwalk has been reset — a several-week repair project. Ingui said most of the recovery effort was spent "cutting blow downs" or downed trees that fell directly across the Appalachian Trail.
The Appalachian Trail then came face-to-face with the late October snowstorm. Ingui said the heavy snow and ice "took down a tremendous amount of trees."
"(The Appalachian Trail) was completely blocked by one fallen tree after another," Ingui said.
http://www.njherald.com/story/16351496/appalachian-trail-ready-for-winter