1. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club SIGNS & BLAZES Bill Moss

2. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club

3. WHY? Safety –Warnings –Tell you where you are Environmental –Keep you on the trail –Prevent erosion –Prevents littering (poorly placed corpses)

4. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club WHAT DO THEY TELL YOU? National Standards exist, but… –Only the Appalachian Trail is reliable Appalachian Trail (AT) –Blazed in white paint – 6”x2” –100’ – 200’ apart –Always on the right side of trail –Blazes could be on trees or rocks

5. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club OTHER BLAZES Approach Trails - Blue Private Trails - Orange Other/Unconnected Trails - Yellow Ski Trails - Generally not hiking trails –Triangles or Diamonds

6. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club MORE THAN ONE BLAZE? Turns –Two blazes, one atop the other –Not in line –Direction of turn indicated by upper blaze Junctions –Two blazes, one atop the other –In line

7. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club Signs

8. ABOVE TREELINE Cairns (a.k.a. Rock Piles) –18” – 10’ high –May be 50’ or less apart Finding Cairns in white- out –One person stays –One person goes ahead with a line –IF YOU CANNOT FIND THE NEXT CAIRN TURN BACK!

9. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club TRAIL SIGNS Posted by Group That Maintains Trail –Helps you know what trail you are on WMNF –AMC White signs, Green lettering, Symbol –Randolf Mountain Club White signs, Black lettering NH State Parks –Brown signs, yellow letters

10. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club OTHER SIGNS Mass. Audubon –Blue going away from trailhead –Yellow returning Massachusetts’ Mid-State Trail –Triangle shaped markers Proper preparation includes learning who maintains the trail you are taking!

11. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club OTHER SIGNS

12. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club SUMMARY Trails can lead to great pleasure Improper reading of the trail leads to trouble Report trail problems to maintaining group Tell people where you are going Always know your location on trail –Map & Compass –GPS

13. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club ADDITIONAL READING AMC Trail Building & Maintenance, 4 th ed. AMC White Mountain Guide Randolph Paths, RMC, 8 th ed. Mountaineering, Freedom of the Hills, 7 th ed., The Mountaineers Appalachian Trail, Design, Construction, Maintenance, 2 nd ed., Appalachian Trail Conference

14. © 2011 Appalachian Mountain Club