Tools of the Trade Click for Full Size |
Porter's Gap Trailhead Click for Full Size |
PTA Site Map / www.pinhotitrailalliance.org
The Pinhoti Trail
A Southeast Region Appalachian Trail Connector
About the Alabama Trail Guides
Measuring
Converting feet into miles: multiply the number of feet by 0.0001894
or use an online converter.
The original 2003 edition of the Trail Guide was the product of my second southern
terminus to northern terminus measurement of the Alabama side of the Pinhoti using a
measuring wheel.
The first measurement consisted of 23 out and back day hikes and overnighters during
the winter of 2000 / 2001.
The second measurement was completed with 27 out and back day hikes and overnighters
during the winter of 2001 and 2002.
In the early spring of 2005, the measurement of Section 4 was done with 4 day hikes.
I found it interesting that on the second measurement all of the readings were identical
to the first measurement except for one landmark which was 0.2 miles short. I measured
this small area a third time and found that the second measurement was correct.
Gee... not bad for Hiker Trash : )
I felt that the second measurement was needed because,
a: I am anal.
b: I was unsure that the first measurement was accurate because my end to end total
was 5 miles longer than the total of the Forest Service Maps.
Someone told me that the USFS rounds their distances up or down to the nearest half or
whole number just to simplify things and if this is true then they are obviously not very
anal. : ) Someone else told me that you can become too anal, but I am not sure that I
would agree with that mainly because this statement is just way too broad. Tell me
exactly and specifically and precisely how one can become too anal : )
Disclaimer:
I do not claim my efforts here as grounds for argument
or as superiority of my methods over anyone else's,
so please do not ask me to go there. It is just a guide.
The Wheel vs GPS
Update 2006 ~ The USFS has completed a highly detailed GPS Survey!!
I've never been able to really figure out why GPS and wheels never seem to agree. If you
add up the mileages from the USFS topo maps they sell, you'll get 103.8 miles from
Porter's Gap to the 278 trailhead. I came up with 108.8 miles on the wheel. That's a
whopping 5 mile difference! Who's right? I always have the same thoughts each time that
the differences in the two methods are presented to me.
The first thought I have is that there are probably plus and minus factors to everything
that mankind creates / does. Is what you see on paper a true reflection of reality, or are
there always slight convenience compromises made to accomplish the desired result?
Here's something I did regularly that would shock the true anal-ite. Whenever my wheel
would come up against a blowdown, I would mark the spot where it stopped with my foot.
Then I would lift the wheel over and set it down on the other side. Then I would lean over
the tree and observe the two spots for a moment and say, yep, that's about a foot and a
half Bubba. : ) Nothing major but it is still a convenience compromise. If I were a brain
surgeon, you would surely die.
The second thought I have is about how each reads terrain. Here's an example. Say you
have a stretch of trail that's 50' long that you can verify with a tape measure. Now say
that there is a 10' deep gulley in the middle of that stretch. If you ran a wheel down into
the gulley and back up the other side it would read more than 50'. The question I've
always had is weather the GPS goes down into the gulley with you or does it read it as the
crow flies?
There are probably answers, as opposed to opinions, to these questions out there
somewhere but I don't have access to them. In the end, I finally agree to let them
disagree and view them as just two opposing / complimenting views.
If someone were to produce a GPS trail guide, I would gladly put a link to it on the PTA
Site Map and encourage the GPS community to jump on it.
Landmark Headings
Example:
130.8 ~ SON OF BILLY GOAT CAMPSITE ~ 840' ~ SC, RW
130.8 ~ This is the cumulative northbound mileage starting from the Pinhoti southern
terminus at Flagg Mountain, AL.
SON OF BILLY GOAT CAMPSITE ~ This is the landmark name.
840' ~ This is the elevation. (Arr! Instead of time outs for kids, they should have to read
elevations on topo maps !!)
SC, RW ~ There is a Small Campsite here with Reliable Water.
Facility Abbreviations
CS ~ Convenience Store / Nice Mom and Pop stores
TT ~ Trail Town / Large enough for McDonald's
SC ~ Small Campsite / At least one tent site
LC ~ Large Campsite / At least three tent sites
TS ~ Trail Shelter / Three sided, open front
SW ~ Seasonal Water / Probably dry during summer
RW ~ Reliable Water / Always available
PTA Site Map / Top of Page ^-^
The Pinhoti Trail
A Southeast Region Appalachian Trail Connector
About the Alabama Trail Guides
Measuring
Converting feet into miles: multiply the number of feet by 0.0001894
or use an online converter.
The original 2003 edition of the Trail Guide was the product of my second southern
terminus to northern terminus measurement of the Alabama side of the Pinhoti using a
measuring wheel.
The first measurement consisted of 23 out and back day hikes and overnighters during
the winter of 2000 / 2001.
The second measurement was completed with 27 out and back day hikes and overnighters
during the winter of 2001 and 2002.
In the early spring of 2005, the measurement of Section 4 was done with 4 day hikes.
I found it interesting that on the second measurement all of the readings were identical
to the first measurement except for one landmark which was 0.2 miles short. I measured
this small area a third time and found that the second measurement was correct.
Gee... not bad for Hiker Trash : )
I felt that the second measurement was needed because,
a: I am anal.
b: I was unsure that the first measurement was accurate because my end to end total
was 5 miles longer than the total of the Forest Service Maps.
Someone told me that the USFS rounds their distances up or down to the nearest half or
whole number just to simplify things and if this is true then they are obviously not very
anal. : ) Someone else told me that you can become too anal, but I am not sure that I
would agree with that mainly because this statement is just way too broad. Tell me
exactly and specifically and precisely how one can become too anal : )
Disclaimer:
I do not claim my efforts here as grounds for argument
or as superiority of my methods over anyone else's,
so please do not ask me to go there. It is just a guide.
The Wheel vs GPS
Update 2006 ~ The USFS has completed a highly detailed GPS Survey!!
I've never been able to really figure out why GPS and wheels never seem to agree. If you
add up the mileages from the USFS topo maps they sell, you'll get 103.8 miles from
Porter's Gap to the 278 trailhead. I came up with 108.8 miles on the wheel. That's a
whopping 5 mile difference! Who's right? I always have the same thoughts each time that
the differences in the two methods are presented to me.
The first thought I have is that there are probably plus and minus factors to everything
that mankind creates / does. Is what you see on paper a true reflection of reality, or are
there always slight convenience compromises made to accomplish the desired result?
Here's something I did regularly that would shock the true anal-ite. Whenever my wheel
would come up against a blowdown, I would mark the spot where it stopped with my foot.
Then I would lift the wheel over and set it down on the other side. Then I would lean over
the tree and observe the two spots for a moment and say, yep, that's about a foot and a
half Bubba. : ) Nothing major but it is still a convenience compromise. If I were a brain
surgeon, you would surely die.
The second thought I have is about how each reads terrain. Here's an example. Say you
have a stretch of trail that's 50' long that you can verify with a tape measure. Now say
that there is a 10' deep gulley in the middle of that stretch. If you ran a wheel down into
the gulley and back up the other side it would read more than 50'. The question I've
always had is weather the GPS goes down into the gulley with you or does it read it as the
crow flies?
There are probably answers, as opposed to opinions, to these questions out there
somewhere but I don't have access to them. In the end, I finally agree to let them
disagree and view them as just two opposing / complimenting views.
If someone were to produce a GPS trail guide, I would gladly put a link to it on the PTA
Site Map and encourage the GPS community to jump on it.
Landmark Headings
Example:
130.8 ~ SON OF BILLY GOAT CAMPSITE ~ 840' ~ SC, RW
130.8 ~ This is the cumulative northbound mileage starting from the Pinhoti southern
terminus at Flagg Mountain, AL.
SON OF BILLY GOAT CAMPSITE ~ This is the landmark name.
840' ~ This is the elevation. (Arr! Instead of time outs for kids, they should have to read
elevations on topo maps !!)
SC, RW ~ There is a Small Campsite here with Reliable Water.
Facility Abbreviations
CS ~ Convenience Store / Nice Mom and Pop stores
TT ~ Trail Town / Large enough for McDonald's
SC ~ Small Campsite / At least one tent site
LC ~ Large Campsite / At least three tent sites
TS ~ Trail Shelter / Three sided, open front
SW ~ Seasonal Water / Probably dry during summer
RW ~ Reliable Water / Always available
PTA Site Map / Top of Page ^-^
| Millennium Legacy Trail |
