Sun, April 1, 2012 2:40:57 PM
Benton MacKaye Trail Association - Monthly Newsletter
From: Bmta-nl Add to Contacts
To: bmtamembers12



Dear BMTA Member,


Let me start by thanking everyone for participating in the Annual Walk-Thru. We had folks sign up
for every section of the two hundred miles of the Benton MacKaye Trail outside the Great Smoky
Mountains National Park. Make sure to send your trail condition reports to either Tom for Georgia
or Rick for Tennessee/North Carolina as soon as you can. Part of the Georgia contingent had a
great "Après-Hike" get together at the Pink Pig yesterday. Thanks to Darcy Douglas for providing
the cobbler and ice cream!

The latest edition of the Newsletter is now posted on the website
http://www.bmta.org/nl/BMTANewsletterMarch2012.pdf.
Just as a point, the Board decided to post all the Newsletters openly on the Website, so now you
can go to the main page and click on "Monthly Newsletter" in the menu on the left hand side.
You don't have to keep the monthly email handy for the link.

Upcoming activities:

April 7 - Easy Trek Hike: Looking for a gentle hike through the woods? A new category of less
demanding hikes has been added; Easy Treks, led by BMTA Board Secretary Sara Bland, is
designed for the fit beginner or the hiker who enjoys a little slower pace to smell the roses. This
3.0 mile hike will be held on the Amadahy Trail on Carter's Lake followed by lunch and fellowship
on the shore of the lake. An optional 1.5 Nature Trail hike will follow. Bring bagged lunch. Call
Hike Leader for meeting location in Ellijay. Sara's cell: 770-366-6053.

April 14 - Georgia Work Trip: We will continue work on a trail relocation near No Name Gap on
Section 2. Meet at the Village Restaurant in Blue Ridge at 8:00 AM or meet at the Three Forks
trailhead at 9:15 AM (Note: Trail-head meeting time is 15 minutes later than November). The trip
leader is George Owen (home) 706-374-4716 or (cell) 706-897-3366.

April 21 - Board of Directors Meeting Cancelled (We would not have a quorum due to too many
Directors at other locations.) In its place, BMTA President Dick Evans is leading a hike in the
Great Smoky Mountains National Park on that day. Meet at Twentymile Ranger Station at 9:30 AM.
This hike can be an easy walk up a fairly level old railroad bed of whatever distance you feel
comfortable, or a 7.5 mile loop. We will break into small groups depending on the desires of the
participants. Wild flowers should be fantastic then. Call Dick @ 828-479-2503 to sign up.

April 22-28 - American Hiking Society Volunteer Work Week-organized by Rick Harris: See article
in Newsletter.

Keep June 2nd, National Trails Day, open for a joint BMTA/Mountain High Hikers/Georgia
Appalachian Trail Club event at Vogel State Park in Georgia.

See you on the Trail,

Dick Evans