[pct-l] PCTA Annual Meeting

[Bighummel@xxxxxxx (Bighummel@xxxxxxx)]

I caught the PCTA Annual Meeting last year at Ontario, CA and found many good
talks on hiking and packing strategies, along with day hiking advice, etc.,
etc.  If you are thinking of hiking the PCT soon, then I suggest that this is
a worthy event to attend.

Yep, the business part is a bit dry, but hey, this is where they recognize
those individuals who are giving back hugely in support of this great trail.
Take a minute and just listen in on who they are and what they have
contributed of their own time and efforts.  I think you might be inspired.

The PCTA is an organization that you all should be a member of.  If you care
enough about the PCT to join in the discussions of this list, then you might
be interested in supporting the maintenance and long term preservation of the
trail and its grandure. The organization is a narrowly focused, well run,
simple, efficient group of similarly minded people.  Their organization of
Regional Trail Managers and, in turn, their organization of all volunteer
trail maintenance crews is a model of trail magic that excels all others.  If
you, as a U.S. taxpayer are concerned about your tax dollars and how they are
spent, then you will appreciate the huge "bang for your buck" that is the
PCTA.

If you care about the quality of the trail experience and are worried about
the intrusions of logging and development and other creeping distractions of
our mechanized society into the "wilderness", then you can help by joining
the PCTA.  This is their charge, their fight, every day, at the local level
and all the way up to Washington.

In the mean time, just go to the Annual Meeting.  I think that you'll find a
lot of people who feel very familiar and have that "thru-hiker" sparkle in
their eyes.

Sincerely,

Greg "Strider" Hummel
A mere "Supporting" Member of the PCTA (but huge advocate!)