Middlebury Mountain Club Spring Events

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As winter melts into spring, bright sunny days carve turns at the Snow Bowl and midnight snowshoe romps on the cross country trail fade behind Middlebury residents. When buds blossom, the Green Mountain Club (GMC) of Waterbury urges people all over Vermont to get outside. Whether one dreams of hiking on the Long Trail or gliding down Otter Creek in a canoe, the simple desire to enjoy the seasonable weather has caused Vermonters to participate in GMC's various spring programs and events.
The GMC is currently offering a number of backcountry workshops designed to give people the chance to learn about and experience nature.

Backcountry Facility Maintenance and Sanitation Skills Session - Saturday May 3, 9 a.m.to 5 p.m. - Southern Vermont. This workshop features the basics of shelter and campsite maintenance, including shelter inspection and repair, outhouses, wash pits, tenting areas and platforms, fire rings, water supply, appropriate signage and work trip documentation. Participants will also learn about backcountry sanitation issues and management systems. This includes cat holes, pit toilets, moldering privies (including red worms), batch-bin composting systems (including the Beyond the Bin Liquid Management System) and manufactured continuous composters, as well as the latest ideas in backcountry waste management. This can certainly be a hands-on learning experience. No prior experience necessary. Instructor: Pete Antos-Ketcham. Register by May 1.

End-to-Ender's Workshop - Wednesday, May 14, 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m - Those planning to hike the Long Trail end-to-end this season are encouraged to come join a panel of end-to-enders for a question and answer session. Topics will include equipment, food, planning and strategies.

Corridor Monitoring Workshops - Saturday, May 17, 9 a.m.to 3 p.m., Appalachian Trail, Central Vermont, and Saturday, May 24, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Long Trail, Northern Vermont - This workshop will cater to those interested in land conservation, natural history, wildlife, and orienteering. Volunteer corridor monitors walk the protected trail corridor, ensuring that conservation restrictions are being upheld, helping to maintain boundaries and gathering valuable natural and recreational resource information. This workshop will cover map and compass, conservation easements, surveys, boundaries, and natural history. Instructor: GMC and Appalachian Trail Conference staff. Limit: 18. No fee. Register by May 15.

For more information on workshops and the GMC in general, please see http://www.greenmountainclub.org. Happy trails!
- Peter Faroni