According to news channel 9 WMUR of New Hampshire, hikers were told to evacuate the White Mountain National Forest in preparation for the arrival of 2011’s most destructive hurricane so far. In a move that was not expected the US national forestry closed the entire White Mountain National Forest. About 25 hikers were evacuated and brought to a shelter where they were well cared for by locals with food and supplies.
Hikers in the area would have been in danger as the storm barreled across the states of North Carolina to Vermont and into Canada today around 1pm. Tropical storm Irene made land fall near Cape Lookout N.C. and moved up the east coast crossing the Appalachian Trail in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. Officials for the national forestry feared that the high winds would cause trees to come down across the trail and flood waters to make hiking dangerous.
Hikers can go back to the trail on Tuesday as the national forest is scheduled to reopen to the public. The White Mountain National Forest is one of the hardest places on the Appalachian Trail according to most hikers. The terrain is extreme and rugged and the weather can change so fast that the extremes can be distracting to an unprepared hiker. With the addition of Irene it would be a true challenge. It was a very good deed for the community center in Hanover, New Hampshire to house the hikers.
Although there are cabins and shelters along the trail from the northern terminus to the southern terminus in Georgia, they would provide very little in the way of shelter in the event of a strong storm such as a tropical storm or hurricane. Even during simple rain storms along the trail hikers know that the trail can become a raging water way. We are very thankful to the community efforts in New Hampshire to help these hikers during this time.
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