Minutes of the February 2, 2010 Sipsey Wilderness Hiking Club regular monthly meeting held at the Bernice Hilton Walker Building in Double Springs
In attendance were: Anthony and Jennifer, Bart, Charlie, Doris, Foster, Gary, Jim and Yvonne, Larry and Mimi, Nita and her daughter, and Owen.
Chairperson Mimi called the meeting to order promptly at 7 PM. The minutes of the previous meeting were read, amended, and approved. The treasurer reported that the club has $797 in the bank with additional dues just received awaiting deposit.
Old business.
Charlie and Mimi reported that despite frigid temperatures, the January trail maintenance went pretty well, covering the lower third or more of the trail. Some discussion followed on how to best deal with the large tree overhanging the trail at the south end. Gary suggested that a mid-week work day to just handle this tree might be the best idea.
The January club hike to High House Hill and Indian Tomb Hollow also got favorable notices.
Five club members visited Springer Mountain in Georgia at the end of January for a few days of camping and hiking. Foster reported that everyone had a good time in spite of snow, sleet, and ice, the latter covering their entire campsite with an inch-thick coating overnight. They retreated a day earlier than planned.
Gary was unable to contact the owners of the Rippey Cabin concerning our proposed tree maintenance effort but will try again this month.
New business.
Trail maintenance for February will start at the north end.
At least three or four club members are planning on making the outing to Big Lagoon State Park in Florida.
Gary mentioned that he will be attending a training session this month on the use of traditional tools in Talladega should anyone else be interested.
For the March 2 meeting, everyone is encouraged to bring their favorite day pack(s) to show to the others and explain why they like or dislike them. Mimi will bring refreshments.
Bart suggested that everybody keep track of how many miles they hike during the year, much as we do for trail maintenance hours. All hikes, club or otherwise, can be counted. Bart will take care of the record-keeping and report periodically on how we’re doing.
The March 13 club hike will start at Thompson Trailhead and then follow 206 to 209, staying east of the river. We’ll take 209 to Borden Creek and then finish up the west side to Borden Trailhead. There will be optional overnight camping.
Foster suggested that the club should present some sort of recognition to Gary White for his two years of service as chairman of the club (2008-9). Mimi will present suggestions at the next meeting.
Mimi will find out more about the proposed April outing for Cane Creek Canyon Nature Preserve.
The Alabama Hiking Trail Society has invited us to send two representatives to the annual AHTS Conference which is being held this year at nearby Camp McDowell. No one really felt that the club needed to send representatives but Larry will make information about the conference available on the website. But it was agreed that the club would cover the registration fees for the representatives if someone would like to volunteer.
As for club merchandise, we decided not to order any new t-shirts at this time but rather just take orders over the next month or two and see what we need to do. There was fair interest in looking into polo shirts embroidered with the club logo. That may happen.
A number of suggestions were made for the May outing including the Walls of Jericho, Fall Creek Falls State Park in Tennessee, Meeman-Shelby State Park near Memphis, and Little River Canyon. We will discuss further at the next meeting.
For future trips, Foster suggested we consider a trip to the high country in late June to see the rhododendrons, Roan Mountain being one possibility. And it looks like we all are ready to return to Balsam Mountain in August, especially Charlie.
The mayor of Double Springs has asked that we exchange links on our website. Larry will add the Double Springs link to our site and no one had any objection to allowing them to provide a link to us on theirs.
Charlie mentioned that he wished the club could print up some business cards with basic information such as the website and contact information. Larry will look into this as well as seeing about getting an updated phone list on laminated cards.
The meeting adjourned at about 8 PM in favor of cookies and chips, courtesy of Yvonne and Jim.