Minutes of the January 3, 2012 Sipsey Wilderness Hiking Club regular monthly meeting held at the Bernice Hilton Walker Building in Double Springs
In attendance were: Bart, Charlie, Cherie, Foster, Gary, Keith, Larry, Mimi, and new members Kelly and Renea
Chairman Keith called the meeting to order at 7 PM. The minutes of the previous meeting were approved.
The treasurer reported that the club now has $1185 in the bank.
Old business.
Mimi reported on the outing in December to Buck’s Pocket State Park saying how much she enjoyed the place, especially the large fire rings at the campground.
New business.
Larry presented the 2011 Treasurer’s report. The club breaks even with the usual amount of dues approximately equal to the annual expenses, not counting the work day breakfasts for trail maintenance volunteers. Those costs resulted in a small loss for 2011 due to a lack of travel mileage reimbursements, a situation that has since been remedied for the current year. The club has no financial problems.
Webmaster Larry also presented some statistics about the club website for 2011. The number of daily hits was up about 15% but the number of pages accessed and the time spent per visit decreased. That means we have more people looking but they are spending less time doing it. The number of visitors using Apple software increased sharply in 2011. The Google search engine is how most people find the site.
Charlie expressed a desire that we could somehow harness our blog (or some other means) as a forum for campers and backpackers in the Sipsey to contact each other and arrange outings. It was not clear exactly how this would work and there was little enthusiasm for using Facebook. In the meantime until we can come up with something more 21st century, a list of phone numbers will be distributed.
January trail maintenance will cover the north end of the Mitchell Ridge trail. Gary will make travel arrangements for any work release volunteers and club members will bring along extra water bottles, snacks, gloves, and other gear just in case they are needed.
The January outing will be a hike in the Sipsey along trails 202 and 209, starting at Randolph and ending at the picnic grounds. Current water levels are favorable for the two stream crossings.
With regard to the ten person group maximum rule, the club will respect the limit and not knowingly violate it. However it was not deemed necessary to introduce signup sheets or other such encumbrances for our Sipsey hikes. If too many show up, we will deal with the situation at the time.
Keith may be in Syracuse, NY in February and several club members offered him some help in contacting others for hiking in the Adirondacks. Keith will also be attending a mountain self rescue training program offered by the Alabama Fire College in August. Anyone interested is welcome to join him.
We discussed ideas for outings through May. February and March will be Sipsey hikes with optional backpacking. For April, Mimi will contact Jim and Faye Lacefield at Cane Creek Canyon Nature Preserve to see if we can schedule a weekend. Dugger Mountain Wilderness Area is a possibility for a May outing as is Tannehill Ironworks Historical State Park for later in the year.
Charlie reported that the trail along the west side of Braziel Creek, near the junction with Clifty Creek, has suffered extensive storm damage and is impassable.
Gary White regained the Mitchell Ridge Trail Blazer of the Year title, contributing 50.5 volunteer hours in calendar year 2011. Larry, Mimi, and Charlie were not far behind.
The meeting adjourned at 8 PM. Bart brought us all our favorite water bottles.