TIL the trail markers on the Long Trail in Vermont are way too easy to miss in October

Last week I hiked a 15 mile section near Killington and missed three turns because the blazes were covered by falling leaves. Spent an extra hour bushwhacking before I realized I was off course. Has anyone else had luck with a different way to spot those old paint blazes when the foliage gets thick?

2 comments

2 Comments

price.gavin13h ago

Bold move assuming you can spot blazes through a confetti cannon of October leaves, I've done the exact same thing near Stratton and ended up following a moose trail for a solid mile before I caught my mistake. Maybe I should just tape a bright red flag to my own backpack so I can lose THAT instead of the actual trail.

bell.felix8h ago

It's like everything else in life, the signs are there but you gotta know when to stop trusting the obvious stuff. You figure the blazes will be bright and clear like a highway billboard, but October leaves don't care about your plans. It reminds me of trying to follow a recipe your grandma wrote down but she forgot to mention the oven runs 50 degrees hot. You just end up guessing and hoping you don't land in a bog. The moose trail is the new norm, I'm starting to think the trail is just wherever I end up after giving up on the markers.