The Memorial Day holiday weekend traditionally marks the start of the hiking season in the state, which offers hundreds of miles of hiking opportunities.
This year, with COVID-19 as a dominant concern, the Green Mountain Club (GMC), the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation, and the Green Mountain National Forest are asking hikers to take a few extra precautions.
Out-of-state visitors are still being asked to self-quarantine for at least 14 days before engaging in any activities. For more information, visit healthvermont.gov. To protect public health, backcountry shelters and remote campsites on public lands are closed through June 15.
As they should do before participating in any outdoor recreation activity, hikers should go out only if healthy, if they have not been exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, and/or have not recently traveled from a location with a travel advisory issued by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Everyone is reminded to wash or sanitize hands frequently, not to touch one's face, and not to linger.
Hikers should follow updated COVID-19 trail etiquette:
• Know where and when to go: It's best if everyone doesn't go to the most popular trailheads at the most popular times of day. Early morning or evening tends to be less crowded. Plan your trip on trailfinder.info. If you arrive at a parking lot and it is full, find another trail.
• Maintain a distance of at least 6 feet from others: This includes dogs, too. They are members of your household and need to keep their social distance as well. (Most standard leashes are 6 feet.)
• Wear a cloth mask or face covering: Any time you know others may be present, you should have your mask on, even while hiking. Keeping it at the ready is OK if you can quickly and safely pull it up over your nose and mouth, doing so well before you come within 6 feet of others.
• Slow down, step back, and let people know when you're approaching: Awareness and consideration are key. Everyone should yield to everyone right now.
Making some noise as you approach is recommended. A friendly “Hello!” followed by a pause to figure out your next move is the best tactic. If you find yourself coming up behind a slower walker and there's not 6 feet to pass safely, slow down instead. If somebody is getting too close to you, step back to allow enough space.
• Step off the trail when needed: If the trail isn't wide enough to allow for 6 feet in passing, step off the trail at a 90-degree angle, being careful not to tread on plants. Once you're 6 feet from the trail, wait for the approaching group to clear the area before retracing your footsteps. Please do not cut a new trail parallel to the existing track.
• Keep single file (even on wide trails): Keep your group single file; do not spread out all over the trail. (This night mean you have to hike more slowly than you want to.) When you let someone pass, step off to the side and stay put - don't walk alongside the path. The same goes for when you encounter ice or mud in the trail - stay on the trail and go right through it to avoid damaging the surrounding vegetation.
• Don't stand across the trail to chat: it is great to see friends and acquaintances, but stopping on either side of the trail to chat just creates a concentration of your breath that others must either pass through or go off-trail to avoid.
• Embrace an arrive-play-and-leave mentality: Do not gather in groups before or after activities.
• If you are hiking with children, set expectations before getting out of the car. Remind them not to run up to people or dogs, and to cough and sneeze into their elbows while turned away from people.
• Children older than 2 years can and should be encouraged to use cloth masks or face coverings. Remind your kids often of the new rules and model them yourself. They will need lots of kind and consistent reminders of what this new behavior needs to look like.
• Trails at higher elevations still have snow and ice, so hikers should be prepared for winter conditions (with traction, layers, and experience) or consider staying below 2,500 feet until at least mid-June.
• If you encounter muddy conditions, either turn back or be prepared to walk straight through puddles and mud.
• Trails on state and federal lands are open, but caution is still needed: Staff and volunteers have not been able to perform the normal levels of spring trail maintenance or assessments.
Here are a few other tips for early-season hikers:
• Plan ahead and prepare. Practice extra caution and know the risks of any activity: greenmountainclub.org/plan.
• Always let someone know where you will be hiking and when you expect to return.
• Carry a map and know which trailhead you need to return to.
• Bring a warm extra layer, as mountaintops are chilly year-round, and Vermont's weather can quickly change.
• Bring rain gear; even an emergency poncho or garbage bag will help in a pinch.
• Water levels in streams and rivers may be higher than normal this time of year, so use caution when crossing.
• Stay hydrated, and bring food for long hikes.
• Report blowdowns or other issues on the trail to the GMC or the appropriate trail manager.
To protect public health, shelters and privies on the Long Trail and Appalachian Trail in Vermont are closed. Trail managers are developing guidelines for use of backcountry facilities and hope to open some facilities in a reduced capacity by June 15.
While privies are closed, make sure you know how to go to the bathroom outdoors before heading out. Learn how far to step off the trail and how to dig a cathole, along with other ways to leave no trace, at greenmountainclub.org/covidlnt.