While some spent the last day of the year drinking champagne in party hats and 2016 glasses, others were sporting hard hats and leather gloves and axing away at hiking hazards.
Thirteen volunteers with the Tennessee Eastman Hiking and Canoeing Club met at 9 a.m. Thursday morning to maintain a rock staircase on the Appalachian Trail leading to Laurel Fork Falls.
“This is payback. Somebody built all this for us, and we try to make it better for other people,” said Bob Peoples, Trail Angel and owner of the nearby Kincora Hostel.
The staircase was originally built by two female Konnarock Appalachian Trail Conservancy crews from Sugar Grove, Virginia in 1997. Peoples helped with the 6-week project in ‘97 and was back at it again Thursday to make it better.
“The rocks move with snow and so forth, so we’re trying to reorganize them and make the stairs more comfortable,” Peoples said.
This trail in particular is more than a hiking trail, he continued, saying it had a lot of local traffic going to the waterfall.
“They don’t always have proper shoes because they may be out for a family picnic, so we want to make it as safe as possible to prevent injury,” he said.
Though one volunteer was out for his first time with his father-in-law, most were well-seasoned volunteers.

In fact Paul Benfield, 80, of Roan Mountain, has been doing trail maintenance for 15 years after thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail in 1995.
TEHCC Projects Coordinator Carl Fritz was back to volunteering after breaking his hip three months ago, and more than a few volunteers are over age 65. This commitment speaks volumes of the value the trail holds for locals, thru-hikers and outdoors enthusiasts.
“It’s a good activity with a great bunch of people who want to give back,” said Kim Peters, TEHCC maintenance coordinator.
The crew’s members hale from Morristown to Flag Pond, Kingsport to Roan Mountain, and Beech Mountain to Elizabethton, and about a third of Thursday’s crew has thru-hiked the entire AT.
“It’s an interesting crew,” said Peoples.
TEHCC maintain 134 miles of trail on a weekly basis, year round, focusing on lower elevation sites through the winter.
“This is all voluntary,” said Peoples. “That’s the main reason ATC works so well.”
Though they enjoy the work, it’s no flat-land, foot-dragging stroll about the hillside.
“It’s a big job,” said Bill Murdoch, who has been volunteering for “a very long time.”
One of the perks of improving the trail is seeing tangible results at the end of the day, said Tim Stewart, who earned the trail name Mountain Squid.
The club always welcomes new members for trail maintenance on Thursdays, and Mountain Squid said they could also train people to maintain their own sections which sometimes works better with busy schedules.
“We need people that are younger to get out there and help maintain the trails and though it is a time commitment, it is important to make time for it,” said Kayla Carter, who earned the trail name “Blossom” when she thru-hiked the trail last year. She adopted her own section of the trail when her schedule was less flexible and said that work has been very rewarding.
“Those trails would erode away and there wouldn’t be recreation if people weren’t willing to give up their time to do that work. It’s trail maintainers that make the trail better.”
Those interested in volunteering should call Fritz at 423-477-4669 or visit tehcc.org.