[pct-l] Maintaining Anonymity on the Trail

Thu Jan 24 18:14:38 CST 2008

Donna.....my mentor, my friend, my sister.......As with you, I would never
do anything to intentionally hurt the hikers. By the time I get the pics
posted on the website it is after the season is over. My last post about the
bag over the head, was a failed attempt at humor. My apologies to everyone.
By the time the hikers get here they all seem happy about the picture
taking and the register. If anyone did not want to be photographed or sign
the register there's no problem. We only average between 5-10 hikers here at
a time and we get to know each one on a first name or trail name basis. When
they leave they are family. For those coming through this or future
years.......let me know if you would prefer your privacy. We will respect
your wishes as we always have.

As to a war between the North and the South..........we both have our own
opinions. We are 2000 trail miles apart......and will still PCT family.

Hugs,

Andrea
PCT MOM

On 1/24/08, Donna Saufley <dsaufley at sprynet.com> wrote:
>
>  Andrea,
>
>
>
> I love you dearly and everything you do for hikers.  I don't want to start
> the north/south trail angel battle of '08, so I will simply tell you the
> reasons why I came to NOT put hiker pictures and information on a website or
> elsewhere.  Just my take on the experiences we've had.
>
>
>
> The first awareness came when I had (like you) been taking pictures of all
> the hikers, and getting all their info before they departed Hiker Heaven.
> Back in those days, when we had far fewer hikers through here, that was much
> easier to do!  As I was doing this then-routine picture/info gathering, a
> solo female hiker (AT veteran) asked me why I was getting that information;
> what was I going to do with it.  I told her I wanted to have a website with
> that information so everyone could see who was here; the vision was that it
> could prove to be a link for their family and friends who could see they'd
> been or were here, and a place to store our wonderful memories for all to
> share.
>
>
>
> The hiker was very emphatic with her response.  She told me under no
> circumstances did I have her permission to put her picture or info on any
> website.  She went on to explain that a hiker or hikers had been murdered on
> the AT – they had been stalked by the killer through online journal
> entries.  I had never heard any of this before, and was stunned.  She
> strongly suggested to me that it just was not a good policy to put that
> information out there.  Her concerns were later affirmed for me in "Walk,"
> the part where two men show up to meet Tea Tree.  They knew where she'd been
> and where she was going to be because of her online journal.  They were
> apparently okay guys in that case, but the fact is they had essentially
> stalked her because of online info.
>
>
>
> I began to think, "what's the harm in putting info up after the fact, when
> the season is over?"  That answer came when post-season we started getting
> calls about a 20-something hiker that was missing, and his family was
> frantically looking for him and thought he might be hiking the trail.
> Initially alarmed, concerned, and wanting to help, we subsequently came to
> learn from law enforcement that this young man wanted to get away from his
> family and it was his legal right to do so.
>
>
>
> We also learned of a missing hiker somewhere up north that had terminal
> cancer and wanted to hike the trail before he died.  His family did not want
> him to do this for their own reasons.  Determined to follow his dream and
> not theirs, he set out on the trail with his family trying to stop him. They
> of course wanted to keep him under care and treatment to prolong what was
> left of his life.  He knew he was going to die anyway and wanted to be on
> the trail before it came. I do not know the outcome of this . . . I wish I
> did.  I hope he was able to achieve his dream and rest peacefully.
>
>
>
> Because of these experiences and pieces of information, I came to
> understand that some people have their reasons for not wanting to be found,
> for anyone to know where they are or where they've been.  Those that want
> anonymity are entitled to it, and I don't want to put them in a position of
> either having to explain themselves, or having to lie.  I respect that some
> may simply and rightly feel it's not safe to post their info. If any hiker
> ever came to harm because of something I'd posted, I would never forgive
> myself.
>
>
>
> Another and much more personal reason for not wanting to post the history
> out there are those who want to keep track of hikers like it's a horse race,
> wanting to use information to validate hiker's claims, and just generally
> use the information for fodder for their own purposes – which could even
> result in financial gain.  I'll go on record stating I have a real aversion
> to that, and I don't want to feed or nurture it.
>
>
>
> To me, everyone's journey is personal to them, and if they wish to, they
> can (and do) post pictures of being here.  My memories with them are
> personal to me.  If you want to know who's been here, the trail register is
> here for the reading.
>
>
>
> L-Rod
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>  ------------------------------
>
> *From:* pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net [mailto:
> pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net] *On Behalf Of *Andrea Dinsmore
> *Sent:* Thursday, January 24, 2008 8:44 AM
> *To:* G. Lowe aka Wheeew
> *Cc:* PCT
> *Subject:* Re: [pct-l] Maintaining Anonymity on the Trail
>
>
>
> We've been taking pics, adding names and dates and posting the pics to our
> website..........everyone seems to be thrilled over it. This has been going
> on for years. In all those hikers that have stayed with us no one has ever
> said don't take my pic. Everyone signs our register and most seem to be
> really interested in who's been here before them. So with all this
> privacy....hike in secret issues on this forum......we haven't seen any of
> it up here. So,  I guess I should fore warn all hikers and guests to the
> Skykomish area..........if I see you....I will record your attendance to our
> place. If you don't want the world to know you were at our place, in town or
> even at the trailhead........you better put a bag over your head.
>
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