
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, April 1, 1991                   TAG: 9104010156
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: A4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND                                LENGTH: Short

SCOUTS LEG UP FOR ATTEMPT ON TRAIL

Eastern Virginia Boy Scout troops hope to succeed as a group where 85 percent of individual hikers fail - in walking all 2,150 miles of the Appalachian Trail.

On Saturday, Boy Scout Troop 535 of Mechanicsville left for Georgia to begin the first leg of what will be a 37-leg hike by 34 area Scout troops. After a nine-hour van ride, the boys and two adults will start walking. They plan to finish their almost 60 miles in five days.

Troop members trained for six months and were required to make at least three 15-mile hikes in addition to attending weekly preparation meetings.

The trip is designed to give the boys an opportunity to use the skills they've honed as Scouts. Each will carry a 40-pound pack including sleeping bags, tents, food, water, cooking devices, first aid equipment and supplies.

Another troop was to leave early today for New York. They will split into three groups and hike the portion of the trail from U.S. 9 to county Route 565, near the New York-New Jersey line.

by CNB