1980 Beer Drinker and Ice Cream Eater's Guide to the A.T.
"The Beer Drinker and Ice Cream Eater's Guide to the A. T.", available in the spring of 1980, is thought to be the first guide of it's kind and influenced those that followed. This copy comes to us as a gift from the daughter of the Author, Jerry "Tarheel" Parker. Donated September, 2015.
A short history of the "Beer Drinkers' and Ice Cream Eaters' Guide to the A.T
by Megan "Dangerpants" Parker
My dad, Jerry "Tarheel" Parker, from Cullowhee, NC completed a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail in 1979 when he was 29 years old. During the process of his hike he kept several small notebooks where he would make notes about where he went and what he did, including notes about re-routes, new mileages, elevation gain, what he did and ate in town, etc.
When my dad finished the trail in October of 1979 and had returned home to North Carolina, he was looking over his old notes and began thinking about how there wasn't really a guide for the Appalachian Trail that detailed where you could stay along the way or get food. Thinking that most thru-hikers shared his love for ice cream and beer, he proceeded to write the guide you see here.
He said that it took him approximately 10 hours to actually write the guide. He consulted his notes from the trail heavily, as well as referenced any news of trail changes from “Trailways News” (what is today called "A.T. Journeys" magazine) and the 1980 Appalachian Trail Data Book. He was the only author of the guide. He finished the guide sometime in the spring of 1980.
Once it was completed, he would make stacks of copies and take them to the NOC Outfitters (Wesser, NC) and sell the guide for $0.75 per copy, just to cover the cost of printing. He didn't keep track of how many copies were made. He mostly just kept bringing back stacks of new copies to the NOC whenever he could. The NOC was also the only place he actively left copies.
For the first several years after he first made the guide, he was going to the NOC every hiking season to put out more copies. I am not sure when he stopped going to the NOC regularly to drop off copies, but I know he did hand the guide out to any hikers that he ran across during this time.
Since 1991, dad has been doing trail magic at Deep Gap, NC on Easter, and I know he gave out a few copies of the guide there when he first started doing that.
He misplaced his last remaining copy for most of the last 10 years until he relocated it last year, which is when I decided to contact you (The A.T. Museum). I remembered seeing that you guys were looking for a copy of this guide while browsing the exhibits at the AT Museum when I passed through Pennsylvania while I was doing my thru-hike in 2013.
My dad has been giving out copies of this guide for the last 30 years - whenever he can think to make more copies and/or knows where his original version is to make copies from.
Now he gives out the guide to any hikers that want them just for fun.
Webmaster's note: On the last page of the guide, "Tarheel" referes to a guide consisting of only two copied pages that was available to him in 1979 if found, could prove to be the first guide of it's kind. Anyone having information about, or possessing a copy of these two pages please contact us.
Place your cursor over the graphic below. Then, either press "Play" to play as a slideshow or use the arrows to navigate.
A short history of the "Beer Drinkers' and Ice Cream Eaters' Guide to the A.T
by Megan "Dangerpants" Parker
My dad, Jerry "Tarheel" Parker, from Cullowhee, NC completed a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail in 1979 when he was 29 years old. During the process of his hike he kept several small notebooks where he would make notes about where he went and what he did, including notes about re-routes, new mileages, elevation gain, what he did and ate in town, etc.
When my dad finished the trail in October of 1979 and had returned home to North Carolina, he was looking over his old notes and began thinking about how there wasn't really a guide for the Appalachian Trail that detailed where you could stay along the way or get food. Thinking that most thru-hikers shared his love for ice cream and beer, he proceeded to write the guide you see here.
He said that it took him approximately 10 hours to actually write the guide. He consulted his notes from the trail heavily, as well as referenced any news of trail changes from “Trailways News” (what is today called "A.T. Journeys" magazine) and the 1980 Appalachian Trail Data Book. He was the only author of the guide. He finished the guide sometime in the spring of 1980.
Once it was completed, he would make stacks of copies and take them to the NOC Outfitters (Wesser, NC) and sell the guide for $0.75 per copy, just to cover the cost of printing. He didn't keep track of how many copies were made. He mostly just kept bringing back stacks of new copies to the NOC whenever he could. The NOC was also the only place he actively left copies.
For the first several years after he first made the guide, he was going to the NOC every hiking season to put out more copies. I am not sure when he stopped going to the NOC regularly to drop off copies, but I know he did hand the guide out to any hikers that he ran across during this time.
Since 1991, dad has been doing trail magic at Deep Gap, NC on Easter, and I know he gave out a few copies of the guide there when he first started doing that.
He misplaced his last remaining copy for most of the last 10 years until he relocated it last year, which is when I decided to contact you (The A.T. Museum). I remembered seeing that you guys were looking for a copy of this guide while browsing the exhibits at the AT Museum when I passed through Pennsylvania while I was doing my thru-hike in 2013.
My dad has been giving out copies of this guide for the last 30 years - whenever he can think to make more copies and/or knows where his original version is to make copies from.
Now he gives out the guide to any hikers that want them just for fun.
Webmaster's note: On the last page of the guide, "Tarheel" referes to a guide consisting of only two copied pages that was available to him in 1979 if found, could prove to be the first guide of it's kind. Anyone having information about, or possessing a copy of these two pages please contact us.
Place your cursor over the graphic below. Then, either press "Play" to play as a slideshow or use the arrows to navigate.