DSettahr ɹǝqɯǝɯ



Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 5,026

Quote: JohnnyVirgil Originally Posted by Very cool. I never realized there was so much varied construction. Stone, metal roofing, board and batten, etc.



In the Adirondacks and Catskills, management philosophy is that lean-to materials should blend in with the surroundings- hence the use of cedar shingles where feasible, and asphalt shingles where cedar isn't practical. Plus, it's a lot easier to get packages of shingles than large pieces of corrugated metal into remote lean-to sites in the Adirondacks/Catskills.



I will also say that the metal seems like the clearly desirable alternative generally due to the durability of the material... until one has spent a rainy night camped in a lean-to with a metal roof.



The stone shelters are all located in the Hudson Highlands- and these are some of the oldest backcountry shelters built in NY that are still standing (some are nearly 100 years old!). So stone is clearly a building material that lasts, at least. While the stone shelters are interesting from an aesthetic and historical stand point, I will say that they aren't the nicest shelters for camping in- they tend to be a bit cold and damp. Usually there's a wood platform to sleep on, at least (and some of them have bunk beds).



I didn't include any photos because they aren't in NY, but some of the shelters on the Appalachian Trail get really elaborate- especially the larger ones that are designed to sleep upwards of 15 or even 20 people. Covered porches with picnic tables for eating and hanging out, bunk beds, loft areas to sleep additional campers, and so on. A few even have niceties such as swinging porch chairs, skylights, and even "running water" (spring water piped straight to the shelter from a source uphill). Metal roofing is somewhat common on the Finger Lakes Trail as well as in state forests generally- it lasts longer that cedar or asphalt shingles, and there's usually easier access to get it into the shelter site (in some cases, the DEC/FLTC has motor vehicle access to the shelter sites via gated administrative access roads).In the Adirondacks and Catskills, management philosophy is that lean-to materials should blend in with the surroundings- hence the use of cedar shingles where feasible, and asphalt shingles where cedar isn't practical. Plus, it's a lot easier to get packages of shingles than large pieces of corrugated metal into remote lean-to sites in the Adirondacks/Catskills.I will also say that the metal seems like the clearly desirable alternative generally due to the durability of the material... until one has spent a rainy night camped in a lean-to with a metal roof.The stone shelters are all located in the Hudson Highlands- and these are some of the oldest backcountry shelters built in NY that are still standing (some are nearly 100 years old!). So stone is clearly a building material that lasts, at least. While the stone shelters are interesting from an aesthetic and historical stand point, I will say that they aren't the nicest shelters for camping in- they tend to be a bit cold and damp. Usually there's a wood platform to sleep on, at least (and some of them have bunk beds).I didn't include any photos because they aren't in NY, but some of the shelters on the Appalachian Trail get really elaborate- especially the larger ones that are designed to sleep upwards of 15 or even 20 people. Covered porches with picnic tables for eating and hanging out, bunk beds, loft areas to sleep additional campers, and so on. A few even have niceties such as swinging porch chairs, skylights, and even "running water" (spring water piped straight to the shelter from a source uphill).