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The old man and the Appalachian Trail

| 06 Jul 2014 | 08:26
    Bernard "Bud" Whitt serves up two hot dogs a soda and a bag of chips for $5.50.
    Bernard "Bud" Whitt serves up two hot dogs a soda and a bag of chips for $5.50.
    The Appalachian Trail kiosk at the top of Mt. Peter in Warwick.
    The Appalachian Trail kiosk at the top of Mt. Peter in Warwick.
    Bernard "Bud" Whitt serves a hot dog to Monroe resident Hank Bader on a recent Saturday afternoon.
    Bernard "Bud" Whitt serves a hot dog to Monroe resident Hank Bader on a recent Saturday afternoon.
    Bernard "Bud" Whitt puts some sauerkraut on a hot dog at his stand on Route 17A in Warwick on a recent Saturday afternoon.
    Bernard "Bud" Whitt puts some sauerkraut on a hot dog at his stand on Route 17A in Warwick on a recent Saturday afternoon.
    A hiker calling himself "Grasshopper" takes a break from the Appalachian Trail to get a hot dog at Bernard "Bud" Whitt's local hot dog stand.
    A hiker calling himself "Grasshopper" takes a break from the Appalachian Trail to get a hot dog at Bernard "Bud" Whitt's local hot dog stand.
    A map showing the AppalachianTrail kiosk in Warwick is also where Hot Dogs "Plus" owned by Berbard "Bud" Whitt is locAted.
    A map showing the AppalachianTrail kiosk in Warwick is also where Hot Dogs "Plus" owned by Berbard "Bud" Whitt is locAted.

WARWICK — ​Korean War Army Veteran Bernard “Bud” Whitt and his Hot Dogs “Plus” stand is a sight for weary hikers eyes as they make their way along the Appalachian Trail near Route 17A at the top of Mt. Peter in Warwick.

It seems that word gets passed along the trail by people who have already been, that if you want a cheap, hot meal without having to venture too far from your route, then this is the place to go.

So close to the trail itself and alongside heavily traveled Route 17A, the hot dog stand is also frequently visited by the locals and by folks from New York City and New Jersey driving up the pick your own apples, blueberries, strawberries and other events.

In this case, 54-year-old Appalachian Trail hiker nicknamed “Grasshopper” from North Carolina couldn’t wait to stop for these famous hot dogs after being told about them by another hiker.

He said he was thinking about them all morning.

Whitt , 78, said that Thursday and Friday were his busiest days of the week as hikers drenched from five days of rain had to take a break from the woods, dry themselves out and fill there bellies with some hot food.

Better known by everyone as “Bud,” he originally had his 1984 Wells Fargo trailer along Route 94 in Warwick but had to move from that location after eight years as a shopping center was being built in that location.

He has now been in his present location for the past five years.


Story and photos by Robert G. Breese.