Farewell to Bill Bowden Outdoorsman, Wuss Formerly Known as Bushwack Bill, 9/29/07

I've been on a couple of his hikes (he even came on my 3rd colead!) & always struck me by his laid-back attitude. Always fun to hike with.

I have had many emails from Bill over planned routes and helpful information on bushwhacks, particularly 3Ks. Bill was always forthcoming. He will be missed.

And from my perspective, so young!

RIP

A class act

Very sorry to hear this. Never met Bill but had many exchanges with him over the Internet. Many times when looking for so called coveted information Bill would be the one to offer it up with no bars held. Will miss his presence here as I'm sure many others will whom he touched in so many different ways. Anyone who can come right out and call himself a wuss had to be much more than any real wuss I ever met. A legend in his own time...RIP.

Terrible, terrible news indeed. I am struck by the number of bushwhackers on this forum that Bill has exchanged information with - including me. It seems like he had communicated with all of us, possibly even living vicariously through our 'whacks and TRs - even if he hadn't met you in person yet. Bill invited me to join him for the first time on a trip to PaTN a couple months ago but I had to tell him "maybe next time" since I had other plans already. Sadly, I will never get the chance now.

The only thing I can think of for a fitting tribute to Bushwhack Bill would be to go for a 'whack this weekend and write "I'll miss you, Bill." in a register. Thanks for letting us know, Jazzbo. Bill, wherever you are, from now on I'm calling you by your former name.

I had the good fortune to have know Bushwhack Bill and to have called him a friend. The last time I saw him was a little over a month ago when we colead an AMC bushwhack trip. He was smiling, making jokes, and sharing stories as usual. This is how I'll always remember him.

We talked of many ideas of trips to do together in the future and though he won't be with me in body, I will carry his memory with me whenever I step off the trail and venture into the woods.

Bill touched a lot of lives. Our paths haven't crossed in recent years, but he helped me a lot when I started hiking again about a dozen years ago. His passing is quite a loss to his family, friends, and those who have only heard his name and legend.

This news brings great sadness as I've had the pleasure to hike many times with Bill. Back when I was getting into winter hiking I joined a number of his AMC hikes.

He always had such a great attitude especially when things were at their worst. On one winter hike in 1995, when the light was fading, we were miles from the car, and we had wandered off the trail. We pushed through deep powder looking for a rare blaze, a sign of clipping or any other indication of the route. The group (present conmpany included) was tired and cold. Bill ever so casually said to me: "John I may not be really good an navigating but I cover my bases. All we have to do is get to a road and we're okay. I've got a car staged at every trailhead around this mountain." He then told me how he coordinated spotting a number of cars in case of an emergency. Maybe you just had to be there but it brought a smile to my face at a tough time. So typical of Bill.

So many pleasant memories.

Bushwhacker Bill

I was shocked to hear the news about Bill, as I had done many bushwhacks with him in past years. After I finished the NE 100 Highest, he encouraged me to join him on some of his epic bushwhacks that were on the NH 100 Highest list and then we went on to do the NH 3's!
We always had a lot of laughs; he was good at joking about the worst possible conditions and making you forget how nasty tight spruce and blowdowns really are!
He and his wife, Phyllis went on a Boothbay walking weekend that I led in 2005; this was shortly after his daughter's death. My heart goes out to his wife, who now has not only lost her only child, but her husband.
The idea of doing a "whack" in his memory strikes the right chord. I did all the NH 3's and the VT 3's, and haven't been off whacking lately, but I will plan to go do one soon.

I never met Bill but always thought I would eventually. One of the famous whackers...and I echo, way too young from Pat's and my perspective.
Bogorchis, I'll join you on that trip. Condolences to Mrs. Bowden.

Details for the services for Bill Bowden

The following are details for services for Bill Bowden:

Visitation – Thursday, October 4, 2007

Farwell Funeral Service, 18 Lock St., Nashua, NH 03064-2218; phone 603-882-0591

Hours: 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Lock Street is near the intersection of Amherst St. (route 1010A) and Main Street near downtown Nashua.

Funeral Service – Friday, October 5, 2007

Main St. United Methodist Church, 154 Main Street, Nashua, NH; phone 603-882-3361

Service starts at 10 a.m.

The church is in downtown Nashua on the East side of Main Street (aka Daniel Webster Highway) about 0.25 miles north the intersection of Hollis Street

Phyllis Bowden would like people to make donations to any of the following organizations in lieu of sending flowers. These are all organizations that Bill supported:

Kitty Rescue and Adoption, PO Box 453, Jaffrey, NH 03454-0453

Beaver Brook Association, 117 Ridge Road, Hollis, NH 03049 (603-465-7787)
This is a nonprofit educational and charitable corporation with 1900 acres of forest, fields and wetlands in Hollis, Brookline and Milford, NH. The trails and woods roads are open free of charge for hiking, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

AMC-NH Chapter; send to Appalachian Mountain Club, Attn.: Norie Mozzone, 5 Joyce St., Boston, MA 02108 and specify for the NH Chapter

I also had the good fortune of knowing and hiking with Bill many times over the past seven years. We co-led many trips together during that time; yes, mostly bushwhacks, but also one of my winter co-leads. He was the one who for me embodied the art (vs. the science) of bushwhacking, i.e. knowing when to ignore the bearing and just find the best way through the woods. I recall our trip to the Longs where he managed to get us all the way to the summit without really 'whacking' anything.
I also had the pleasure of working with him on the Four Thousand Footer Committee. He leaves a big set of boots to fill.

Jazzbo said:

Lock Street is near the intersection of Amherst St. (route 1010A) and Main Street near downtown Nashua.

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That is 101A (not 1010A) which I am sure most of us would figure out...

Tim

Bill's obituary

William Lee 'Bill' Bowden



William Lee "Bill" Bowden, Ph.D., 60, of Nashua, husband of Phyllis I. (Longanecker) Bowden, died Saturday afternoon, September 29, 2007 at Southern New Hampshire Medical Center in Nashua, following a sudden illness. Born in Bonne Terre, Missouri on July 31, 1947, Bill was a son of LaFern (Bales) Bowden of Winston-Salem, NC and the late Wilba Lee Bowden, who died in 1992.

Mr. Bowden graduated from Kirkwood High School, Kirkwood, Missouri in 1965, and received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1969. Bill earned his Doctorate in Organic Chemistry from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in 1975. He did post doctoral research at the University of Vermont and was known internationally for pioneering in the field of manganese dioxide.

Bill was employed as a Chemist and Research Fellow by P & G in Needham, MA. When he began with the company 31 years ago, it was PR Mallory and later became Duracell. Mr. Bowden did research for portable power products (batteries). He was proud of the 35 or more US patents he received and a sizeable list of technical publications. The moon land rover was powered by a battery of his design. Mr. Bowden was a member of the ACS and ECS and was a former officer of The Boston Chapter of the ECS.

Mr. Bowden was an Army veteran, serving as Liaison Sergeant during the Vietnam War. Bill was a voracious reader of diverse subjects including ancient, medieval and modern history; nature, geology, science fiction, archaeology, sports and comedy. Bill made a lot of friends through the NH Chapter of the AMC, hiked almost every weekend, and was active in the organization. He regularly taught at the chapter's spring and summer schools, taught rock climbing and was a hike leader. He was peak-bagger and did the 4000' peaks in the winter and three seasons as well as the New Hampshire and New England 100 Highest and NH 3000 Footers. He was known as "Bush Whack Bill" because of the off trail hiking he did to bag peaks. Bill was a member of the 4000 Footer committee. He was an animal lover and got a lot of enjoyment from his cats and all animals. Bill also enjoyed music and art, visiting museums and sports.

In addition to his father, Mr. Bowden was predeceased by his daughter, Virginia LaFern "Ginny" Bowden, who died June 11, 2005.

Members of his family include his wife, Phyllis Irene Bowden, whom he married June 6, 1970 in Fort Sill, Oklahoma; his mother, LaFern Bowden of Winston-Salem, NC; a brother and sister-in-law, Donald W. and Virginia Bowden and their children, William, Stephen, Mary and Julia; also several aunts, uncles and cousins.

Calling hours will be held at the FARWELL FUNERAL HOME, 18 Lock Street, Nashua, on Thursday evening from 5 to 8 p.m. His funeral service will be held in the Main Street United Methodist Church, 154 Main St., Nashua, Friday morning at 10 a.m. Interment will follow in Woodlawn Cemetery.

Friends are invited to attend and will gather at the church. Donations may be made in his memory to: The Beaver Brook Association, 117 Ridge Road, Hollis, NH 03049, The Kitty Rescue Adoption, P.O. Box 453, Jaffrey, NH 03454-0453 or the Appalachian Mountain Club, attn. Norie Mozzone, 5 Joyce St., Boston, MA 02108. Arrangements are in the care of the FARWELL FUNERAL SERVICE.

Bill was on my first AMC trip, about 20 years ago. It seems like just yesterday that we were discussing my attempts to buswhack SW Twin from the Twinway. We had a lot of laughs and he will be deeply missed.

Mike said:

William Lee 'Bill' Bowden

Bill was a voracious reader of diverse subjects including ancient, medieval and modern history; nature, geology, science fiction, archaeology, sports and comedy.

Click to expand...

Sadly, I never made the opportunity to hike/bushwhack with Bill. However, I exchanged email with him on the glacial geological history of the Whites, especially cirques, about which he seemed to know more than many glacial geologists, let alone chemists. Of course, I have also heard many Bushwhack Bill stories over the years, through John Swanson and others. My condolences to his family and all of you who knew him well.

So sorry to hear that Bill is gone. I never hiked with him, but did meet him at the awards ceremonies as he served as a member of the 4000 footer committee. This past summer when I asked for help with some peak bagging lists there was Bill E-mailing me the lists. His love for the mountains was contagious and we will greatly miss him.

I met Bill several years ago on one of his many b-wacks, one which was W Field, when he gave us a large list of the 3000's. I never thought that I would do the whole list at that time, too many and too far away. Anyway, I kept hiking with Bill on many more b-wacks through the years and whittled down the list and finished last Sept 2006. A week later, Sept 16, Bill and I and a few others climbed Mt Hale and b-wacked over to S Hale that day. A real nice hike once again. So much to say to Bill, so many thanks for his help and knowledge of map and compass, and the many years of friendship. I'll miss you Bill and think of you on each hike I still do . Farewell