I. Choosing Trees

• Blaze in one direction at a time before turning around at the end of your trail.
• Space blazes well apart and at constant intervals.
  • Fifty yards apart is a good working minimum.
  • At least half the time when walking a trail, no blaze should be visible.
  • Two blazes should never be visible at once.
  • Most trails are over-blazed.
• Choose live, conspicuous trees close to the trail (on either side), preferably with dark bark. Never blaze rocks, blowdowns, concrete posts, etc.
• Paint blazes at eye level.
• Avoid painting two blazes on either side of the same tree in case it falls.
• Trim back any foliage that blocks view of blaze.

II. Painting New Blazes

• Tools [Figure 1]
  • Drawknife
  • Paint scraper (carbide is sharper and stays that way much longer)
  • 1-inch paintbrush
  • 8x12-inch metal square
  • Small level
  • Pencil
  • Rag or paper towels
  • Container for holding small amount of paint at a time—use PATC-approved paint only
  • Paint stirrer
  • Optional: small pail or bucket to carry the above
• Procedure
  • Use drawknife to lightly shave off outer layer of bark and create a relatively smooth surface for painting, about 3x8 inches [Figure 2]. On trees with thin or smooth bark, lightly scrape similar area with paint scraper.
  • Use level and square to draw 6-inch vertical line plumb with the ground. [Figure 3]
  • Use square to finish drawing 2x6-inch rectangle. [Figure 4]
  • Paint within the lines, using paint scraper if necessary to touch up edges and corners. Apply paint liberally, brushing out any runs. [Figures 5 and 6]

III. Obliterating Unnecessary Blazes

• Lightly scrape off loose bark and paint with paint scraper. Don’t overdo it.
• Dab on PATC-approved greenish-brown “lichen” paint with end of brush to cover any remaining blaze paint and to make tree look as natural as possible.

IV. Touching Up Blazes

• Scrape dirt and loose paint off existing blaze with paint scraper.
• Hold level and square up to right edge of blaze and scrape along edge of square with paint scraper to establish a plumb 6-inch edge as a baseline. [Figure 7]
• Flip square over and scrape left edge of blaze parallel to right edge. Make sure blaze is 2 inches wide. (As trees grow, blazes spread most in this dimension.)
• Square off top and bottom edges, 6 inches apart, with paint scraper.
• Paint within the scraped rectangle.
• Trim back any foliage that blocks view of blaze.

V. Painting Double Blazes

• In Shenandoah National Park, use double blazes only when necessary, usually only at stream crossings and trail intersections, not for marking switchbacks.
• Using the above techniques, paint two 2x6-inch blazes, centered at eye level, one directly above the other and 2 inches apart. [Figure 8]