Week of 3/24/03
When I reached Dick’s Gap Monday afternoon, I was going to stay at the
Blueberry Patch Hostel until I realized that I only had $14.00 in cash on me and it cost
$17.00 at the Hostel. I hitched a ride to town and stayed at the Hiawassee Inn with
good old plastic, and called my Mom to send money to my next town stop.
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The next day I traveled on to Muskrat Creek Shelter, and Wednesday I got
to Carter Gap Shelter, averaging about 12.5 miles per day. I have hooked up with
another group – two brothers, Bam Bam and Snoring Bear, Lady Bug, Nuke, Bodhi,
Beekeeper, Hatteras, Reststep, and Dred. |
| I saw this sign between Muskrat Creek shelter and Carter Gap shelter. |
We stayed at Rock Gap Shelter on Thursday where my knee started hurting, and Friday we were at Winding Stair Gap and I hitched a ride to Franklin, N.C. We all went to the Haven Motel, owned by an ex-hiker, who not only found us an extra room when we thought they were full, but gave us a good hiker's rate and took us to the Post Office and back to the Trail the next day when we left. |
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| I remembered the lesson we got back at Unicoi Gap about how to use your walking stick to your advantage and bought myself another walking stick and a knee brace. It was amazing how well this worked for my knee when we got back to the trail. I have had only a little knee pain since. We resupplied and I picked up a package from home with all sorts of goodies in it. | This is the Western Sizzler in Franklin, NC, where I ate potato soup, potato salad, potato wedges, and mashed potatoes. Too bad they didn't have sweet potato pie. |
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I've been checking the log books at each shelter, trying to find out where my first group are, Tripod, Radio Shack, Fubar and the rest. You can leave a message for a friend and look and see if a message has been left for you in these log books. It's a great way to relate to people ahead of you, and a great way to let the hikers behind you know you remember them. Anyway, Fubar has been leaving me messages and I think he is only about two days ahead of me. |
| Tripod and Sleeping Beauty enjoying their pizza. |
We camped out at Wayah Bald Campsite the next night. It is amazing how much
faster I can cook on Tin Man's "can" stove. I can almost have a full meal
ready in 10 minutes. I wish Dr. Starnes, one of my professors at Dallas Baptist
University, could see me now. I have gone on trips to Europe with him and other
students for class credit in May of each year for the past three or four years.
| The trail this last week has been a lot easier than when Pooh Bear and I first started. We ran into Beekeeper along the way and Bill Apple who was on vacation and on the trail passing out a little "trail magic" - cokes, hot dogs, medicine, cutips, Reese's candy (yeah!), and also had a big dome tent he was loaning out for the night. People on this trail are awesome. I was amazed to meet somebody who would spend their vacation time doing trail magic. Tomorrow we will hike 17 miles into Nantahala Outdoor Center. |
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| I'm looking forward to a good meal - other than mashed potatoes and noodles - and a good, nice soft bed. | Bill Apple (white jacket) passing out a little "trail magic" as Nuke thanks him for the food. |
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