A view of the area East of Neels Gap at the store.
	A view of the area North of Neels Gap and behind the store.

The trip was both good and bad. We had bought another car on eBay. A Lincoln Town Car. This was our second “internet car.” The first was a Lincoln Continental. Both were from the same seller. We flew to Ft. Lauderdale on Tuesday as scheduled and picked up the car. The car was really nice with a perfect ride. (It's funny how a nice, comfortable ride wasn't even something I thought of when I was younger. And now it's one of the defining requirements for a car.) So we made our way up through Florida and on to Northern Georgia and the Southern Appalachians. The "Tour de Georgia" bike race was on Saturday so we saw many bike riders practicing on mountains that went up for miles. Lance Armstrong was in the race last year. I'm guessing he won.

Nina needed a new pack that was lighter and fit her better. We decided to go to the Mountain Crossings outfitter at Neels Gap. After some looking around and trying on different packs, she settled on a Granite Gear Virga. It’s a nice pack and weighs only 19 ounces. We also needed to pick up fuel for the stove and walking sticks. (We couldn’t carry these on the plane.) Unfortunately the walking sticks at Mountain Crossings weren’t to our liking. So we decided to drive to Amicalola Falls Park. About an hour away - one way. We picked up two new walking sticks and headed for Hiawassee. The route we chose would avoid most of the people on bikes. It also took us past R & A Orchards where we were hoping to pick up some fried pies. Along the way we saw several other stores that sold fried pies and they were all closed. Fear began to set in; no fried peach pies for breakfast. What would I do? Alas, they were open and we stocked up. We made our way on to Hiawassee and then to Joyce and Sally’s house. These two kind ladies shuttle hikers to and from varying points where the trail crosses the road. They would be keeping our car while we hiked. We had left our car with them last fall and had complete confidence in them. (Don't worry, this isn't going anywhere. The car was fine.)

We were hiking from a place called Unicoi Gap to Dicks Creek Gap. A short section that’s a little more than 16 miles. We would hike to Dicks Creek where our car would be waiting for us on Saturday morning. From there we would go into Hiawassee, get cleaned up, load up with more food and continue our hike north from Dicks Creek. And so we started hiking Thursday afternoon. We had a short hike ahead of us, but it included two very long and steep climbs. We were thinking about spending the night at the Tray Mountain Shelter at 5.5 miles or at a place called "The Cheese Factory" at about 4 miles. (The Cheese Factory is called that because someone had built a cheese factory at the site in the early 1800's. Now it's just a nice camping spot in the trail.) It rained on us slightly on the way up but had stopped by the time we arrived at The Cheese Factory. Given the beauty of the place and the views we decided to set up camp.

I had put my cell phone in my backpack and forgotten to turn it off. I had heard it ringing while we were hiking. After we had eaten that night and were relaxing I decided to see who had called. (I was amazed that the phone worked in that area. I had heard that reception was not good on this stretch of trail.) One of my coworkers had left me a message that we had an unexpected environmental audit scheduled for next week. He left few details and given the hour I knew that he had left the office.

We made camp and ate a supper of fresh sandwiches and fried pies. It just doesn’t get any better than that. Two other hikers had set up camp at one of the tent sites. I chatted with them as we were all getting water. Both were thru hikers, but I’ve forgotten their trail names. Darkness fell and drove us into our tent. The temperature was just right for sleeping under the stars. I had made a new and lighter sleeping bag for this trip. This would be my first time to use it.

During the night it rained with an incredible ferocity. We were using a new tent and had not checked it out in the rain before this trip to ensure that we had adequately sealed all of the seams. Fortunately, we had and there were no leaks; at least not from the seams. We did have one minor leak from the side were the side of the tent joins to the floor. Between the two there is a four or five inch strip of netting for ventilation. Midway down the side of the tent is a loop for a stake that will pull the side of the tent out past the floor so that water can't enter through the netting. We hadn't used the side loops and a small puddle had forms by the time I found it. I lifted the floor and drained the water and then put my hiking stick along the side to keep further water out. Just when we thought it couldn't rain any harder, it did. The drumming of the rain on the side of the tent easily drove me to sleep. Of course the incredibly loud crashes of thunder directly overhead woke me up with quite a start. Anyway, it rained most of the night, but we still slept well.

In the morning the rain had stopped and we started the climb to the top of Tray Mountain and the shelter located there so we could have breakfast. While it wasn't raining it was certainly threatening to rain. In spite of the clouds, the view up the mountain and at the top were spectacular. We stopped several times to take pictures and enjoy the view. By the time we reached the shelter we had begun to feel a few sprinkles. We fixed some breakfast and rested. Nina had Blueberry Pop Tarts and I had a fried peach pie. I can't tell you how good a fried peach pie can be sitting atop a beautiful mountain with views of distant mountaintops as far as the eye can see. As we sat there the rain began to fall.

Since we were waiting I decided to try my cell phone and see if I could get a signal. I managed, with a couple of disconnections, to call and get more information regarding the environmental audit. In short, I felt that I should return to ensure that the audit went well. The audit didn't sound particularly scary, but I am responsible for environmental compliance (among other things) and a bad audit result would not sit well with me. So a decision was made; we would end our hike at Dicks Creek and return home.

Just as the rain was ending a young hiker named Brennan walked up to the shelter. He was wearing a fast wicking shirt and despite the downpour he appeared almost dry. He joined us in the shelter and had some breakfast. He had begun his hike earlier in the morning and had covered about seven miles already. We knew when he left that we would not see him again until that night. Another couple, Kim and Antonio, also joined us at the shelter. Kim and Antonio had camped just south of us last night. We were all heading for the next shelter at Deep Gap. After a nice rest filled with good conversation we all set off. We were the last to leave and figured that we wouldn't see the others before that evening. The hike down Tray Mountain wasn't to bad and the next several miles covered a stretch called The Swag of the Blue. It has several ups and downs, but none were more than two or three hundred feet in elevation gain or loss. We were surprised to see Kim and Antonio at a low spot called Addis Gap. They were having lunch. We chatted with them for a bit and then walked on. The next hill was three hundred feet to the top and it marked the end of The Swag of the Blue. When we got to the top, we looked down and saw Magic.

There's a mystical thing known only to hikers. It's spoken of with complete reverence. Its called Trail Magic. And we had found it. At the bottom of the next gap someone had set up a camp. It was complete with three large (you stand fully upright when you walk in them) tents. There were lawn chairs and even a lounge type lawn chair. Fresh fruit, ice cold drinks, bagels and a pot of stew. In short, Heaven. And it was all provided by Andy. His trail name is Preacher Man. It's important to note that all of this gear and supplies had been packed in for many miles. I can only say that we were most appreciative and that I have never tasted a Dr. Pepper that was as good as the one I drank. More surprisingly was the fact the Brennan was there. He had stopped and had two bowls of stew. Brennan was in the lounge chair but offered it to me. I gladly accepted. After I had finished a bowl of stew Brennan and I helped the Preacher Man complete setting up his camp. Then I returned the lounge chair and the rest of my Dr. Pepper. We looked up and saw Kim and Antonio coming down the trail. They had the biggest grins you've ever seen. I'm not sure if it was because they had stopped on hill to soon for lunch or because they knew how good the cold drinks and hot stew would be. In the case of Antonio, it was clearly the later. I've never seen someone who could eat so much food. Anyway, we all sat around and enjoyed a beautiful day in the woods. Brennan soon left. Following his departure The Ridge Runner hiked in.

The Ridge Runner works for The Appalachian Trail Organization. In this case his name is Glenn. We had met Glenn last spring on Springer Mountain. Basically he hikes up along the trail in Georgia and picks up trash when needed. Most hikers are pretty good about not littering, so there generally isn't much to pick up. However, not all hikers are as educated when it comes to the shelters. Most novice hikers will carry way to much food. To lighten their load, they will leave it at the shelters. Generally it's sealed so it isn't a problem. They often think that other hikers will come along and want it. That's seldom the case. Most of the time the Ridge Runner has to carry it out. If it's left there it will draw bears and other animals. Some hikers will also leave trash in the fire ring at the shelter. Again, this has the potential to draw bears and other animals, so the Ridge Runner will carry it out. He carries all of this trash in addition to his food and gear. He also sleeps along the trail.

Another important job of The Ridge Runner is to teach good trail stewardship and Leave No Trace. Glenn was concerned that all of the food the Preacher Man had brought in would draw bears. They had some discussion and the Preacher Man said that he would bear-bag his food for safety. In the end Glenn was satisfied and he also enjoyed a nice cold coke.

We moved on. We had one final climb of about one thousand feet in elevation gain and maybe another three-fourths of a mile of downhill and flat areas to the shelter following the climb. I had been pacing myself slowly on the climb so that I would not have to stop and rest. So far it had been working. At about nine hundred feet up, we came across a large outcrop of rock, a boulder actually, with an inviting place to sit and rest. Ten minutes later we were moving again. We reached the top and met three southbound hikers. They were all a little younger than we were but they looked very tired. They were sitting atop the mountain and enjoying the views. We said hello but kept moving. As we started the descent it became apparent why they were so tired; while the other side of the mountain was steep, this side seemed to be even steeper. At least it wasn't as far down. We made it to the side trail to Deep Gap Shelter. It was three-tenths of a mile off the trail. When we arrived we were surprised to find that we were the only ones here. The shelter was really nice with an upper sleeping level.

We rested for a bit and had begun to pull out our gear when we heard Kim and Antonio walking up to the shelter. Kim looked pretty tiered but Antonio looked as if he was ready to continue on for another ten miles. After thirty minutes or so we heard another hiker approaching. His name was Tom. He was very quite, but full of energy. He had begun his hike at Blue Mountain Shelter and had hiked about fourteen miles that day. Shortly after Tom's arrival, we heard another hiker. His name was Rick. Rick had also begun at Blue Mountain Shelter that morning. And he looked it. He stumbled in and sat down with many groans of tiredness and pain. He kept talking about that last climb. His comments were a mix of dismay at the steepness of the climb, some uncertainty about how he had gotten over the top and general comments about the depth of his weariness. Nina helped him remove his pack and offered him a couple of her homemade raisin oatmeal cookies. That seemed to help him. Just after Rick's arrival, another hiker, Andy, hiked in. While Tom, Rick and Andy did not start their individual hikes as a group, they had formed a loose group and had been hiking together for several days. To say that they had their comedy routine down would be an understatement. They were hilarious and kept us entertained all evening and well into the night.

Andy had a little toy. It was a mini generator that weighed about the same as two AA batteries. You could plug it into your cell phone and for about two minutes of cranking the handle, you would have about ten minutes of battery life on the cell phone. So Andy cranked away and called his girl friend. Now there's no doubt that you had to be there to really enjoy this moment, but it so funny that it brought tears to my eye when Andy's girl friend answered the phone and Andy's first question was "Did you get the lawn done?" It turns out that the question was more innocent than it sounded. His girl friend had bought a house in much need of repair. Andy had cleared an area around the house of trees and shrubs and prepared it for grass. He was just wondering if the landscaper had put in the grass. Nonetheless, we all had a good laugh and made comments about it the rest of the evening. The two couples, Kim and Antonio and Nina and I, slept in the upper loft. The "bachelors quarters" were down below. Rick told us that he snored something awful and that we should just wake him if he got to loud. Within moments of lying down we heard Rick's snores begin to rise. "It just makes you wanna cry" we heard Andy say as he shook Rick. All Rick said was "thank you" and he rolled over and fell soundly asleep. It was actually warm in the upper loft but it began to cool off as the rain started to fall. I slept good all night. With the one exception when I felt Nina shaking me. Apparently I was competing with Rick for the loudest snorer award.

In the morning we all packed up and hiked the last three miles or so to Dicks Creek. With the exception of Andy, Nina and I were the last to leave. We had promised the others that we would carry them in to Hiawassee. We endured a light drizzle during the hike to Dicks Creek. Actually, it felt kind of nice and kept us cooler. When we walked out of the woods we were surprised to see so many hikers. At least fifteen of them. Maybe more. Rick and Tom had already caught a ride into town, but Kim and Antonio were still there. I had some fried pies in the car so we offered them to Kim and Antonio. We all enjoyed them. I recognized a couple of the other hikers. One was a tall kid who sounded German. (He wasn't) We had passed him Thursday afternoon as he was hiking South. Apparently he had been slack-packing. Now he was heading North.

We dropped Kim and Antonio off at the post office in Hiawassee and wished them the best on their Thru Hike. We then headed for Cumming Georgia where we would enjoy a nice shower, clean sheets and some great Mexican food. (Good Mexican food in Georgia; go figure.) We had chosen a route that we thought would avoid the Tour de Georgia bike race. We were at least partially correct. At one point we were going very slowly behind some riders heading uphill and no place to pass. But all things come to an end and we eventually made it to our hotel and a clean shower.

One thing that becomes very apparent to any hiker is that the whole point of hiking, aside from spectacular views, sleeping under the stars and enjoying complete solitude and the company of other hikers, seems to be deprivation; Deprivation from the simplest of things. Like a nice shower. You have no idea how good it feels to step into a shower and wash off all that sweat and salt and grime. (Actually, we weren't that bad, but you get the idea.) And so we found ourselves back into civilization after just two short nights in the woods. We would head home on Sunday morning.

It's about a twelve hour drive from Northern Georgia to our house in Texas. Fortunately we live in East Texas. And that makes a difference. Texas is big. Really big. We could leave our house in East Texas and head out West to El Paso which is also in Texas. If we were to drive in the opposite direction toward the Atlantic Ocean, we would end up in the ocean before we had driven an equal number of miles to the East. I'm telling you, Texas is big. Our drive home was uneventful. We stopped in Vicksburg, Mississippi and filled the car up with gas. Vicksburg is right on the East side of the Mississippi River. The bridge across the river is quite long, While the river isn't a mile wide, the bridge, with its approaches, is at least that long. At the halfway point across the bridge you leave Mississippi and enter Louisiana. We had gone less than two hundred yards into Louisiana when the truck in front of us swerved. Instantly I saw why he swerved. There was a large piece of metal in the road. I knew that if I tried to swerve that I would probably hit the metal with the tire and go careening into the side of the bridge. That didn't sound like the best option so I gripped the steering wheel, hit the breaks and went over that piece of metal.

If you've ever been in a car accident, then you probably know how hard and unexpected the impact is. This was no different. We hit it with a bang and the car lurched up into the air. Only slightly, but still very hard and very scary. And whatever it was, it was stuck beneath the car and we were dragging it. It clanged like a bell. I didn't want to stop on the bridge and be hit from behind, so we continued across the bridge as slow as we could safely go. After about two hundred feet, whatever it was let loose and the clanging beneath the car stopped. We were stunned and I told Nina that we'd pull over after we got off the bridge in a safe place. She was looking back to see what we had hit and announced that she could see smoke coming out of the back of the car. Generally speaking, that's not a god thing. Just as the bridge ends there's a truck weigh station. We pulled in there and parked. A quick assessment of the damage showed that we had a hole in the transmission pan and the white smoke we had seen was the fluid running out. So here we were on a Sunday afternoon, four and one-half hours from home in a car that could not be driven. We've had better days. On the brighter side, it's just a car and it's just money and we weren't hurt.

Somehow it makes you feel better at the time to say that. But let me tell you, that feeling is completely gone when you write the check to cover your insurance deductible. Anyway, we had the car towed back to the Lincoln dealership in Vicksburg. I called my brother and explained our situation. He said “I’ll see you in a little while” and with that he and his wife headed our way to pick us up. By the time we had reached the dealership where we left our car, we still had a four hour wait. There was a Waffle House located next to the car dealership so we went in and had an early supper. We also met the nicest waitress named Dorothy. She took care of our every need and kept us company during the slow hours of the afternoon and evening; which was pretty much all evening. Eventually, our ride arrived and we loaded up our belongings and headed home. We had left the key to the car at the dealership in their "Early Bird" drop-off box.

Just another one of life’s little adventures.