Date: 2003-03-08
From: tray mountain shelter

To: blueberry patch
Miles today: 10.2

day 7last night was fairly chili, but i slept great. got up, had some breakfast and was out in no time. java brought up the blueberry patch hostel so poptart tried calling to check out the availability. no reception. i hadn't made up my mind on whether to check it out or not, but dean, brendan, and journeyman were pretty set on going into hiawassee, so i figured that i'd probably end up there anyways.i hiked solo for the most part of the day and it was pretty uneventful. went into deep gap shelter for some lunch, a nap and to drop the kids off at the pool. ran out of tp in the process and resorted to the helping hand of the rhododendron leaf. they're great. they're large and they're everywhere down south. finished my tasks and was back on the trail in no time. got to the road and decided that, yeah, a night in town wouldn't be so bad.i gauged the layout of the road and positioned myself in the optimum spot for quality hitching. this was my first hitch ever and i wanted to do it right. there's no half-assing on the trail, and least of all with such a fine, precise art as that which i was about to engage. i stuck out the old thumb and within minutes was gladdened by the screeching stop of a black camaro. i approached the window, told the guy my destination and my lack of knowledge of its precise distance and he said "hop on in now." i did just that and proceeded to shoot-the-sh*t. nice guy who told me that he was headed to a new job and home in north carolina. told me he knew little of the trail, but hitchhikers with packs were okay with him.soon enough we made it to the patch and i thanked him for my first hitch. crossed over and walked down the driveway and was shortly greeted by the warm smile of lennie. lennie and gary ('91 thru-hiker) run the patch with some of the greatest warmth that you'll encounter on the trail. i know that in the companion it quotes $17 a stay, but they're actually donation based. they include with the stay a blueberry pancake breakfast (actually the sauce is blueberry) and laundry as well that they themselves do. they're great people.i still hadn't made up my mind on whether to stay or not, but lennie and the property soon won me over. the backyard is gorgeous in a very subtle way. i think what it most is is just calm and quiet. so lennie showed me around and i got myself situated in one of the hand-made bunks built by gary. some of the hikers that were already there were about to go into town so i decided to join them. we caught a hitch in no time and i got dropped off at the holiday inn express parking lot. i wanted to check to see if dean, journeyman, and brendan had gotten in yet. as i came in the door dean and journeyman were checking in. they said brendan was behind them but has plans on coming in as well. i went with the fellas into their room while they unpacked and then we all headed over to daniel's steakhouse for what will be my first ayce buffet.we go in and are greeted by that warm southern hospitality that just seems to be everywhere. quite a bit different than the cold, indifferent unhospitality that i'm used to in my city. we get ourselves a booth and begin on the first of what's to be many helpings. journeyman, being the responsible individual that he is begins with some healthy, soothing greens while dean and i, being the irresponsible pigs that we've become start with grease and a little bit of veges on the side. pretty soon dean and i are on our third plate of fried chicken and i'm starting to feel it. then dean does the unexpectable and...pukes, collapses, goes into cardiac arrest? no, none of the above. he calls the waitress over to order something from the menu. journeyman and i look at him like, "what the hell are you doing?" "is the buffet not enough for your greedy ass?" well, apparently not, because dean wants an order of ribs and all the works to accompany it. "we're like what?" and the waitress bets him that he won't finish it. boy was she right. she brings it over after a few, dean takes a few bites, we see the sad hesitation in his eyes, and he calls the waitress back to have it wrapped. we're roaring with laughter. like the old addage says, sometimes your eyes are just to big for your stomach. but dean has no need to feel dissapointed. he has worked that buffet like a champ, as we all have.we have dessert, dean heads out first, and journeyman and i stick around a bit more to let the food settle and be able to go at it once more. we figure we deserve this, plus we've put into action a conspiracy to put daniel's out of buisness, unless we receive "one million dollars!" "whooah hahaha, whooah hahaha!" sorry wrong script again. anyways, journeyman and myself make the plunge once more and pretty soon we're ready to crawl back to our respective homes. we're walking across the parking lot and i confess to journeyman that i've never hurt so much in my life. he relates, but tells me to suck it in. i can make it. i head over to the road, hitch back to the patch, and digest.back at the patch i introduce myself to some other folks: red, wench and dutchess of denmark. all really cool girls. i call my family and my roomate to check on the status of our apartment. it seems to be going well cause our phone number is still active and he actually picks up the phone. i rightly conclude that he's been paying the bills and the place hasn't burned down yet. we shoot it for a while, i tell him how far i've gone so far, and he calls me "a trekking motherfu...." we conclude the conversation with him telling me that he'll see me right-soon, and i thank him for his encouragement.another great day and so far a great stay at what's become my first stay at a real family-type hostel. the majority that you'll encounter on the trail are like this. they're run by real people that have some type of connection with the trail and that actually care about you and what you're doin'. but don't be surprised or offended when you come across the few that are run like a buisness. they're a few, but i believe a dying breed. whoooah hahahaha! and this time it is the right script .