Date: 2013-03-29
From: Hiawassee, GA

To: Franklin, NC
Miles today: 0.0

So at the end of our slack packing day we ended up with a few more hikers in our motel room, which was great for us because it lowered the cost of our stay. Also gave us a few more friends to share a beer with at the end of the day, but I was certainly so exhausted it wasn't long before I passed out.In the morning we all debated between going back to the trail or heading up to Franklin for this hiker gathering we'd heard about. Finally we decided to reserve a room, as we heard there was a shuttle runining between the two towns. Regardless of what we heard calling between the two inns was useless, no one seemed to know anything about anything.We got a number for a gentleman that offers rides to hikers from a local diner we were having breakfast at, but he wanted to charge us fifty dollars to ride in the cold in the back of his pickup truck. Did I mention that it is roughly an hour distance between the two towns? We were beginning to get concerned, with still no word on the alleged shuttle, and check-out time rapidly approaching at the motel.The fellow at the front desk assured us he was getting information for us and that he would have the maid clean our room last to buy us some time while he did so. Unfortunately the final word was that the shuttle would cost us five bucks a piece, and none of us wanted to pay anymore with the cost of staying in town hanging over us. We finally came to the conclusion that the best decision was to split into pairs and hitch our way into Franklin.As Dan and I headed down the street with our sign, nervous energy pumping, we watched everyone else get picked up almost instantly. We shuffled around in our spot, frustrated and downtrodden, being the last two left without a ride. Finally a nice southern woman pulled up and offered to take us up to the next highway, right around the time Caboose texted and told us that's where they'd gotten to as well, but when we arrived we realized we were at different junctions.We stood on our new corners nervous about the approaching weather, particularly after a man pulled up and told us snow was approaching. Dan was particularly anxious, and felt we should start walking and find a better spot. His nerves were making me anxious and finally I snapped at him to just calm down and be patient. He insisted we should at least put our packs on, "Fine," I said, "You put yours on and I'll stand here with the sign, and we'll alternate when you're done."As Dan reached for his pack, a car rolled to a stop beside us. We were in shock that we'd found a ride so quickly. When we opened the door the woman looked tonus and said, "Just hand me that box of chicks back there, I'll put it up front."I tuned my attention to the box in the backseat, "Chicks?" I asked, suddenly becoming aware of a soft peeping, "Like, real baby chickens?"Sure enough, I handed her a cardboard box full of shuffling baby chickens, which apparently she'd seen at the market and just picked some up. The evidence that we were out in the country was glaring us in the face.As we took off down the road it was a matter of moments before we were passing our comrades, and fortunately they were all hopping into a truck. We were all on our way, and it didn't cost us a dime. We got to Franklin right at check in and we all gleefully packed into our room. We spent the next couple hours hanging out before heading out to the event. It was drizzling out and we didn't want to walk the couple miles into downtown, so when we left the hotel we approached a truck at a light and thankfully the driver allowed us to climb into the back and took us right to where we needed to be.When we rolled up to the sapphire inn, there was a man singing country music, and a bunch of empty tables, likely in preperation for the vendors that would be there the following day. However, for the night it was more like a big party spaced between several motel rooms, with free beer and whiskey.Throughout the night, there were banjo battles, harmonica battles and tons of happy hikers. I was so excited to meet the Miss Janet that I'd heard so much about, and she even drove us all back to the hotel at the end of the night. Although it wasn't quite the gathering that I'd envisioned, it was a good time. I'm still hoping to score some gear from some of the vendors this afternoon, but we'll see where it all goes.For now I gotta get my day moving...Over and out!