Date: 2009-04-17
From: Dick's Gap (Hiawassee)

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 11.7
Weather: clear sky

BACK TO NORTH CAROLINA!!!I woke up at the crack of dawn to head to the outhouse at the Blueberry Patch and saw a firey red and orange sunrise with birds chirping all and even the farm animals standing up to do their morning rituals. After prepping ourselves for the day, Gary Poteat and his wife made a wonderful breakfast of pancakes and real blueberry syrup, sausages, fresh orange juice, coffee, cheese bread, and wonderful eggs. As this 'hostel' was also a ministry, Gary said a delightful prayer before we had breakfast together. He and his wife are truly wonderful people and each and every one of us were incredibly happy with their hospitality. I had already decided that I would be staying in town to update my blog a bit more and also to see about getting some new shoes. Banjo and I hitched a ride (fairly quickly) into town. After typing away at the Town Library, we headed to the Colombia Outfitter across the street where we tried all kinds of remedies to fix my heel problem. We tried a heel cup, cut the heel cup to create a small hole, and we were even talking about cutting a section out of the shoe to provide some comfort and support for my bloody blisters, all to no avail. It was already getting late and we still had to make a stop at the post office to 'bounce' my electronics to the Nantahala Outdoor Center a few days ahead. We hitched a ride back 10 miles back to the Blueberry Patch - again fairly easy of a hitch - where I packed up my things and prepared myself to set forth. I wasn't feeling too well, as I had an allergic reaction to my headlamp that I left tight on my head while sleeping one night. It bubbled up with puss and I now have a large red mark that streaks across my forehead...oh well. The sun also kicked my ass the day before and the food that we ate at the $7.95 AYCE buffet the night before didn't sit too well. Anyway, Banjo and I said goodbye to one another and Gary took me off to the trail. On the way, I asked if he and his wife could pray for my heels to get better. Once reaching Dick's Gap at 5:00 pm, he leaned over, touched me on the shoulder and said a beautiful prayer asking the Man Upstairs to look out for my feet. We said our goodbyes and I was off. I had nearly 12 miles of inclinated hiking and I only had about 3 hours of sunlight. It was the first time hiking on my own entirely and it was incredibly peaceful. Nighttime was coming and all of the birds were no longer chirping, preparing for the cold evening to fall upon them. As I climbed, I watched a beautiful sunset of the App. Mtns. off to the west. Then, it was silence and darkness at 8:30 pm. I turned on my headlamp and continued heading upwards, clenching my teeth with nearly every step b/c of my blisters. I couldn't see the trail all too well, so I kept plodding along in my Fireblades shoes. I reached the North Carolina/Georgia border at 9:00 pm and continued hiking. The first people that I saw was a group of Mike, Dan, Travis, and Wanderer, who had already lit a fire. I had a Balance Bar and quickly resumed climbing. I still had three miles of some of the most intense terrain yet. It was a little bit nerve-racking night-hiking, but I slowly became accustomed to it. There were, however, many times when I turned around half-expecting a crazy person or bear to be right behind. Thankfully, there was no bear activity in this section and the only noises that I heard were from little critters. I made it up to the shelter at 10:30 and managed to find JC and Wendy already sleeping. I had a quick Salmon Pesto dinner and fell asleep, tired as ever.