Date: 2005-03-14
From: Three Forks Campground

To: Justus Creek Camp
Miles today: 9.5
Weather: broken clouds

It rained furiously all last night. Each time the thunder and lightening started anew, I would wake up thinking, " This is the time we'll get flooded for sure!" I trusted my tent, but doubted our picturesque stream-side (therefore, very low) camp site. In actuality, come morning only the lowest part of the tent by our feet got a bit damp, but nothing to get in a fuss over. Breakfast consisted of tea and oatmeal with raisens and brown sugar. It makes me laugh at how proud we are at our simple accomplishments. The plan is to make up our lost mileage from yesterday. We are about 3.5 miles from Hawk Mountain Shelter, where we had planned to stay. Plus, it is 7.3 miles beyond that to Gooch Mountain Shelter.Dispite the high mileage day, we started our hike with a pit-stop at Long Creek Falls, recommended by locals Betty and Leonard Clayton. The day-hiking couple happened upon us last evening in the middle of our comedic dinner attempt. Extremely friendly and encouraging, they gave us a can of spam and their phone number in case trouble arrises. Thanks again Betty and Leonard, it really was a beautiful way to start the morning, with a mist-cloaked waterfall.The bird of the day is the Hairy Woodpecker, Alex has never seen one before. (I think it should have been the Brown Creeper I spotted.)I was all too pleased to reach Hawk Mountain Shelter which has a privy!!! Yay, to lessing the load in the rustic comfort of a three-sided shack with a wooden seat above a hole in the ground. I met Joe from Charlotte, NC in line for the privy, nice guy. Seth (first met ontop Springer) is on his way out from Hawk as we are just settling in. Alex and I snack/lunch... wander about WITHOUT our packs... sign the shelter log book... and, eventually, head out.The day's difficulty level is set by Sassafras Mountain. And to think I used to believe "Sassafras" would be a cute trail name! The trail marches steadfastly up, a stairmaster the whole way. Coming down, we were on speed control. We crossed a few other smaller versions of the monster today, earning every bit of our 9.5 miles. Atop one of these knolls (as I not so affectionatly call them) we meet Bearbait (a older gentlemen from Florida) peddling his wares it seems. Apparently, he was not so lucky with the rain storms last night and had to spend the day sun batheing with the rest of his gear.On a downhill, Footloose and Fancyfree, a middle-aged couple, are resting from a close encounter. Footloose had just been tackled by a low-laying fallen tree and was recouperating. I remember seeing a picture of them in Amicalola Falls Visitors Center and I've been reading their logs for a few miles. Meeting other people was a good excuse for us to take a break and chat. Turtle, I Can, and Chuck pass us by: three chipper gray-haired men. Later on, we leap-frog with them a bit.Our water is running low and I have pushed my recently re-twisted ankle as far as I can when, we come upon our oasis: another picturesque stream campsite. Joe is here across the stream, so is Seth with his hiking friend. Setting up camps goes smoother today, I chose a high cut-bank by the steam for a tent site. Now as long as the bank doesn't fail, we're golden.Joe made a bonfire tonight and Alex got his trail name in consequence. The wood was wet and the fire not too promising... Alex went to fetch our fuel (white gas) as a starter, but as he poered some on the barely there flame... (can you guess)... The flame traveled up the fuel stream to the can which he had to drop. Glunk glunk glunk! All the fuel is out and flaming but relatively contained to an area and mostly harmless.Safely from across the stream, Bearbaet chuckles, and Footloose and Fancyfree call, "That's one way to do it!" We can't help but heckle, and Alex becomes Torch.