Date: 2009-04-09
From: Trey Mountain Shelter

To: Dick's Creek Gap (Hiawassee, GA)
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: overcast clouds

WaterToday was a rough day. It started off great, with the exception of a small tear we found in our tent from the dogs wrestling and chasing each other around the shelter site.The biggest challenge of the day was Kelly Knob, which involved a 1000 foot climb in less than a mile. It was tough, but the weather was nice and we felt a great achievement when we got to the top.On the way up the mountain, we passed one of the many dedicated volunteer trail crews maintaining the AT. They passed us with shovels, rakes and other implements of destruction - including a giant chainsaw that must have weighed 50 lbs by itself. We thanked them for their hard work clearing and maintaining the trail, and continued our climb to the summit.By this point we were running low on water, so we decided to stop in at Deep Gap, refill our bladders and see how we felt about staying. But the trail to Deep Gap was a 1/3 of a mile off the main trail and pretty steep. So, we headed back to the main trail and set off for a scenic vista on top of the next mountain, called Powell Mountain, which was supposed to have a nice campsite, a great view, and most importantly - Water.This is where it got rough. We had been advised by an AT alum to always keep an extra mile or two in our shoes at the end of the day, in case we needed it. Well, when we thought we were staying at Deep Gap, we tossed those miles out and had nothing left in our shoes or our legs. Even Einstein was pooped, and collapsed to the ground everytime we took the slightest pause.So, after we climbed to the vista and discovered there was no water, we were completely broken but had no choice but to go on in search of water, at least 3 miles away. Fortunately, we passed a father and son who were out for a two day hike. They offered to fill up one of our liter bottles for us, which was a life saver and kept us going.When we finally reached the water source there was nowhere to pitch a tent. So we pressed on to Dick's Creek Gap, where we hped to hitch a ride into Hiawassee, GA and stay the night. We hadn't budgeted for that and had already been planning to stay there the next night to sit out an impending storm. But all 3 of us (including Einstein) were completely wasted and figured it would be money well spent.As we approached Dick's Creek Gap, wondering how hard it would be to hitch a ride, we saw a big van waitihg at the pull-off. The driver quickly hopped out and asked if we were headed to the Hiawassee Inn. It turned out that someone else had called for a ride, saying they had 3 people and a dog, which he had assumed was us.After clearing up the coufusion, and wating to see if the others were showing up, he loaded us into the van and drove us the 13 miles into town. When we arrived at the inn we found the whole gang, including Jen and Calamity Kate. It was actually Muscles, Ezra and Julio who called for the ride and hitched instead. Sailor Jay, Scarecrow, Groove, Pheonix Rising, Beechucker, Green Hornet and Scully were also all there.The Hiawassee Inn is an old, rundown roadside motel ran by partners Sam and Ron, and they cater to thru-hikers. The settled us into a room where we quickly took a shower before joining the gang for a fewast at the nearby chinese AYCE (All You Can Eat in hiker terminology). 9 of us went in there and did some serious damage to the buffet line, including a few kabobs I snuck out in a napkin for Einstein.The Inn had a nice outdoor patio area where everyone gathered later to share the Miller High Life 30-pack Ten Sticks bought. I could only manage two before I headed off to pass out for the night. It was one of the best nights sleep I have ever had. I think Einstein would concur.