March 10 - Tray Mt. to Dicks Creek Gap/Blueberry Patch Hostel - My Life Is In Your Hands

I trust you, Lord; my life is in Your hands.
When I'm at my weakest, You carry me
Then I become my strongest, Lord, in Your hands

It was a beautiful morning when I left Tray Mountain, windy, but sunny and cool. I was last out from the group I mentioned yesterday. Taking my tent down in heavy wind was a first for me. It wanted to blow away. I walked by myself all day.

A little dark-eye junco hopped along side me on the trail for a short distance before he flew up into the tree. Of course, I was passed by a number of people some going North and some hiking South. I saw this heart shaped rock placed in a tree.

                                                                                  

My first day on the trail to walk entirely alone; it was good. The young guys from Tray Mt. shelter passed me and I also met a few young people hiking in the opposite direction.

I had planned to stop for the night at Deep Gap Shelter but rain was in the forecast for the next day and I decided to hike on. The climb up Kelly Knob was brutal.

The first man who passed me about a third of the way up, asked if I was OK and when I said, yes, he replied are you sure? He didn't have a trail name; he was Sean from New Hampshire. The young guys from the shelter the night before passed me and told me I was about 1/2 way up Kelly Knob- that was good to hear.

View from Kelly Knob

About 30 min. past Deep Gap Shelter I met a couple from Blairsville, GA who were out for a day hike to the shelter. We talked for a short time. They asked me if I was OK - I was moving slowly and I'm sure my face was really red. I said, yes. I was headed to Dick's Creek Gap and asked them which way I should head on the highway because I was going to spend the night at Blueberry Patch Hostel. They told me to turn left. Then the wife said if I wanted to wait at the gap, they would give me a ride to the hostel when they finished their hike. One of my fears is hitch hiking and here was a wonderful offer and I wouldn't have to hitch hike. They said if I wasn't there waiting for them, they would know I had gotten another ride.  I thanked them for their kind offer and said I'd most probably be waiting for them and to enjoy their hike.

As I continued down the trail. A man passed me who looked like a trail runner with trekking poles. We exchanged a greeting and he asked if I was a thru-hiker. I was so tired, I replied presently I am but at this point I'm not sure how much longer. He offered words of encouragement and said this was a tough section of the trail and I would make it. Another man passed me and said I had about 1 more mile to go before I reached the highway... oh, buddy, I knew I had to make it but I was moving even slower.
 

Tofu Man

After about 30 min. the runner man came back and asked if he could carry my pack and give me a ride wherever I needed to go. I declined the offer to carry my pack because I told him I couldn't make it to Maine without carrying it. I accepted his offer of the ride and then realized I knew nothing about him. I asked his name and he said Vernon Dixon and we talked a little as we walked to his car. He has hiked parts of the Appalachian Trial and his trail name is Tofu Man because that's what he eats when he's on the trail. I was saved from hitchhiking. He's vegetarian on the trail. So you know, he's a slim and trim man. 

He took me to Blueberry Patch Hostel

Entrance

Kitchen area

Deck off bunk room

Back yard

Bathroom and shower

Bath house up close - great hot shower.

and Garry welcomed me and showed me around and to my bunk. When I made the call from Powell Mountain in the afternoon to ask Gary if there was room for me at the hostel, he said I could have the couch. I said that would be fine or I could sleep on the floor because I had a good sleeping pad. After my arrival, he told me that soon after I had called, a man who had the bottom bunk called and said he would not be able to make it for the night so I had the bottom bunk.  WHEW !  I thought I might be able to make it to the second bunk but the third one up next to the ceiling would probably have been impossible for my short legs.

What a wonderful experience. Met so many wonderful young people staying the night. Donny from New York,

Andrew from Griffin, GA - just down the road from me. I'm drawing a blank on the others - one young man is hiking the trail and is headed to Med School afterwards. He's from Florida. We were served a wonderful breakfast and Gary's wife Lennie, is just as sweet as Gary. We were welcomed to their dinner table and served scrambled eggs, sausage, hash browns, cheese biscuits, and pancakes. Orange juice and coffee were also served. Before we ate, we joined hands and Gary offered a beautiful prayer. 

Woodman on the left and the young man who slept in the bunk above me.

Gary and Lennie Poteat - Blueberry Patch Hostel

 

Upon my arrival I asked Gary if sometime during my stay he would pray with me. Immediately he began to speak words of wisdom to me and the next morning we prayed together. I'm glad the Holy Spirit prompted me to stay at the Blueberry Patch Hostel; I'm glad I listened. Blueberry Patch Hostel was holy ground for me.

March 11, 2013 was a zero day (no hiking). I spent the day in Hiawasee. Because the Blueberry Patch Hostel  gives priority to hikers coming off the trail, I moved to a motel. I met Journey who was staying there and had lunch with her and Dixie Grits at the Hardees.  It poured down rain later in the afternoon and we ordered pizza and Greek salad to be delivered for dinner. It was a restful day. We saw a semi-truck driver pull over and out of his cab came a thru-hiker who looked a little lost.  

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(In a way Vernon was like Simon. Vernon offered to carry my backpack.)  Thank you, Vernon.


Fifth Station - Simon Cyrene Helps Jesus Carry His Cross 

Lord, clearly you cannot bear this burden by yourself. Without help you will die on the way. But your disciples have scattered, your friends have withdrawn. Amidst this hostile crowd, you are truly alone. A passerby must be forced to lend a hand. A stranger must be constrained to provide relief.

It is not hard for me to identify with Simon. I fill my calendar with places to visit and things to do. I organize and detail my agenda. Yet, as the years multiply, unplanned-for demands and troubling annoyances enter my life ever more frequently. They defy my feeble efforts to argue and bargain. They destroy any remaining allusions of control.

Lord, help me to live these latter years with a light grip on the things I treasure – – loved ones, health, security, independence. Lead me to understand that nothing really belongs to me but that all is gift. Help me to let go gently whenever life unexpectedly insists that I follow even closer in your footsteps and share an even larger part of your suffering.