Preparation for the 6 day trek out of Roan Mtn
Confederate Flags flying. Apr 19th.
Woke to a gorgeous sunrise in a Revolutionary Days barn on the Overmountain Trail. It was renovated in recent years. It also has a privy. For those curious about what a privy looks like, especially considering that the Pacific Northwest has close to zero privies, I took two pictures of Overmountain’s privy. Where no privy, a 6–8 inch “cat hole” is dug for most environmentally friendly decomposing. Since I didn’t tent and it was a warm and dry day, breakfast of oatmeal, greens, and coffee was quick and I was on the trail, with Treehugger, by 8:30am.
Treehugger and I arrived at the town of Roan Mtn by 1:30pm, after a relatively short day of about 8 miles. We checked into the Mountain Harbor B&B and Hostel, after a .3 mile walk up Highway 19E. After a shower and getting laundry going, we arranged a ride into town for a hot meal. The ride saved us from having to hitchhike the 3 miles to town. At the Overmountain shelter, the first non-white hiker who I’ve come across on the AT, a black guy, Joker, who I didn’t get to formally meet, stayed and slept on the ground next to the fire pit that was kept going most of the night. I saw him again, as he was leaving Mountain Harbor. According to the owner, he was unable to catch a ride into town, despite her telling 3 of us that the town is used to hikers this time of year and so it’s easy to catch a ride.
She later told us that she didn’t tell him that the reason was is that he is black. I hate racism!
I also heard that he quit his attempt at hitchhiking after 3 cars passed without picking him up. On the way back to the hostel, 3 of us, Treehugger, Jiminy Cricket, and me, had to hitchhike back from town. We had to walk about a 1/4 mile, while thumbing for a ride. We were successful after about a dozen or so vehicles passed us. Also, despite this county in TN ‘not’ being a dry county, they’ve chosen to not sell beer or any alcohol in town. It’s a ‘true’ (?!) Appalachian town that ‘proudly’ flies the old confederate flag on many properties. We were also told that there are some mountain residents that are still upset that 15–20 years ago, the state and federal government used the law of imminent domain to take land for AT use. I expect to stay on the trail from Roan Mountain to the TN/VA border, as we head to Damascus. I don’t expect this to be the culture as shown in the movie Deliverance, but I also don’t feel completely serene, outside of the hiker community. I may be a bit paranoid but the rumors are sufficient to make me pay attention to the possibilities. BTW, I’ve not worked on my pig imitations.
The food resupply sent by Sandy is wonderful. I’ll not be starving or needing to resupply til Damascus on Monday, where I’ll take a rest day. Damascus is one of the legendary AT towns and the AT goes right through the town, as it did in Hot Springs, NC. The worst part of planning no resupply for 6 days is that my food bag is quite heavy, especially since I got envious of other hikers’ snacks, so I bought extra snacks, like snickers, sausage roll and m&m candies to add to my food bag. Now I’m quite happy that I have a much lighter back pack and looking forward to Damascus, where I hope to send back my 16 degree sleeping bag, which weighs almost 5 lbs with the compression bag. Warm Spring and Summer are coming!
I did see my 3rd snake, since I began my trek in northern GA. Each have been non-venomous. The rattlers will be more prevalent in northern VA and PA, as warmer weather becomes typical. I did pay for a $12 all you can eat breakfast made at the B&B part of Mountain Harbor.
It’s late here and it’ll be a long 6 days, covering over 80 miles to Damascus. Friday is expected to be rain and thunderstorms, so it’ll make for some wet trails, tent and clothing, despite me wearing rain gear. While rain jacket and pants prevent the rain from the clothing, they will also trap the sweat from the mountain hiking. So, I’ll be wet with sweat and rain. At least it will be warmer rain than I’ve previously experience.
Good night
