Well, now that I am back to the blogging, I have to catch everyone up on all those hikes you've missed out on the past year or so. This one was an all-around interesting adventure.
I had just had micro-fracture surgery on my left knee only a week ago. I found out later that I wasn't supposed to walk for six weeks, but those instructions were given to me while I was still drunk on meds in recovery. I still had the staples in my knee and everything. Anyhow! I was headed to Texas, from Augusta, for my cousin's wedding. I figured since I had so much time off for recovery, I would take a detour and hit up some Tennessee trails on the way home (even though it wasn't really on the way at all).
When I got to the trailhead and unleashed the hounds (my two dogs, Austin and Star)and let them get their usual pre-hike scamper over with, I got my pack on and laced up my boots and hit the trail. By that time the dogs' tongues were dragging the ground. "No big deal," I thought, "they can get some fresh water out of the creek we are supposed to cross in about half a mile." Sure enough, at about half a mile we crossed a footbridge over a completely dry creek bed. I had no water on me at all, expecting to use the creek as a source. I figured surely at some point we would find some water. Mile 1, nothing. Mile 2, nothing. At this point, I was very close to going into panic mode, because they were really panting hard, and I myself was getting quite thirsty. Thank goodness at mile 3 there was a decent sized puddle in the creek bed and they got a good (dirty) drink.
We reached the campsite and found this amazing, one of a kind waterfall. There is a small hill/mountain top, with water coming out of the very top. No really, just flowing striaght out of the mountain top. There is no visible river or anything feeding the waterfall. The waterfall splashes down about 90 feet to its bottom, where it disappears into the base of the mountain. It's so crazy. There in the middle of this wilderness is a mountain with a waterfall flowing down its side. No river at the top, no river at the base. Awesome.
When we got there I hike down to the slippery base of the waterfall, being extra cautious not to fall and slide into the abyss where the water disappeared. I filled my water bottle, took some pictures and got ready to climb back up to the campsite. On the way up I felt my leg getting wet. At some point I gashed a small hole in my bottle. So now, if I balanced it just right, I had half a bottle of water. The only way to refill the bottle was to hike down to the slippery base of the waterfall and hope not to slide into the abyss. Not cool. It was rough and thirsty night.
The next day, I finished taking my last set of pictures and soaking it all in. We packed up and got ready to hike out. Right when I shoved off, another hiker comes in with nothing more than a walking stick and a small backpack. We made small talk about the dry creek bed and the best time to catch the waterfall (he recommended December). I headed out, thinking he would stay, but he said he was headed out as well. As we talked along the trail, I found out that he comes out here all the time and hikes the trail as a workout (which explained why he didn't hang out long at the falls). At first I was slightly annoyed that he hiked out with us. The dogs usually act edgy around company. But he was very friendly and seemed to enjoy the dogs running up and down the mountain. Then, suddenly, I noticed my heart getting kinda fluttery and my hands felt really shaky. I looked in my pack, but I had only packed what I needed for supper last night and breakfast. I knew it was only a 5 mile hike and figured surely I could make it out. My new hiking buddy offered me some of his food, but I didn't want to take it. Also, my water bottle (or half water bottle) was empty after about half a mile. I did accept his offer for water (since the dry creek bed was in fact still dry...), but still just felt bad about accepting his granola bar. Sure enough, with just one mile to go on the hike, I simply couldn't take another step. I realized that the whole time I was using only my right leg to carry the load (due to the left knee only being a week removed from surgery). This drained me way faster than normal. So I took up his offer for the granola, which gave me the boost I needed to get back to the car.
To date, that's the only time I have had any trouble on the trail. It was close to being serious trouble. This guy I thought was going to be annoying ended up saving me from a world of misery. I think it may have been God's way of making me feel like a heel for judging someone. He ended up being a true Godsend.
**This trail also offers some cave hikes. I got in late, and was short on water and food, so I didn't stray to far from the main path. There is also a short spur trail to take you to a nearby river, but my new hiking buddy informed me that even the river was dry at that time; something he had never seen before.
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