He who has hope – Day 23

Yesterday, during the bus ride to the city, the bus driver, Laura, showed us the place where there used to be a hospital and where there were houses. He said all the areas along the Nolichucky River that were now rocks used to be forests. All the trees were uprooted and washed away by the river.

But amidst all the destruction, there was hope. Hope for a new beginning. Uncle Johnny’s has been rebuilt. Others are also slowly rebuilding. I was in awe of the strength and spirit of the Erwin community.

Route report

The morning started with a 3.5 mile hike to a 300 yard river crossing. After that, it was a gentle climb to the beautiful spot. What a wonderful place it was! The views were tremendous on a glorious day!

The Douglas fir forest on top of Unaka Mountain was magical. It reminded me of the climb to Kuwohi in the Smokies.

The rest of the day was uneventful aside from the Iron Mountain turnoff. I don’t understand why a 5 mile section of trail in a national forest can’t be open while other areas were cleaned up by amazing volunteers a year ago.

The first half of the detour is very easy, but the second half was spectacular. With the road hike and detour totaling 4 miles, I made it my longest day yet at 29 miles to an unnamed campground.

Thought of the day

Descending Unaka Mountain, I encountered a trail crew using chainsaws to cut down trees to make it safer for hikers.

As I passed by I said to one of the guys: “Thank you for what you’re doing!” The response I expected was: “You’re welcome!” The response I received made me cry. He said, «No, thanks for enjoying the ride!» I will never forget it.

That man had passion and love for what he did. As a volunteer, he had the heart of a true servant.

As I thought about that, I thought about the day. When you have people with true passion, love and service and you empower them, amazing things can happen. Hope Happens!

people i met

Today I met Pigpen. Well, actually I met her yesterday at lunch after church service. But today I saw her again. We walked and talked for a while. What an impressive young man. I really enjoyed our conversation and hope I encouraged you along the way.

I also received trace magic from BT today. BT is a fellow Christian and we had a great time together.

Plant of the day

Today’s plant is Allegheny Blackberry. They are just starting to bloom. This is also just the common blackberry. I wonder when they will start producing fruit. I hope soon, because I love blackberries!

bird of the day

Today’s bird is the brown creeper. This little bird had a sweet cascading song.

“Brown Creeper (4202627859)” by Mike’s Birds is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

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