Tom's brother Tim, and Tom and I hiked up Mt. Oglethorpe this afternoon! What a steep, strenuous, beautifully wooded climb alongside Nancy Womack Stream which we crossed several times as it flowed down the mountain.
We left home yesterday afternoon and drove straight through to Tim and Kathy's home here in Big Canoe, Georgia, stopping only to fuel the car, stretch our legs, take a potty break, or switch drivers. When we arrived here, Tim and Kathy graciously served us eggs, bacon and toast for breakfast. What wonderful hosts they both are, always making us feel right at home when we come here to visit them in their beautiful home in the mountains of north Georgia. We enjoy our own downstairs "guest suite" which includes (besides bedroom/bath) a living area and large deck with an incredible view of the sun rising over Sanderlin Mountain.
After breakfast, Tim, Tom, and I went for a short two mile walk along the very steep and winding roads right outside their front door.
Then in the late afternoon we decided to hike up Mt Oglethorpe (again right from their front door). This is amazing because the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail was originally at the top of Mt. Oglethorpe before building development on private land surrounding Mt. Oglethorpe forced the Appalachian Trail Conservancy to lop off a few miles of the Trail in the South and establish Springer Mountain as the southern terminus for the Appalachian Trail, where it remains today.
Anyway, we walked right out Tim and Kathy's front door and down the road a short distance to the Nancy Womack Trailhead and began our hike along the Nancy Womack Creek as the trail meandered back and forth across this stream, for a few hundred feet before we began the sharp ascent up Mt. Oglethorpe. Tom was struggling a little bit on the climb up the mountainside so we took it slow and stopped for short rest breaks often. Tim called Kathy to come and pick us up near the top where a road is. Thank you Kathy so much because we did not bring any water or anything with us so none of us wanted to go any further.
The Nancy Womack Trail was adorned with wildflowers, fungus, and snails!
Way back in time when the A.T.'s southern terminus was on top of Mt. Oglethorpe there was a monument there however over the years it was vandalized often so it was removed and placed in the nearby town of Jasper, Georgia.
We went into the town of Jasper, Ga. (after attending church with Tim & Kathy on Sunday morning) to check out the Georgia Marble Festival on Sunday afternoon. It was mostly craft booths, food tents, music, and kiddie rides, not much marble because we opted not to pay the $15 for a tour of the marble mine or a fee for a tour of the historic Tate House which is made of a strikingly beautiful pink marble. We did partake of some of the festival food offerings and we saw a cool old wooden water tower there in the park amid all the vendors.
Oh yes, we found a guy carving a hunk of marble and Tom retrieved himself a chunk of marble to take home with us! (That's Tim & Kathy with Tom.)
Nice photo of Georgia Aster, see 12th picture above, a plant of conservation concern in Georgia. Represents a new locality; sounds like a neat trail and way to approach Mt. Oglethorpe.
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