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Well this weekend the skeleton crew of the Savage Gulf Posse went on their annual camping trip. Andy, Chris, Ric, and I all made it to camp by evening of Friday. This weekend was definitely the worst weather we had, as nearly the entire day Saturday was in the rain, or a rainy drizzle. We did manage to keep spirits up and have a great time, and got to explore the Red River Gorge which is just a spectacular area. Because of the rain, I didn’t get many photos taken, but the few can be found here. All made it back safely, and we can’t wait till next year.
The Pics are here

Mostly because I keep loosing this recipe:

2 parts coffee liqueur. I suppose Kahlua should go here, but I use Kamora (others may have more alcohol by volume).
1 part dark rum. I always use Meyer’s
1 part brandy. I think I use Paul Masson because it’s the only one with a cork.

The Savage group once again made our yearly trip into the woods of Eastern TN,Western NC. This time heading to find the community of Lost Cove. Friday evening was spend waiting for all to arrive at the hostel where we stayed Friday night. The next morning we all set out traveling down the railroad tracks to the know trailhead heading up into the past. Many hours later we were greeted with our first view of the existence of a former community. Lost Cove had been inhabited from the late 1800 all the way till the 1960′s when the last of the families moved away. All that remains now is a small collection of fallen houses, most with the chimney still intact. Our exploring found two standing structures which certainly were a bit eery. The remainder of the weekend was spend exploring and trying to imagine what it might have been like in the peak of it’s community.

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As the weather started to turn cold again the yearly cries from all over Tennessee and North Carolina became louder and louder. We want to camp! So starts the yearly excursion into the untamed wilderness at the coldest time of the year. Plans started rolling and soon the weekend was set. January 12 has got to be freezing, windy, and with mountains a good chance of some snow. Several weeks passed, and it was time to gather. The odd issue however was dealing with the extreme weather for this time of the year. Instead of packing in enough gear to safely camp at 0 degree weather, we all had to adjust to 50 degree weather with potential for rain. Strange, but true.

I decided to take Friday off this year from work and give me time to get to our rendezvous point early enough to enjoy it. I left Dickson about two hours later than I intended (which is typical for me) and got on the road. The bus ran great and before long I was rolling into Knoxville. I met with Chris and together we drove to pick up Jamie. As a side note Jamie lives in a neat historic area which I wish I would have had more time to visit, but we were men with a mission. Before leaving however I got to meet his family and two of his daughters. Both were a total joy but we were back on the road as quick as possible.

Naturally the interstate drive was long, but as soon as we turned off on the small highways the trip got a lot more enjoyable. Our two buses pushed through the mountains and before long, we pulled into Hot Springs, NC. Our cabin was located just right off the French Broad river banks, and we found it easily. Ric & Bobby had already arrived and I found myself enjoying the warmth of a roaring fire in minutes. With plenty of time until our hot tub appointment we set to the task of feeding ourselves. Various smells started to appear in our camp, all of which were quite delicious. Sitting and enjoying the fire we ate our fill, and then some. Andy also showed up at this time and the group was complete.

Hot Springs has been a destination for people for a very long time. At one time a huge bathhouse and hotel stood on the site, but in the 70′s it burned down. Now it is a much more spartan layout, however the same 105 degree spring water fills the tubs as it did at the turn of the century. We all piled in the bus and drove down to the springs. We waited just a few minutes and then followed our attendant up to our tub. We sat and talked about life, kids & jobs all the while enjoying the soak. In what seemed like the blink of an eye, it was over. Turns out we soaked for about an hour. Afterwards we all piled back in the bus and picked up where we left off around the campfire again. The remainder of the night was spent just having some male bonding time, telling jokes, stories and other assorted tall tales. Sometime late we all retired to the cabin. I hate that I didn’t take any interior photos of the cabin, it was a fantastic design that held six people fantastic. The last thing I remember was cracking the window to hear the music of the river rolling by.

I slept like a log and woke very refreshed the next morning to Ric reminiscing about some dream. I’ll let him explain that one, but I will say Charley Brown would have been proud. Before long we were cooking some breakfast and talking about our plans for the weekend. Rain was still in the forcast, and that cabin was certainly comfy. In the end however we make our plans to hike Max Patch and enjoy what mother nature had to offer. The group also got the opportunity to meet two ladies from Charleston (Emma & Kinnett) who were up for the weekend to relax. It was obvious they must have been dazed and confused from the spa treatment the previous night, because they asked for our suggestion of a good day hike. We described Max Patch to them and it seemed to be a good trip for them, so I showed them how to get there and we all parted ways.

The weather became more and more unseasonable as the skies opened up and we had beautiful weather. During the trip up to the Patch I realized I was just about out of gas, and made a mental note to mention that to the group when we left the next day. When we got to the parking lot we took the remainder of the spaces of a quite full lot. Looks like lots of people had already decided to take advantage of the weather and do a day hike. We unloaded our gear and did some last minute plans, talked for a few more minutes with a local shop outfitter who was dropping off a thru hiker. About this time a familiar SAAB turned the corner, so we waited a few more minutes for Emma & Kinnett who had just arrived. The consensus was to all hike up and make a large group. The hill looked daunting, and didn’t let us down. It was quite a steep assent from the parking lot. All of the savage group were loaded down, so we took a few breaks to catch our breath. I kept hearing an odd sound and never quite found it, however I think it might have been the girls laughing at us under their breath at how out of shape we all were
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It didn’t take long to make the summit. All sore legs were quickly forgotten as we all just soaked up the view and fantastic weather. While up there I walked with Ric & Jamie and found a geocache easily then made it back to the group. Those that were hungry fixed some lunch and everyone relaxed. There was a family up there from Charleston who had an amazing number of things in common with Kinnett so they jawed for quite a while. No complaints here, since the older grandmother of that group had the most fantastic Charleston accent I have heard. Kinda like going back in time. While up there we also took some group photographs and just soaked in the environment. Many groups of people came and went while we were up there. It was quite the spiritual place. As the day progressed the decision was made to start looking for a place to stay.

Our first thought was to hike about 5 miles to a shelter. We ditched that idea when we all realized that would require another 5 mile walk at night to come and do some star gazing. Everyone put their packs back on and headed down the trail. The down part was really nice as the trail was all downhill for many, many miles. A short while into the woods, Emma & Kinnett headed back in order to make it to the spa on time. It was sad to see them go as they added a fun dynamic to the group for conversation, after the fact I also realized I missed a chance to practice my portrait photography on two good subjects in a beautiful place, oh well. A short while after we found our campsite, and proceeded to make camp.

The remainder of the afternoon was spent finding a water source, and exploring the woods. As the sun set, stomachs started to grumble, so dinner was put on the stoves and prepared. A few hours later after enjoying the company around the campfire, Bobby suggested heading back up to the peak to view the sky, so we all grabbed our lights and headed back up the path. I cannot put into words the beauty of Max Patch after dark. It was quite honestly stunning. The entire group just lied on our backs watching the clouds blow across the hill. I was surprised how much light polution there was, but the site was fantastic. After some stretch of time we stood back up and headed back to camp. We spent the remainder of the night talking about the beauty of Max Patch and also (as normal) telling bad jokes. I was one of the last to retire but eventually did.
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I woke early, well before sunrise with the desire to make it to the peak again to watch a beautiful sunrise. Apparently I could not talk my body into getting out of the sleeping bag and rolled over back to sleep, dreaming of things that didn’t involve me getting out of my tent. A bit later I did get going and got to watch the sun crest over the distant mountains, so I did get to witness that work of art. Everyone seemed to be quite cheery so packing up the camp did not take any time. There was already some talk around the campfire of having another soak, so everyone agreed to have some breakfast then see if a tub was available. The hike out was beautiful with the warm colors of the sun lighting all the muted colors well. We arrived at the parking lot with a new challenge however. How to get my bus back to town to get some gas. We put our heads together and realized that there was at least a gallon of coleman fuel (just unleaded gas) among all of us, so it all went in the bus.

I spent the entire trip keeping a close eye on the gas gauge, but we did make it to the cafe for breakfast. We ate heartily and then did a bit of walking around the town. A quick phone call to the spa confirmed that we had an appointment for one more soak, hooray! As we arrived and gathered our towels I saw a familiar face. Apparently Emma had decided to have one more soak as well, so we all compared stories of our somewhat boring adventures and went our separate ways. That last soak was great, although not as good as at night. As our time expired everyone said their good byes and headed out. There was not one open gas station in Hot Springs on Sunday, so I had to pour a bit more fuel in the bus and cross my fingers. Chris followed me and I did make it to a gas station to put some much needed go juice in the TigerBus. The two buses continued home. At Knoxville Chris & Jamie turned off to their homes and I continued west. The bus ran good as always and I made good time. The weather held out for me with only a few periods of some showers. I arrived home to fine a family who were very happy their daddy/husband was home. I love that part.

Thanks to old friends for making this trip another fantastic excursion, and to our new friends, thanks as well for hanging out and letting me enjoy your company.