TRAIL DAY 16
Mon, Mar 7, 2016 There must not have been anything remarkable on the descent from Albert Mountain to Winding Stair Gap and US Route 64 into Franklin. For reasons I can’t recall I took a few pictures of me waiting along the highway for a ride into town. Seeing one with a big, wide yellow barrier reminds me of the character of the road and what I was doing at that moment: waiting on a white transit bus that would cost $3.00 to take me into Franklin. I think it came every 15-30 minutes and dogs were allowed.
Something en route turned my attention from where I was thinking of staying to Haven’s Budget Inn. It turned out this was the favored of thru-hikers because the rates were the best. Check out ronhavenhikerservices on Google and you’ll see how hiker-friendly Ron Havens is.
On check in, all the budget rooms were taken but across the street in the “upscale” lodge, there was a corner room available with a large bedroom, kitchenette, sitting and dining area and full bath. It was unrented because it needed a little more work. They let me stay there on the cheap. I would let them know the next day if I’d stay an extra night.
I moved in, got settled, tended to Theo and went to meet Ron Haven at the office below my room where he planned to take me to a Walmart shopping area where there was a Verizon Store for me to check on my phone. The attendant recommended that I check with Medtek Mobile in Sylva, North Carolina to see if they could fix the broken glass. I believe he thought he could help but he was not in Franklin. I would have to mail the phone to him. Exactly why this would happen later I don’t know but it was not until the next stop that I would get my phone in the mail.
I see from the metadata that I continued to use my phone after Helen for pictures, probably because I had removed all the broken glass exposing the lens. I see, too, I switched to my tablet at Top of Georgia Hostel. It was certainly larger than the phone but it fit nicely in an inside pocket in my blue, fleece vest.
A recommendation for supper in Franklin was Mulligan’s Bar and Grill. I walked down the hill, through a business strip parking area and across the street to the grill. I was seated at a booth looking at a large-screen TV and the bar. I ordered wings and a couple of IPA brews. Someone sang a love song to a gal at the bar – newly weds. The atmosphere was pure “bar and grill” and very pleasant; the service was good and the food just what a thru-hiker craves.
Theo had made himself comfortable back at the room. While he rested, I laid everything out which meant I unrolled my sleeping pad and took out my sleeping bag letting both air out and lie uncrunched. I charged what needed to be charged with tablet set up to watch some Netflix or tend to business but the password I was given was wrong.
I crawled into the big bed covered in an unattractive dark brown bedspread and dove into a good night’s sleep.
Day #16 Albert Mountain > US 64 (Franklin) 9.7 miles