Beyond the Blog Day 6 (May 3) - Asheville to Blue Ridge to Bent Creek

 

We don’t have a lot of photos from this day because it was non-stop pouring rain, up until the very end.  As my blog post for the day says, “I knew there would be one day when it was going to rain all day, and we sure got it today”.

I woke up groggy and gloomy because of the forecast, calling for pouring rain most of the day. We

drove to French Broad Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway. My planned leg was 3 miles rolling uphill in light rain on the Parkway, with fog shrouded vistas and relative peace. That was, until a driving school zipped by consisting of about 25 Dodge Traverses.  I suppose it was fun, but they are missing so much....primordial ferns, long and haunting bird calls, a deep dark forest overlooking the valley below. Driving is about the machine and the road, which I totally get. But I prefer to be on foot, connected to the surroundings in a more immediate and organic way.

I ran past Walnut Cove almost to Chestnut Grove, a 1,000 ft elevation gain to about 3100 ft.   The legs were tired but not trashed. Still, I didn’t want to continue climbing, knowing that I still had a good 22 miles ahead of me.  I ran back down to the overlook and continued until the French Broad River bridge, which was narrow, wet, and treacherous.  The rain was really pounding at this point and visibility was not good, I did a lot of jumping onto the wet grass and overgrown weeds off the roadside to avoid vehicles. Traffic was really picking up.

I was hungry and cold but the day was still young, unfortunately.  Matt and Joe were awesome as far as meeting me every 2-3 miles, checking up to make sure I wasn’t suffering from actual exposure.   I found a side trail that paralleled the road, and had a wonderful trek in the deep green, mossy forest, nothing but the sound of overflowing creek and rain pattering on leaves.

We regrouped at the offramp to Rte 25 headed south to Hendersonville.  The rain was absolutely pounding now, and all I could do was run on the sidewalk in this busy suburban area.  I was envisioning a completely different kind of run for the day, with Asheville behind me and Flat Rock ahead as I made my way south through mountains, still formidable but getting gentler.  Instead, I was dodging cars careening in and out of Panera, Publix and Starbucks in a freezing downpour while slogging on a sidewalk.  I could have been anywhere.   It was miserable and by the time I had my 15 miles in, we made the game-time decision to return to Bent Creek where I could at least get my last 10 miles done safely.

I’ll remember Bent Creek with fond emotions...I was a place of refuge for me following two days of tough, spiritually-draining rucking.  It was quiet and green, with many trail options.  I saw a few bikers, one trail runner, and that was it.  It was grey and rainy both days, particularly the second day, and my spirits were waning at these points.   Bent Creek provided some much needed solitude from traffic and gave me time to re-group, so it will be a special place, always.   I would need this strength for the next day, which would prove to be even grislier than the previous two (ominous foreshadowing here….)

The bright spot for the day was the wonderful brewery Joe and I found for beers and dinner.   The  Burning Blush Brewery in Mills River has a gothic, medieval vibe and served us some great beers.  Even better was the food truck on premise, which had some of the best dang burgers we’ve ever had.  The weather had cleared at that point, and we thoroughly enjoyed the moment.   The day was done,  we were two friends enjoying good brew and good food, looking out onto the mountains.   Can’t complain, even if it was back to the Rodeway Inn for the evening!  Savor the moment.