Day 24 – March 31 2017- 0 miles – Bryson City
Stoat and I were feeling much better. We went to a diner for breakfast and walked around town to test our legs.
Eventually we made it over to a local park. There was a small trail system there and we decided to check it out.
The park was located on a small peninsula between two rivers. Hidden in the park was a massive tree. Its branches were thicker than most of the tree trunks in the park. To us, it looked like a grandfather tree. We wondered how many of the surrounding trees were its offspring.
The tree, obviously very old, was dying. On one side of the tree we could see that most of the heart wood was missing. Yet there where new leaves sprouting on quite a few branches.
I felt lucky. How many AT thru hikers got to see that tree? How many more people will get to see it before its goes?
Speaking of going. Stoat and I had decided, come hell or high water, we would be back on the AT the following day.
2017 Thru hike 