I Went to Alabama with a Sweat Towel on my Knee

Today’s plan was to complete the final section of the Silver Comet Trail via bicycle. In preparation for a hot day, I put extra water in my hydration pack the night before, and refrigerated it (good plan). I also began an hour earlier than usual to beat as much of the heat as possible.

I began at the depot at Cedartown, just past the 5 mile trail detour due to construction, and rode west toward the Alabama line. This is by far the most desolate section of the trail. Once the trail leaves Cedartown, it crosses only an occasional country road and passes an occasional house. I did see my fill of wildlife, including a Wild Turkey who crossed the trial right in front of me, more rabbits than I could count, and birds including Goldfinches and Eastern Bluebirds.

Not long after I started, I had a funny and somewhat convicting experience. As I approached a road crossing west of Cedartown, I could see an older cyclist stopped on the other side, headed east. When I crossed, he stopped me and told me about an encounter with a mean bulldog that almost bit him. Apparently, other cyclists had warned him about it before he got to the area. He gave me a rough idea of where he had encountered the dog, and we both went on our way.

I am a dog lover, but one of my fears is mean dogs, going back to when I was a kid. I gave serious thought to turning around, but after a quick prayer, I proceeded. The other biker had told me that the dog was in the vicinity of the second road crossing ahead of me. When I got to the crossing, I stopped to look at my map. I realized that the road paralleled the trail for a mile, so rather than trusting that God would answer my prayer, I decided to solve the problem myself (the story of my life). I left the trail and headed down the short cross street to the main road. There was a house on the diagonal corner, and I was headed right at it. Before I got too far, I could see a black dog tear out of the yard headed straight for me. He did not look particularly happy. I immediately turned around, and set the 30 second world speed record for cycling. Fortunately, I was fast enough that the dog quickly lost interest, and returned to his watch for other victims (in the spirit of one of my favorite movies – Secondhand Lions). How often I ask God for help, and then try to fix the problem myself! In this case, the dog never would have seen me had I stayed with the trail.

I was looking forward to arriving at Gateway Park, marking the border between Georgia and Alabama, as I was already pretty hot and tired. The guide book indicated that it had a lightning shelter, picnic area, and restrooms. Based on that, I had formed a mental image of a significant park. Not! The lightning shelter was the size of an outdoor umbrella, picnic area was a single table, and no restroom was to be found. I rested anyway.

I proceeded into Alabama, covering six miles of the Chief Ladiga trail. I only thought the Georgia section was the most desolate I had seen. There was absolutely nothing along this section of the trail. I hit mile marker 6, and turned around.

After returning to the Georgia side, the heat and my hunger were getting to me, and I needed a restroom stop. My guide book indicated that a convenience store existed two blocks from the trail. I turned off to check it out. I found a general store, but it was not operating. Across the street was the local post office, in the form of a trailer. I went in to ask if they had a restroom, but they did not. The kind postal worker told me to turn left, go to the first driveway, and look for the convenience store - behind a house! It was not much, but it met my needs. I headed back for the trail, covering the balance of the 33 miles in 3:13. I was pleased to have been able to handle the heat, especially given that this section of the trail is almost entirely in full sun.