#2: [10-Jun-02]

26-Jan-2002 -- It was a four-hour drive to this confluence. I had a topo map with me, which made clear that there was going to be a bit of hiking involved since the nearest unpaved road was .25 miles from the confluence.

Using Delorme's Street Atlas USA software, the auto-routing did not include a single Interstate. (I was born to drive on the Interstates; point A to point B in the least amount of time. That's me.) This trip "forced" me onto back-country, two-lane Alabama roads. It also allowed me to go places I hadn't been and enjoy my real hobby: railroad photography, as well as see some strange rural scenes that normally escape the Interstates, including a dead cow in the road (a few gathered around said it had been shot sometime the prevous night), and a locomotive made of bales of hay. Everyone needs a hobby.

But I digress.

Even with 4-wheel drive and foreknowledge that this was a wooded area, I was woefully unprepared. Rain from two days prior had left the infamous Alambama Red Clay in a state of muckiness best described as walking in cow pies, without the smell. I got as close as I could with the truck, before getting concerned about getting stuck in this remote area. I hoofed the next .5 miles through the clay to a point where the GPS said the confluence was due west of me, then I turned into the woods with .25 miles to go. Mistake.

I have battle wounds for attempting this confluence. An extremely dense, thorny underbrush kept me from progressing more than another .1 mile where I came up against a seemingly solid wall of the thorny stuff. Another 102 meters would have put me in allowable range, but the undergrowth was so bad that even going back the way I came wasn't overly appealing. Not that there was a choice.

My recommendations for the next attempt:
1. Four-wheel drive.
2. Machette.
3. Heavy clothing.
4. Insect repellent.
5. Don't do it alone.
6. Cell phone, just in case.
7. Ankle-high hiking shoes.

I only had 1, 3, 4, and 6, but it wasn't enough.

Who knows? The next victim (I mean attemptee) may get lucky and find the Alabama Div. of Forestry has done a controlled burn and you'll be able to walk right in.

Best Wishes.