We had our quickest tear down time yet, right at one hour. It helped that we had to go another mile to fetch water today. It was a very foggy and mossy morning. There was so much fog that we had no idea what was coming our way, other than the 15 ft in front of us. We ridge hopped most of the day. Bo’s paw didn’t seem to affect his ability to pull today, despite him being a little sleepy coming off his pain pill.

Our hike today went very fast. It probably helped that we knew we had a 2 night hostel stay in front of us. About halfway down our steep rocky descent into Unicoi gap, I smelled something…burgers on the grill. I thought to myself, “Surely I’m mistaken.” I’ve heard of trail magic but had yet to experience it. I thought we were going fast before I smelled the burgers. Well, we practically ran down the mountain to see if my nose was correct!

When we got to the road, sure enough, there was a grill with burgers and a lovely smiley church group to greet us. We felt like royalty, Bowen got a whole burger to himself and water, and then I got a burger and got some snacks for later. I also heard a rumor that another person had beer, and sure enough, that was correct, too! I got a cold lager and met an adorable little girl who crochets and is hopping to start her own business one day. I got a lovely octopus keychain from her.

Check her out on instagram: rhino_crochets.

Our shuttle to the hostel arrived, and we were whisked away to luxury. Stanimals had a breathtaking stone fireplace, huge windows, and a cozy atmosphere. They have yoga and breakfast in the morning and a foot massage machine! We showered, washed clothes, and then got a shuttle to Lake Chatuge Animal Hospital to get Bo checked out. He had been more irritable than usual, likely due to the pain.

The hospital was great. They put a liquid glue on his pad, cleaned up his neck and ear, and sent him home with the cone of shame, pain meds, and antibiotics. We scooped a chicken club and fries from the Marina on our way back to the hostel. Bo got lots of chicken for his reward.

We learned that Hiawassee is planning to fix their dam which means they would need to reduce the water height up to 10 ft for 4-8 years which would devastate the town that relies so heavily on the lake for its businesses to have revenue. Hopefully, they can work something out since this place is so popular for recreation in the summertime!

• Day: 7
• Date: 4/11/2025
• Miles: 8.59
• Camp: Stanimals Around the Bend Hostel– Hiawassee, GA
• At Mile: 52.7