Saturday, December 1, 2007
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Today I decided I was in major need of a quiet few hours in a bookstore. So far on this trip I have not noticed a single significant bookstore in passing and thought I'd Google Barnes & Noble and see if there was a store in Chattanooga TN since the town is blocking my path toward Birmingham AL. Success. Well, sort of. I found a listing for a store in Chattanooga at Hamilton Place, the largest shopping center in the state. So I Googled a map, drove there, parked, went into the mall (huge), walked up to the mall map kiosk, found the listing for B&N. With an asterisk. Found the note for the asterisk at the bottom of the sign. The store opens in 2008. What the %$*!? - why couldn't that little bit of info have been on their web site?
Oh well, at least all that hoo-haa led me to an easy traverse of Chattanooga and a delightful ride down AL route 75 through some quiet rural farm country with a distinctly southern flavor.
Night camp: Wal-Mart in Oneonta AL
Absolute Silence
I remembered hearing of a backcountry Park Service ranger who was cleaning up after dinner one evening when he heard a chilling scream. He ran out of his cabin in time to see a mountain lion standing with a dead deer next to her. The lion saw the ranger and bounded off. The ranger realized this might be a rare opportunity to closely observe a mountain lion, so he stationed himself a short distance away from the deer carcase. He sat in absolute silence, and listened closely as night deepened. After sitting in darkness for well over an hour, he gave up hope of the lion's returning and stood up. In the powerful beam of his flashlight, he could clearly see that the dead deer was no longer there. ...
Caught in Fading Light: Mountain Lions, Zen Masters, and Wild Nature by Gary Thorp