Days 34, 35, and 36: Asheville Revisited

It was a tough call to decide whether to head back to Asheville or continue on to Nashville earlier than planned.  I had five solid reasons for returning to Asheville: see Brian and Kaitlin again, pick up my spare keys that I'd left there, climb Looking Glass Rock, play some disc golf on some acclaimed courses and to try the BBQ joint in Asheville, 12 Bones.  So the decision was made to head back to Asheville for a few days.  After all, it was one of my favorite places and I didn't know the next time I'd be back.



Kailin and Brian

 I fully relaxed and recovered on the rainy Monday, letting my finger tips heal and just lying around.  In the evening we headed over to Kaitlin's school for Monday's communal dinner.  Students, staff, and guests join together for a meal followed by a group discussion.  The event gave me a peek into the way her school operates, which is something like an outdoorsy summer camp with real classes.  I didn't attend the group discussion on gender that night, so Brian and I left with full bellies and chilled back at his place.

The next day was just as rainy as Monday, with spots of sun trying to squeeze through the shifting rain clouds.  It put a big damper on my plans to play disc golf and climbing Looking Glass Rock was beginning to look like a  long shot as well.  I used my confinement indoors to cook up some granola bars, which are invaluable on the road and when climbing. 

That night, Brian's volleyball team had a couple of matches.  It worked out well for me because one of his teammates was out with a bad ankle and I could sub in for him.  I hadn't played in over 2 years, since before I broke my foot in a climbing fall 1.5 years ago, but once I got my hands on the ball it all came back to me.  I guess that's one of the benefits of learning a sport when you're young; the movements stay with you in your muscle memory for life.  That's not to say I played like I used to.  In fact, I felt like the weakest link on the four person team as my passing and hitting were a bit out of sync.  Overall, it was really fun and left me sore (in that good way) for the next couple of days.

Brian had the day off on Wednesday but with showers continuing all morning, climbing The Nose at Looking Glass Rock was out of the question.  Instead, we took a drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway, which seemed even more colorful than when I had seen it just a week before, to the visitors' center.  We watched a movie about the history of the Parkway, another CCC masterpiece, and learned about some of the environment it runs through.  To me the CCC is proof that socialist policies can not only help get out of tough economic times, but also create some of the most enjoyable aspects of our country and to all those right wing pundits who speak about socialism like its a bad word, just stay out of the national parks.



We had to wait about 20
minutes, but it was worth it

 My stomach began rumbling as we were leaving to the Parkway which meant that it was time for the long awaited 12 Bones BBQ.  Brian had been talking this place up for a while now and after hearing that Obama has made a couple of stops to Asheville for the BBQ, I was anticipating more than a mouthful.  We got the blueberry chipolte BBQ ribs with some sides of corn pudding, green beans, and corn bread.  I haven't had great ribs many times in my life, and the only other place I really had to compare it to was Dinosaur BBQ.  Brian assured me that it would be better, but to be honest I can't agree.  They are both very similar and while the ribs seemed slightly more tender at 12 Bones, Dinosaur certainly has better atmosphere.  Both sauces are excellent and the sides are a toss up depending on what you like. 



Humble presentation is justified with
super taste.

 After the late lunch I got on the road as soon as possible and headed west towards Nashville, Tennessee.  I saved an hour crossing time zones and arrived in the evening to Adam and Craig's place.