RABUN RAMBLINGS
BLOSSOMS AND BYWAYS
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BLOSSOMS AND BYWAYS |
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| Just off Blue Ridge Gap Road, Jimmy located the barn on Kilby Lane. Curses - the gate was locked. Here was this beautiful barn just yards away and no access. However, the fence ended at a small stream and I could just squeeze by. With the encouragement from my "friends", I jumped the creek and trespassed up the hill to the barn - expecting any moment to be shot or eaten by dogs. You will notice my good friends had the jeep ready to take off with or without me. | |
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| The barn proved to be beautiful but unfortunately the setting sun was casting a deep shadow and my picture did not capture the true color of the barn. Jimmy had learned about the barn from some friends who had helped move the barn from Ohio to this location. It is a very historic, old Amish barn. We believe that Rodney Kilby is the owner because the barn is located on Kilby Lane and he is a builder who is developing the property surrounding the barn. | |
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| On a previous trip to Rabun County, Dale and I had driven by the Persimmon Creek Winery, Jim Darnell had told us that his home is located close by. We wandered around looking for his mailbox. The area around the winery is very beautiful. We never found Jim's home but we enjoyed the search. Jim - just where do you live? | |
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| Sunday morning dawned clear, sunny but cold and windy. We decided to drive back to Blue Ridge Gap Road and try for another shot at that marvelous old Amish barn. We found another road into the property and managed to see the barn from a different vantage point and the sun was perfect. This barn must have an interesting history because someone cherished it in Ohio and now in Georgia. | |
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| We wandered back to the campus and decided to go to Indian Lake. The lake has a nice beach and on the way we passed a climbing area. We entertained the thought of our 50's group doing a hike over to Indian Lake for some climbing while at Homecoming. Anyone up for that? | |
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| We noticed a couple of log houses on top of the hill over Indian Lake. We drove up to explore. Janie Owens told us the cabins have been used for faculty housing. The walkway leading to the two cabins is lined with sweet shrub. The cabins were small but what a view! | |
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| Noticing that the knoll called Observatory Point was adjacent to the cabins, we drove over to see the view. Scruggs Rock was a nice surprise on our right and the school on the left. Scruggs Rock is a favorite of our 50's group who remember it well - by many names. | |
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| The Observatory was built by Dess Oliver and his students. It is used by the students and for teaching purposes. Janie informed us it houses a pretty awesome telescope with camera attached. What a great place to star gaze. | |
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| When we left the Observatory area we decided to explore the narrow, graveled road that led down the mountain, thinking it would come out on the campus somewhere. Unfortunately we came to a padlocked chain across the road and we had to turn around. In the process of turning around we got stuck. I mean up to the axles stuck - wheels spinning stuck and not a soul in sight. We had Dale's cell phone but being two self reliant females, we did not want to call Jimmy for help. We placed sticks and logs under the back wheels and just got deeper in the soft dirt and gravel. Finally with our adrenalin pumping we hauled some large rocks over and dug out a hole under the deepest tire and placed the rock under and behind the tire. Dale was the better driver so she had the task of giving our last option a go. When she gunned the car, the tire hit the rock and the car was thrown sideways and out of the deep rut.. Free at last! Whew! Whoever uses this road will wonder who dug the deep ruts in the school road. We won't tell. We had worked up quite an appetite and we were very late for a lunch date with Jimmy. | |
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| So our last stop of the day before heading home was lunch with Jimmy. He took us to a new restaurant in Franklin called The Motor Co. The food was great and the atmosphere was pure 50's. We loved it. We ate and listened to old time rock and roll. When in the area, please check it out. We think you will enjoy the ambience. The restaurant is located in a building that housed a car dealership and is filled with memorabilia. | |
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| As usual our visit to Rabun County brought us home again to a school we love so well. We always enjoy visiting with our friends and rambling around the county always brings anew our appreciation for the beauty of the area. We are hopeful our plans for Alumni Work Day will make the Heritage Center glow with color for a big welcome to all our homecoming friends. Don't forget May 1st - Second Annual Alumni Clean Up Day at the Heritage Center - see you there?. | |
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