Americana

Although this isn’t about boating I figured it deserved its own post.

After our second day at the Tallulah we planned to run Section IV of the Chattooga. I had made plans to meet up with Will thru BT. He knew of a free place to camp near the river and after a quick dinner at a Mexican place in Clayton with him and Jeff we headed off. Quay caught up to us along the way and we drove to the campsite. We arrived to find a surprising scene. At the entrance an old motor boat falling off its trailer partially blocked the drive. Next an old rafting bus with a wooden structure above graced the scene. Farther on, a small house that looked like it could have been fairly nice stood in partial ruin.

I’m not sure if I got the story down quite right but I’ll do my best. The land had previously belonged to a guy named Snuffy. Snuffy lived in that old bus… a bus named Fred for 9 years, the last 6 of which he was married with kids (and yes he’s still apparently happily married). He started working on the house using leftovers from a construction job but lost interest over time. Hopefully the house will be finished someday. Boaters are now allowed to use the land under the condition that they not burn down the house.

The bus remains and its only inhabitants are a nest of hornets. We went in and looked around briefly. The inside walls are lined with old boating and rafting photographs from all around the world.

We met Dave at the campsite and had a good time burning a small campfire and sitting around listening to music while the dogs played and napped nearby. Jeff’s girlfriend Karen joined us later that evening.

Jeff and Will’s 1970’s VW busses brought additional charm to the scene… a little piece of Americana…