“I don’t believe that the terrain is rough enough to need climbing gear, but we can assess that when we reach the point where we have to descend. It’s a short hike, so we can return to the vehicle for equipment if we think we need it. Everyone ready?”
The three responded positively, with even more enthusiasm than Adam expected. They were finally getting a chance to find out exactly what, if anything, was causing the mysterious anomalies. While they all hoped to discover that the source of the anomalies had some exciting significance, even if the beacons turned out to be a disappointment, it would still be a fun day.
The lure of the warm spring day was attracting many park visitors who were anxious to get outdoors after a long winter season. There were now several more people exploring the fire tower than when they first passed it. Most of the people were at the tower or the overlook, taking in the views or exploring the stone wall. Adam preferred not to attract attention. He waited until they reached a point along the trail where no one was around, and then led them onto a deer path that headed in the right direction.
None of them were strangers to bushwhacking through the backcountry; even when geocaching they usually ended up trudging at least a few hundred yards through the brush to reach their destination. The foliage was sparse enough to make their way through, following the deer paths along mountaintop ridge when they could. There was a slight descent as they passed through the first valley, followed by a steeper climb as they crested the second ridge. They had only traveled about a third of a mile from the overlook, but making their way through the brush and climbing the last ridge was taxing enough to encourage a short stop to catch their breath.
Pausing at a tiny clearing, the group took seats on a large boulder. They were now at a higher elevation than they had been at the overlook. Through the trees to the northeast they had a view of Grassy Mountain and Beaver Mountain, and the newly tilled fields in the valley spreading between them. They could also see the ravine that held the location of the first beacon.
“The beacon is approximately 600 feet down there,” said Tom, pointing down into the ravine.
“It doesn’t look as if we will need climbing equipment,” said Alice, “but we’ll have to take it slowly. From here, it looks like there are a lot of loose rocks. It’s not too steep, and there is plenty of vegetation to hang onto.”
“You guys hang here for a few more minutes,” Sal said. “I’ll hike a little further down the ridge and check out a good place to make our way down.”
No one argued against taking in the view for a while longer, and the quick-gaited Sal could probably scamper along the ridge faster than any of them. While they waited, Tom stood on top of the boulder and surveyed the gulley. He noted that it was a typical runoff area; a tiny valley formed by years of erosion from snow melts. It was a closed valley, meaning that the bottom end of it was blocked by another mountain, forming an isolated fishbowl-like area. This was the sort of terrain that would normally form a small lake if there were a stream running into the valley, but Tom saw no stream and the valley floor appeared dry.
“Not much down there to observe except rocks and trees,” said Tom.
“Not even a shimmering portal to another dimension?” Alice asked with a chuckle.
“If there’s a portal down there, it’s disguised as a rhododendron,” he laughed.
“Are you sure?” asked Adam. “I think I can see one of those old British police boxes down there.”
“Riiight,” both Tom and Alice laughed.
“And which particular time lord is manning the TARDIS?” Alice asked.
“None other than the original Dr. Who, William Hartnell, of course,” Adam replied.
They were laughing and joking about other outrageous possibilities that could be causing the beacon when Sal returned. He wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve and plopped down on the boulder. “I’m glad you dudes can sit around yucking it up while I’m out busting my hump. I’ve got good news and okay news. The good news is that it doesn’t look too tough getting down into the gulley. The okay news is that it doesn’t much matter which way we go, so we might as well start down from right here.”
“Then you lead the way,” Adam said, handing the LANav to Sal, “and watch out for Daleks.”
“For what?” asked Sal.
“Never mind. Just go slow and carefully,” said Adam.
“I’m on it, dude. Just start whimpering if you can’t keep up,” replied Sal.
They picked their way slowly downward, feet sideways to keep from slipping on the moist ground, and using the trees to hang on to as they descended. With the decreasing sunlight in the recesses of the gulley, the stout oak and pine trees gave way to shade-loving varieties of willow, chestnuts, and gums. Other than the increasing claustrophobia as the sides of the gorge narrowed, blocking more and more of their view, there seemed to be nothing to indicate the area was different than any other part of the park.
It took them less than twenty minutes to reach the point where the slope began to level off into the flat bottom area of the small valley. They felt a significant temperature drop; it would take at least another hour for the sun to be high enough to warm the bowl-shaped valley, and last night’s cold air still settled at the bottom.
Sal consulted the LANav. “The beacon indicator on this doohickey is hopping around like a jump dancer, but it looks like we’re within two to three hundred feet of it,” he said. “It’s somewhere in the bottom of this valley, whatever ‘it’ is.”
“Just to be thorough,” said Adam, “let’s split up and cover the valley bottom from two directions. Sal and I will walk clockwise and spiral in toward the center. Tom and Alice, you guys do the same thing going counter-clockwise. Since the LANav is not giving us a pinpoint location, let’s do a careful search of the whole area and note anything that appears to be out of the ordinary. This valley is pretty small, so we should be able to cover the entire thing in an hour or so. Alice, please make some notes of the general description of the area you search, and I’ll do the same. If we find anything of interest, we can take some photos when we come back with our gear.”
As they began circling, getting closer to the center of the valley, Alice noted that although the ground was wet, it wasn’t as muddy as she might expect for a closed valley such as this. Apparently there was adequate drainage for the runoff that made it into this gorge. The trees thinned further, and the foliage of the bottomland consisted of mature Georgia-native plants, such as yellowroot and witch-hazel, as well as other woody varieties of brush that typically do well in wet, rocky soil.
“I feel like Lewis and Clark, documenting the flora and fauna of the Louisiana Purchase,” said Alice.
“Their route started a little further north, but I understand your meaning,” answered Tom. “This little gorge is quite interesting, though. Not quite as awesome as the Corps of Discovery’s adventures, but interesting. I observed that there is a lot more native flora down here, as if the invasive species haven’t gotten a foothold yet.”
“Not exactly the kind of ‘anomaly’ that you’d think would cause a blip on a navigational device,” said Alice, “but yes, it’s an intriguing plant distribution. I suppose TSO can tailor their marketing appropriately. Introducing the TSO LANav, perfect for space-travelers and botanists…” She stopped suddenly mid-sentence. “Oh, my goodness!” Alice cried, nearly dropping her notebook at the startling site before her.
She stared into the eyes of a horse, tethered to a willow, so close to her face that she had nearly walked into it. The horse stared back and made a snickering sound.
“It’s a horse,” Tom said.
“No kidding, Sherlock.” Alice shot back. “What’s a horse doing down here?”
“It’s not unusual around here,” Tom answered. “There are a lot of farms nearby, and plenty of riding trails throughout the park and wilderness area. There are also a few equine camps close by. The real question is—where’s the rider?”
; “He is right behind you,” came the reply, startling them both.
Tom and Alice spun around to face the owner of the voice. Alice was unable to stifle a gasp, causing the horse to jerk its head with a start.
“Easy, soquili,” said the stranger, stepping past Tom and Alice and stroking the horse’s withers. “Excuse me, I did not mean to startle you, miss,” he said to Alice.
Alice held up her hand and shook her head to indicate all was well.
The man who spoke was about the same height as Tom, with long black hair, braided and pulled into a bun on the back of his head. He had a deeply tanned, ruddy complexion. His dark and penetrating brown eyes were soft and open, lending his face a friendly countenance, though the eyes had an undertone of intensity, revealing the potential to turn fierce under different circumstances.
He continued, addressing both Tom and Alice. “My name is John Carter. I have observed you two and your friends coming into the valley. This is a good place to search for herbs and medicinal plants, is it not?” He held out his hand for them to shake.
“Pleased to meet you,” said Tom and Alice, each shaking his hand and giving him their name.
“Medicinal plants? No, not really,” said Alice. “I was just making some notes about any sort of vegetation or other interesting features of this valley we came across.”
“Are you gold hunters?” John asked, his eyes flashing a hint of fierceness.
“Gold? Certainly not!” Tom answered. “We are evaluating the performance of some new equipment and enjoying public land.”
“Public land? Many have paid a heavy price for this ‘public’ land,” John said with the fierceness in his eyes intensifying.
Tom wasn’t sure what to make of this guy, why he seemed to be questioning what they were doing, or why it was even any of his business. Was John a park ranger? He wasn’t wearing a uniform. His clothes were very heavily worn and a bit old-fashioned, although well fitting. He had no badge or insignia to indicate he was a park representative, although he presented an air of authority rather than one of harassment. Regardless, Tom decided it was best not to provoke him. “We are aware there is a fee, and have already taken care of that,” Tom replied.
A questioning look came into John Carter’s eyes, and he was about to respond, but his eyes suddenly flashed past Tom and Alice, into the woods, just before they heard the sounds of Adam and Sal approaching.
“Hey, space travelers, are you guys over there?” they heard Sal yelling as he crashed through the woods.
“Over here,” Tom yelled back.
“I think this part of the test is a bust,” Adam was saying as he approached. “We haven’t come across much of…” he stopped speaking when he was close enough to see John.
“Adam, this is Mr. John Carter,” Tom said. “We were just getting acquainted.”
Sal strolled up behind Adam. “Whoa, is that a freakin’ horse?”
“No,” answered Carter, shaking hands with Adam and Sal. “He is just a plain horse. How do you do?”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” said Adam, sending Sal an admonishing “cool it” glance. “Please excuse me and Sal for being surprised. We were doing some exploring in this small gulley, and didn’t expect to find anyone else here.”
“You surprised me as well when you began climbing down, so I kept quiet and out of sight to observe you for a while. When your colleagues discovered my horse, I felt I should announce my presence,” said John. Any trace of annoyance, if it had ever existed, had vanished from John Carter’s tone as he continued to speak to the group.
“I am returning from a journey and my horse began to show signs of irritation and swelling in his fetlock,” John said, pointing to the horse’s bandaged front leg. “I may have over-stressed him, as I am anxious to return home to bring the news of my trip to my people. I was aware of this secluded area where I could rest him, and also find tassel flower, willow and chamomile to treat him. I made camp here yesterday and prepared a poultice for him. I was just about to remove it when I heard your approach.”
He squatted and began to remove the bandage on the horse’s fetlock, revealing a soggy, green clump of vegetation. “Yes, it looks as if the poultice has done its job, so I may resume my journey. I will walk alongside him for a while until he is fully recovered.”
“I think we are about finished here also,” said Adam. “We still need to compare notes, but it seems that our explorations this morning have been unproductive and disappointing. We may have to content ourselves just with enjoying the scenery today.”
“A worthy undertaking. Although, one never fully realizes the remunerations of a journey until it has been completed,” John answered. “The day is still young. Perhaps the benefits of your explorations are yet to come. As for me, I must gather my few belongings, climb the slope out of this valley, and continue my own journey. Good luck to you in your endeavors,” he said as he led the horse away from the group.
“And to you in yours, sir,” Tom replied as the others nodded their goodbye and moved off in the direction where they entered the valley.
“Man, what an oddball,” said Sal as soon as John was out of earshot. “I could have sworn I heard banjo music back there.”
“C’mon, Sal,” said Alice. “You think anyone without a Jersey accent is a hick.”
“Yeah, what’s your point?” replied Sal.
“He seemed a bit assertive at first,” said Tom, “but I think he was okay. He had a strange way of speaking for a Georgian, I thought, and a couple of his statements were somewhat odd. Just before you walked up he asked if we were searching for gold.”
“Gold? Odd for sure,” said Sal. “What was with that ‘my people’ crap?”
“He sounded like he was a Native American,” Adam said. “His accent was more northern than southern. Maybe he’s on vacation, or part of some reenactment group, trying to stay in character.”
“Sure, dude,” said Sal. “My people do lunch with your people. We find gold. Take home to Great White North. Buy much beer and bacon,” Sal quipped, drawing laughter from the others.
“Seriously,” said Tom, “I don’t know what he was getting at with that ‘gold’ comment either. It’s not like it would do anyone any good to find gold in a state park. He certainly is an interesting character. I believe your guess is correct, Adam, that he was Native American. And I’d bet that you’re right about the vacation part, too. His ‘people’ are probably just the folks he came here to ride horses with.”
“We can ponder the mystery of John Carter later,” said Adam. “Let’s consider our own mystery for a while. Alice, did you guys discover anything that might account for the anomaly beacon?”
“John Carter and his horse was the most interesting thing we came across,” Alice answered. “Other than that, all we noticed that there were more native plants down here. Not really that exciting, since the local equestrian community already seems to know that.”
“I’m afraid this is going to be quite a letdown for Dr. Odan,” Tom added. “He seemed to be certain that the LANav was indicating something a little more spectacular than a good place to find medicinal herbs. Has the readout changed at all?”
Adam glanced at the LANav. “Hmm, now the beacon is indicating a point back in the direction we came from, back near the stone wall area,” Adam said.
“It’s trying to tell us to get our butts back there and ride bikes,” said Sal.
“Most likely it’s telling us there is nothing to the anomalies. My guess is some kind of electronic interference, or maybe even a cosmic interference, but certainly nothing we can physically see,” said Tom.
“If that’s the case,” said Adam, “we better break the news to Odan so they can begin working on a way to filter out the anomalies. I’m sure he’ll be disappointed, but they still have made a significant breakthrough with this navigational device. TSO definitely has an incredible product to bring to market.”
There was still a few more days of testing t
o perform, but there was no denying that the discouraging beacon testing had dampened everyone’s mood. Even Tom, who had been the most skeptical, could not hide his disappointment. They had all allowed themselves to fantasize that the beacons would lead them to an amazing new adventure, but now they all felt a bit foolish for letting their imaginations override their common sense.
As they approached the point where the slope of the valley floor began to rise back up to the rim, they heard Sal whisper, “Dude, don’t look now, but here comes Squanto again.”
They turned to see John Carter approaching from behind with his horse in tow. Raising his hand in greeting, John said, “Hello, again, friends. It looks as if our paths may run together for a little longer. If you are walking toward the old ruins, may we keep each other company along the way?”
“That’s where we are headed, and of course, please join us,” said Adam. Tom and Alice smiled and nodded in agreement, and Sal just rolled his eyes, although John did not seem to notice.
Climbing up the steep, muddy slope took much more effort than coming down. They took a zigzag path, switching back and forth up the slope to make the ascent less arduous. John Carter ascended the mountainside with effortless grace, although his horse showed some strain and still favored his injured leg.
“Do you care to share the reason for your explorations?” John asked Adam as they climbed.
Adam would not normally divulge details of their testing to a stranger, but he felt pretty confident that John Carter was in no way a competitive threat to TSO. He struck Adam as a person who was at ease in the forest, and nothing indicated that he was the least bit high tech. As far as Adam could tell, John was not even carrying a GPS.
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