Chapter 23
SINCE THEY WERE going to be in the UK most of the summer, they weren’t planning a trip to the mountains in August. In lieu of an August trip, they headed for Maggie Valley the day spring break began—George and Mike having again offered the use of their cabin. On their second day in the mountains, they were exploring a side road that led from the main highway, that clung to the edge of the mountain as it climbed to Soco Gap, then down into and through the heart of Soco Valley. They followed the side road as it wound through the valley and then began to climb at the upper end, eventually finding themselves at a point where the pavement ended and the road became a fairly well-maintained gravel affair. As they drove slowly around a hairpin turn and headed up a steep grade, gravel c
