The weathered National Park Service sign that details the history of the community of Proctor, the remains of which lie along Hazel Creek and underneath the waters of Fontana Lake.

When we arrived at the Cable Cove Boat Ramp, my initial thought was, “Wow, that water looks deep!” It was my first time to see Fontana Lake up close, and it was impressive, even though I could only see one inlet set against the backdrop of the Great Smoky Mountains.

We had met our guide, M.J. Lee with Fly Fishing the Smokies, at the last scenic overlook with cell service outside of Bryson City, North Carolina, to follow him to the lake. The plan was to take his boat across to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park side of Fontana and hike in to fly-fish for trout on the storied Hazel Creek.

Dense fog left the views at the overlook up to our imaginations and the morning had a dreary, sleepy feeling. However, any drowsiness soon departed as the drive through the hairpin turns along the mountain roads had me wide awake and on high alert.

Clearly for M.J., it was just another day at the office as he zipped along, boat in tow, rarely tapping the brakes through the turns and descents. I, on the other hand, felt like a Formula 1 driver, albeit in a Toyota Highlander hybrid, and my brakes were in frequent use.

As we dropped from the high country down to the lake, ears popping, we met several trucks on the road and at roadside turnoffs filled with houndsmen and hounds. The hounds, with heads poked out of dog boxes and noses in the air, reminded me of the redbones of my youth.

Later, M.J. informed us that the North Carolina bear season would be opening soon, and hunters were allowed to run their dogs in the weeks prior to prepare them for the upcoming hunts. Part of me longed to return to hear the baying of those hounds.

As we launched the boat and headed out, I stared into the emerald-green waters below.

“How deep is the lake?” I asked as we left the inlet and headed across.

“Over 400 feet,” M.J. replied, and he began to tell us the story of Fontana.

The lake has a rich history which starts at Fontana Dam. The dam was constructed in the early 40’s by the Tennessee Valley Authority to meet the growing need for electricity during World War II. Unfortunately, that construction displaced a lot of people.

Several communities and towns, places like Judson, Bushnell and Proctor, were lost in the creation of the lake. The people in these communities were given no choice when it came to relocation and, in many cases, they were given little or nothing for their property.

An eerie feeling came over me as we traversed the lake, and I thought about the remnants of the once vibrant communities that lay submerged somewhere below. As it turns out, we would get to see some of what remains of Proctor during our day of fishing.

The community was originally established along Hazel Creek in 1829 by Moses Proctor and his wife, Patience. Proctor Cemetery, which remains today, marks their original homesite.

In 1902 the W.M. Ritter Lumber Company made plans to log the area, and with the extension of a railroad line from Bushnell to the mouth of Hazel Creek, Proctor began to grow. By 1920, the town had doubled in size with a population of over 1,000, thanks to the Ritter Sawmill.

The remains of the mill can still be seen today, along with the beautiful Calhoun House, which sits creekside and is maintained and used by the park service. Apparently, the house, now known as the “Hazel Creek Hilton,” can be used by permitted hikers and campers.

Throughout the day, I couldn’t stop thinking about the families that were displaced by Fontana. What must it have felt like to have everything taken from you, stripped away for nothing in the name of progress or, at best, purchased for a fraction of its actual worth?

That evening, as Dan and I sat on the patio at Bryson City Outdoors enjoying some excellent food and a few well-earned craft beers, my thoughts kept drifting back to what was lost in Proctor. I couldn’t shake those thoughts and have been unable to in the weeks that followed.

Certainly, one reason that my thoughts keep drifting back to the lost mountain communities is that less than a week after being there, much of the area near Bryson City and Fontana Lake was decimated by flooding from Hurricane Helene.

Again, I can’t begin to imagine what our neighbors in Florida, Georgia, and the Carolinas are feeling right now. Many have lost everything.

While hiking the Appalachian Trail and fly-fishing in Western North Carolina and North Georgia over the past several years, I have fallen for these places and for their people. They are some of the best that I’ve ever met and I felt led this week to try to do something to help.

If you’re reading this and would like to help, here are a few links to enable you to do just that:

Salvation Army (give.helpsalvationarmy.org), Americares (americares.org), Send Relief (sendrelief.org), Operation BBQ Relief (operationbbqrelief.org), American Red Cross (redcross.org), Hearts with Hands (heartswithhands.org), Samaritan’s Purse (samaritanspurse.org), Cajun Navy 2016 (donate via Facebook @cajunnavy2016), United Way of Ashville and Buncombe County (unitedwayabc.org)

Until next time, thank you, and here’s to seeing you out there in our great outdoors.