How Far Do You Hike In The Woods To Find The Perfect Walking Cane

How far do you hike in the woods to find the perfect walking cane? Ernest Nations told me, “Three, four miles usually.” After he has harvested his corn for the winter he’s raising canes. Actually, he digging up canes. He hikes through the deep woods near Clarkesville, Georgia looking for elusive sourwood trees. The sourwood isn’t rare but Earnest looks for tall, thin saplings. “The Good Lord makes walking canes. All I do is dig them up.” At the bottom of a sourwood the root “knob” takes a hard turn and forms a perfect handle. Ernest Nations waits until winter when it gets below freezing. That’s when they’re easier to dig up and dry. I don’t know about the drying part but pulling up a Sourwood sapling is work! Over the winter months he carves beautiful and elaborate canes. If I had to come up with a word to describe them it would be “personality.” No two are ever the same but they have one thing in common. Ernest Nations only makes practical walking canes. They have to work. If they don’t, they’re just wooden sticks. This story aired on WSB-TV Channel 2 Action News in 1976.

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Long before CNN and Fox News the Traveler series with Andy Johnston was presenting positive, inspirational, uplifting, funny and happy news. This Emmy award winning program showcased amazing people, unusual things, local legends, food finds, outdoor activities, folk art, and family fun. In 2022 the Walter J. Brown Media Archives at the University of Georgia founded The Original Georgia Traveler -- Andy Johnston Collection to preserve and maintain the stories.

The Traveler Series celebrates life and living in America in the 1970s. Nostalgia, small towns, traditional life and the good old days. The stories give us ways to compare then and now. Folklore, music, handcrafts, vanishing America and unusual people. Heartwarming stories, funny stories, personal stories and amazing people are in this collection.

This story is presented for educational and preservation purposes and is covered under Fair Use. At the time it was broadcast the television station had a blanket music license with ASCAP, BMI and SESAC. The station maintains that license today. All music used is covered under that agreement.

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