Trailheads Go Back 400 Million Years, Argue About Directions, And Discover Dino Bones at Ford’s BBQ-Tucker.

With George on a film production in L.A., Steve doing businessy things, and Roy hanging up his hiking boots to practice guitar for his upcoming world tour with Nine Inch Nails, Trail Master Guy led Brad and Patrick on this week’s journey into the past. Our destination was Lithonia to explore granite gneiss– the stone of Arabia Mountain. 

What exactly is “gneiss?” Well, non-geology friends, keep reading. Read about a previous hike on the mountain here.  

This hard rock is migmatite and is called Tidal Grey because it contains bands of light and dark minerals twisted and folded into distinctive swirls. What caused this unique pattern? We’re glad you asked, curious one.

400 million years ago, the rock was cooking below the Earth’s surface. The minerals were subjected to intense heat and pressure, and later partial melting. By and by, it flowed like taffy to the surface, and when it cooled––voila––Tidal Gray made its entrance into the world.

Flash forward to the 1880s, when some enterprising folks said, “Hey, that rock looks pretty, let’s cut it up and build some stuff with it.” They weren't sure what they'd build, but there had to be something– probably not a treehouse.

The next thing you know, quarrymen began working on Arabia Mountain, cutting slabs of Tidal Gray. 

We assume this historical nugget was the inspiration for the young John Lennon and Paul McCartney when they named their first band, The Quarrymen. We may be wrong, but every Beatles fan knows of the rockin’ duo’s obsession with all thngs Lithonia, Georgia. Surprisingly, the Rolling Stones showed no interest in the area. Were they Smyrna, GA snobs? Perhaps.

Back to our harder rock history lesson. The blocks of cut granite gneiss quickly became a popular building material, used on Atlanta streets, at the West Point and Annapolis Military Academies, the George Washington Bridge, and the Rayburn Office Building in Washington, D.C.

One critic described the Rayburn's design as "middle Mussolini, early Ramses, and late Neiman-Marcus." Another called it an architectural "natural disaster." These harsh critiques came in a kinder age, before the police state of D.C. today. However, there was no criticism of the building materials used in the Rayburn Building. Back to our story.

Since Arabia Mountain wouldn’t come to us (we asked politely), we had to go to it. Fortunately, there is a nice, long boardwalk leading to it, a perfect setting for a selfie for the self-proclaimed “handsome” Trailheads who are engaged in a nasty lawsuit with the “less attractive” members of the gang. Read about the ugly lawsuit here.

The surface of Arabia Mountain looks like another planet. When there is moisture, lichens magically appear. These organic doohickeys date back centuries, and when things dry up, the lichens retreat into the rock (the sneaky rascals). Ain’t nature something?

We took a selfie to make it look like a tree was growing out of Guy’s head—who knows, maybe one is taking root inside there (it's spacious enough). Maybe when there’s moisture in his noggin, a tree magically appears like lichens. We’ll keep an eye on it in case he gets a sweaty forehead.

As we explored, we saw many varieties of interesting vegetation. Fio and Elvis enjoyed the strange terrain.

After a while, we thought about heading back, but instead of backtracking, Trail Master said he had a new way to return.

“Are you sure?” asked ever-doubting Brad.

“Yes,” Guy said, agitated by his eternal thorn. “I’m positive.”

“I'm hungry. I don’t want to get lost.”

“You won’t. I know the way. Come on!”

Brad and Patrick cautiously followed Trail Master, fully expecting we might step off the face of the planet as we trekked across brush.

Soon, we came to a different section of Arabia Mountain and climbed it to the horizon. We were famished, and if we didn’t get to a restaurant soon, one of us would be rotating on a spit over a fire to feed the other two.

We decided to head back toward Atlanta and selected Ford’s BBQ in Tucker as our dining spot. Read about a previous visit here.

Our server, Crystal, was fantastic. We grilled her about who Ford was, the person the joint was named for, and she confessed there was no Ford. The owners made up the name. We asked whether they considered the names Chevrolet or Porsche, and she wisely ignored our smart-assery.

We learned the special of the day was the beef ribs.

“They are dino ribs,” Crystal told us. 

We knew exactly what she meant, and if dino ribs were good enough for Fred Flintstone, then by gumbo, they were good enough for us. Guy and Brad agreed to split an order of dino ribs.

To amuse our bellies before the main event, we shared six chicken wings. They were fabulous, with a flavorful dry rub, and cooked crispy, just the way we love jnthem. Each wing had a subtle smoky taste, and we made the bird flappers vanish in no time flat. 

The dino rib arrived, and Crystal wasn't exaggerating––the thing was big and as meaty as a Quentin Tarantino script. The dogs looked on with begging eyes as the hungry humans split their beef rib into two hearty lunches. Both men loved the rib and said the flavor was “amazingly delicious.”

Patrick made short work of his chopped brisket sandwich. The meat was tender and had a wonderful flavor enhanced by Ford’s barbecue sauce.

The sides were all incredible. The fried okra was cooked to perfection.

The cowboy beans had everything but a horse and a campfire for company.

And the savory Brunswick Stew was so hearty it made a spoon stand at attention. Don’t miss getting some of this tasty, hearty love.

We sat and talked, wished each other a Happy Thanksgiving, and ran to see if our cars had been booted for parking illegally. It’s tough to get quality parking in Tucker.

Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers. We encourage you to hike and work off some of the calories from feasting. 600-700 miles should do the trick. And when you get together with friends and relatives over the holiday, remember to casually share some of the “gneiss” knowledge you picked up here. Dazzle them with your junior geologist stats. You might even be asked to leave early.

Rating: Four Ribs*

Ford’s BBQ (Tucker)

2337 Main Street

Tucker GA 30084

(678) 691 - 7075

fords-bbq.co

*About Our Barbecue Rating System

Trailheads do not claim to be food experts, epicureans, or sophisticated palates. We are hungry hikers who attack a selected barbecue venue and ravage our way through whatever smoked fare and fixings they're dishing out. nj Ounr reviews feature what we believe are the highlights of the menu we sampled. So our intent is not to trash talk the saintly folks who tend to smoldering smokers on hot, humid summer days. They are sacrificing themselves in the noble art of smoking meats and feeding the drooling masses. Many are independent entrepreneurs who are the backbone of this humming American economy. Now that you know our standards, you may wonder why every barbecue place gets a four-ribs rating. The answer is easy: our group has acclaimed designers, and they think the ribs graphic looks cool. Who are we to argue? Enjoy. n

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