You know it is spring when you go to Climax and a certain smell attracts your attention.

The aroma is overpowering, and your nose leads you on. Then you notice others are following you.

The unmistakable smell of frying ham and sausage, reminds you when Momma was cooking supper as you played outside in the spring air. You drive on, and there it is on the Swine Time grounds, folks sitting at picnic tables with mayhaw and wild blackberry jelly before them, where’s the syrup? Oh it’s on the gravy table.

Talking about gravy, there was tomato, sausage and red eye. Your mouth begins to water before you can get your plate and find an empty seat. You can feel the hot biscuits through the covered plate. Please let me find a seat! Oh the taste when that first bite of biscuit filled with jelly melts in your mouth.

Oh yeah, it’s spring time in Climax and folks are eating and visiting together just like they have for the last 14 years to help Cedar Grove Cemetery.

The workers at the ham and egg supper reported that they cooked seven cases, or 210 dozen eggs, around 400 pounds of ham, near 200 pounds of sausage, 65 pounds of grits, and biscuits and gravy galore.

Supper committee chairperson Flora Nell Hughes said, “Everyone worked very good together, and I want to thank everyone for their help, including our Climax County Commissioner Butch (Mosely) and his wife, June.”

People visited Climax from many different areas—Havana, and Tallahassee, Fla., Atlanta, Ga., and all in between—reported having a wonderful time, and they said they wanted to help the Cedar Grove Cemetery, as well as sample the delicious food cooked right before their eyes in the kitchen on the Swine Time grounds.

How the road to Climax was named

In the tribute to Doyce Ariail, we stated that Highway 84 within the city limits of Climax was named as an honor to Ariail after the City of Climax requested it.

Belinda Hurst said before 2002 she contacted then Rep. Wallace Sholar and he helped her get permission from the General Assembly and the Department of Transportation to rename part of U.S. 84 the Lt. Col. Doyce Ariail Highway within the city limits of Climax.

During a Flag Day celebrations in 2002, portions of Highway 84 was renamed in honor of Ariail. While speaking at the celebration, Sholar thanked Hurst and City Clerk Alma Hart for initiating a petition before the Climax City Council two years prior to 2002 to have the highway named in honor of Ariail. The city then presented the petition to the state for approval, and Sholar said it had taken two years to get the resolution passed through the House and Senate.

So while the City of Climax did not initiate the naming of Highway 84, it did present the petition and request to the state for approval.