Nature

Great Smoky Mountains

| edwinridout

Nov 9th-11th at the Swag in western North Carolina, elevation 5,000 feet.

We started with lunch in their tree house.
A view from the porch near our room
Marty, Sandy, Jan, Edwin, on the guided nature hike
A dozen wild turkeys grazed on the lawn below the lodge but only two would stand still.
Our new Swag walking sticks
While I was out for a run, some hikers told me how to find Ferguson’s Cabin. Built 1874, it’s said to be the highest cabin in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, at 4700 feet.  Fergusons lived and farmed here until 1902, growing potatoes, sliding them down the side of the mountain as there was no road. Cabin was reconstructed in 1974 from original timbers.
Our one full day had perfect weather . . .
. . . but next morning’s jog to the marker atop Hemphill Bald (5,540 feet) was wet, windy, and in the clouds.

Brave chimney sweep

Image | | edwinridout

That’s a 40′ ladder which he put up and took down without help but not without difficulty. The task was to repair the crown, the rubberized cement which surrounds the chimney pot. The stainless steel chimney cap (temporarily parked between roof and ladder) did not need replacing.

Virginia Ten-Miler

| edwinridout

My favorite race of the year:
47th Virginia Ten Miler (my 24th).
Of the 15 men in the 70-79 age group, Allen was first (he’s much faster than I am — 1:28:34 for an 8:52 pace) and I was second (way ahead of the 3rd place man.)
Weather was perfect: sunny, clear, no wind, 48°F, 9°C.
As always this race, I insisted on Waffle House breakfast.