Microtel Inn And Suites Franklin

Dear Family & Friends,

Caroline and I had a brilliant day at the Great Smokey National Park, traveling through it from North Carolina to Tennessee across the state line. I will leave the pictures to tell the story. Off today to the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad and on to Columbia - as we move closer to the East Coast line.

Will leave the pictures to tell the story of the day,

Love Les & Caroline xxx

... cars.
Car 4 was a Pontiac G6 which I said I would take but they then found,
Car 5 which had done 48000 miles and had a flat battery.

Now nearly an Hour in the Hertz Compound - we were finally issued:

Car 6 with Only 3400 miles on the Clock and a 2010 Mazda 6. Finally we left I think they were pleased to see the back of me.


First stop after driving out of Atlanta, was Cornelia, a small town about 60 ...

... great in the AM the first 1/2 of the ride it's hard to see the views.
2. You'll be tempted to take pictures when you first get off the train during the 1 hour break. Don't. Everyone else has the same idea. Take your break first. Then after 1/2 hour everyone will be taking their break and you can take pictures without crowds of people.
3. If you do take the PM ride at least this time of year the only thing that ...

... this mountainside with a feeling of tipping off of it. The rock cliffs and wet roads didn't help. I got over the fear and laid out on the bench in front of the window in Lola, just watching the world go by out the window. Fall is one of my favorite seasons and I can lay and watch the colorful fall foliage forever. When something is so beautiful it's hard not to watch.

We passed through a couple interesting towns as we jetted through the space between. Cherokee, NC was a ...

It has been many years since I've been in Cherokee and little has changed except for the Casino which is undergoing major expansion. We were nestled into a nice RV park with a brook flowing through it. Cherokee is close to many attractions and we enjoyed our stay there.

... played everywhere including under our RV and thru our site came running kids in hot pursuit of "the pirate" or "the man" or whoever!! It was noisy and wild! The smells in the air for all three nights and all four days included every kind of BBQ you can imagine as well as potatoes, onions, hot dogs, hamburgers, steaks, baked beans, then on to bacon, eggs, pancakes, syrup and sausages!! it ...

... to help install solar or build another building and he will surely enjoy doing that.

I love being around people and places with vision and a mission statement. It just puts me at ease and at the same time gets me all juiced up. Most of my friends are people with vision and you all know who you are.....some are building visionary homes, or rebuilding old ones into their new vision, some are creating films to express their wonder ...

We take a day trip to Highlands, NC.  Yet another mountain town. A beautiful ride as usual.  To get there we go through Brevard and Cashiers.  All of these places near the Nantahala forest are upscale and dotted with streams, rivers, lakes and waterfalls.  Along the way we spotted Georges State Park and decided to take a slight detour to check it out and eat lunch.  Turns out the park is still under construction.  It's not entirely closed.  You can drive through it but most of the ...

... how beautiful it was and how much fun she was having. I did feel pretty honored to be able to take her on that hike.

2) Mary and I hiked up to the top of Cold Mountain. That one was about 9 or 10 miles with some crazy elevation gain. I had fun on that one for several reasons. First, Mary is awesome to hang out with, a very super person. She and I went to grad school together, and she was a therapist at the camp as well. On the way up to ...

... nine rooms with private baths, spectacular mountain views, and a breakfast buffet; or Wayah Creek Cottages, seven rustic mountain cottages by a mountain stream in the Nantahala valley, fireplaces and kitchens. Many other cabins, cottages and chalets available in the area. Eat at Mountain Vittles where everything is cooked from scratch; Buglino's Sausage Factory Deli offers pizzas, Italian entrees, imported food specialties, and homemade baked goods.