hikers off!

We dropped off David and Brother Larry this morning for the start of their Appalachian Trail adventure. Dennis posed with them, and a few minutes after they disappeared into the woods, he wanted to go after them. He and I hiked a tiny portion of the AT as well, long enough for him to realize that we couldn't catch up with them. He says he wants to really hike the trail when he's "just a little bit bigger."

We toured Boone and Blowing Rock before hitting the Blue Ridge Parkway and heading for Gatlinburg. We had the best day! We started out at a super cool general store (Mast) where we loaded up on candy for our journey, lots of old-fashioned candy, and a real highlight was getting Nehi Grapes from a Coca-cola cooler identical to the one that was in my Papa's grocery store. Oh, what a good memory, and what fun it was teaching Dennis how to open our glass bottles with the opener on the edge of the cooler! The Parkway was spectacular, of course, with eye-poppingly gorgeous vistas around every bend (and there were lots of bends!). We stopped at Cove Memorial Park and walked the manor property, basically frolicking in a big grassy orchard with an incredible view. When we stepped out of the van, I was delighted to find myself shivering just a bit in the cool breeze! Yes, we got a little chilly playing outside on a July afternoon--how wonderful is that? We also spent a good deal of time at the North Carolina Mineral Museum, where Dennis earned his Blue Ridge Junior Ranger badge. This badge requires some work! So much work, in fact, that the ranger on duty awarded ME a Junior Ranger badge and certificate and swore me in alongside Dennis. He is very proud of his badge, and I'm hoping to use mine as a Christmas ornament (unless it's pulled into emergency service as a back-up for him).

Tonight at the cabin in Gatlinburg, he learned to play a couple of card games with Gran. They played Snap and Go Fish, and it turns out that he's quite the card player! He told me he only cheated once, but he won a bunch of times. In his mind, he's the winner EVERY time. We don't have his permission to beat him!

Great vacation so far! Am hoping the guys on the trail are also having a wonderful time.