The Smokies are history now!!!

Many good things have happened since Sunday’s post, most notably is the Crew completed their hike through the Smokies, unscathed, happy and thankful. For the most part, the weather was terrific, and finding that many of the shelters had been retro-fitted was an added bonus. The last shelter the Crew stayed in was Cosby Knob Shelter, and as it turned out, Adam said he had a very vivid memory of staying at the shelter close to 15 years ago. He told me that during the night he had to get up and make a pit stop, and when he walked out of the shelter the sky was so dark, and the stars so bright that he could almost reach out and touch them. He said it was at that very moment he remembered being at the shelter years earlier, and getting up in the middle of the night, and seeing the magnificence of the sky in the exact same way….how cool is that!

Read on…this is even more unbelievable. As many of you know, Adam and I have hiked all but 108 miles of the trail, but what you might not know is that I have a journal entry for every single day we have hiked over the past 18 years. After he told me what happened on Wednesday night at Cosby Shelter, I looked back in my journal to when we stayed at Cosby Knob Shelter (which was Saturday night, October 29, 1994) and here is what I wrote: “We made one final climb and descent to Cosby Shelter. Once at the shelter, we met 5 guys from the Asheville area, all believers and we had a great time with them. Sang songs, laughed, shared stories and enjoyed the evening. The stars were great, Adam and I watched them for a while, even saw a shooting star, what a night, Praise God for a great day. The clear blue sky, so clean and pure, what a world up here.” I’m still in amazement, and I’m still thankful for the Creator of the universe and that He still upholds all things by the word of His power! (Hebrews 1:3)

'Old' Cosby Knob Shelter

'New' Cosby Knob Shelter

Over the past several days, I’ve gone back into the archives and pulled out a few pictures of when Adam and I hiked this section. Check them out, and the dates they were taken…you’ll see the ‘younger’ Bob and Adam!

April 1991 - First day on the trail, resting on Dad's pack - Adam is 5 1/2 years old here!

October 18, 1991 - Blood Mountain

Adam gets his first pack - October 1993

Nantahala Outdoor Center - April 1994 (Adam is 8 years old here)

Cheoah Bald - one of my favorite places on the trail - April 1994 (Me, Adam and Michael Dixon) Look at the rock we are standing on, and then watch this video...Adam has an amazing memory!

The Crew made it to Davenport Gap Tuesday afternoon, 3/24, and walked under Interstate 40 at the NC/TN border for their official exit from the Smoky Mountain National Park. Great job guys! Check back tomorrow for some photos from their trek through the Smokies.