Fire Below

3/18/2013

Fire in Pigeon Forge

The crew had a pretty uneventful day of scrubbing the walls of the kitchen and washing every pot and pan before returning it to its rightful place. I will say, "my" kitchen looks immaculate. I should add that our day was uneventful until after dinner time. That is when the phone calls started, telling us about the fire in Pigeon Forge. I provided a link if you are interested in the details. As of right now, no one has been hurt and I believe the only cabins to burn were rentals. I do know they were evacuating residence in the area. We are sending thoughts and prayers to all of the firefighters risking their lives to get this blaze under control.

The wind is ripping through the trees as I type. We are still getting prepped to fly tomorrow. The weather is looking good except for the wind advisories. I guess we will wait and see. The temperatures have been pretty warm during the day. The high yesterday was 51 with a low of 39. A lot of the snow is melting. I am sure the trail is much better. We had a lot of foot traffic on the mountain. I will leave you with a shot of the sunset that we witnessed while watching the fire.

dan waits link

3/18/2013 01:50:21 am

WELCOME BACK!

Looking forward to another season of wonderful blogs!

Gonna try a day hike Alum one day this summer.

Cya soon

???

3/21/2013 02:31:53 am

Those are 2 villages the people live in the caves now.

3/21/2013 04:45:56 pm

That is pension off for 4 next year I can come to USA after 4 years.

doug y

3/18/2013 02:11:35 am

I saw the report of that fire in Pigeon Forge a little while ago and the first thing I thought of was the lodge, but then I realized that the blaze was further away. I also thought about the firemen that, as you stated, risk their lives in dangerous situations to protect others. They deserve far more credit than they sometimes are given. This reminded me of a quote that I feel is meaningful:
"Reverence for life affords me my fundamental principle of morality, namely, that good consists in maintaining, assisting, and enhancing life and that to destroy, harm, or to hinder life is evil. Affirmation of the world - - that is, affirmation of the will to live, which appears in phenomenal forms all around me - - is only possible for me in that I give myself out for other life." Albert Schweitzer
I believe that if I think about what I ought to do for other people, my character will take care of itself. I only hope that I can live up to such ideals. Yes, I pray that the people fighting this blaze will be safe. I'm driving down to the Park this afternoon to camp at Elkmont and hope to observe the airlift tomorrow, provided that the weather cooperates. Have a great day up on the mountain !

Leigh

3/18/2013 02:25:48 am

Alison, it is so nice to have you back posting for us. I always love reading your updates, and your pictures are outstanding. Congrats on Mt. Kilimanjaro! Can't wait to read about your times on the mountain this year. Each time I check in it feels like visiting with an old friend.

3/18/2013 02:34:57 am

I was about to leave when I noticed another report on that fire where I could see Mt. Leconte in the background. It was on "Fox News & Friends". G'day

Ronette

3/18/2013 03:52:08 am

Allison and Crew, Welcome back! My first search of fb each day is for the daily update on the mountain! Love to see your posts each day. I also can't wait to hear about your Kilimanjaro trip when we are up there this year. We are seriously considering hiking it in 2014 so we'll try to 'bend your ear' when we are up to see you :)

Pam

3/18/2013 05:40:41 am

Welcome back I can't wait to hear and see your pics from your trip. Planning on Gburg in 5 days! Don't know if we'll get to hike up to see the wonderful people at the lodge or not. Would love to though Once is not enough for me!! Thanks for the fire info and I pray all the fire personnel are ok. Looking forward to reading your blogs again.

Debi

3/18/2013 06:03:19 am

I googled earth the location. My facebook was plastered with photos this morning. There are a ton of cabins in that area. Just counting 30 of them that supposedly burned is nothing compared to the hundred or more that are up there. Wow!! What a clean up mess they have. My heart goes out to them. My brother in law is a fire fighter in Chattnooga. Thank goodness for those guys. Stay safe.

3/18/2013 06:50:31 am

I really must be getting old, despite all my efforts and concentration not to do so ! Just before I was to depart to drive down to camp at Elkmont I looked at the weather forecast one last time and it made me decide to just remain at home, at least until this aftrernoon where I can always leave later; I normally do not allow the forecast to hinder my camping and hiking plans. I felt that the weather might interfere with the airlift tomorrow which was why I was coming down. It could still take place and I've wanted to see it for a while; I guess if the truth be known it's at least the excuse I was using this time to get to the Smokies !! Christi at the office told me that the fire was over in Wear Valley, which is the road leading to Townsend from Pigeon Forge I believe. The limited view I saw on the news gave me a different perspective. Regardless, I, too, hope that no one is injured fighting it; I know where it is and I remember quite a few cabins of all sizes there and it looks like a lot of them have been lost. Tragic economically to say the least. I, too, am looking forward to hearing some details about your ascent in Tanzania of Kilimanjaro, especially since I made it way back in the day. I'm very curious as to the deterioration of the glacial ice on Kibo, the main peak. Hopefully I'll be able to get up to the lodge soon. I can't help but wonder at all the activity going on up there right now with the initial preparations for the opening of the new season. G'day

Robin M link

3/18/2013 06:56:12 am

We'll be up top tomorrow! Looking forward to being on the mountain again.

Anne Mathews link

3/18/2013 07:43:05 am

I see that Trillium Gap is listed as not opening until April 12th. We were really looking forward to going up that trail the 30th and coming down April 1st. Is there any change they will open the Roaring Fork Road early?

Alex

3/18/2013 01:14:02 pm

I asked the same question. we are going up on the 9th. probably won't happen due to budget constraints. she suggested that extra 1.7 miles Kent suggested.

tomk in SC

3/18/2013 03:09:08 pm

If the road is closed, and the trail connecting RF and TG trail is NOT on your punch list, then walk the road. We came down TG last year or the year before when the road was closed and generally concluded that we worked a lot harder taking the trail when we could have taken the road. To a purist, the road might be unconscionable, to a pragmatist it's faster. For me, the option only exists when the road is closed.

Kent

3/18/2013 08:42:26 am

You can still access Trillium from the Rainbow Falls trail head. That only adds 1.7 miles to the hike, I believe.

I was planning on hiking up to Brushy Mountain via Trillium in early April when I come down.

Rachel Dickson link

3/21/2013 01:36:14 am

WOW!! amazing photo from high above of that blaze! awful a fire of such magnitude.

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