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July 20, 2014

7/20/2014

 
PictureThe first coneflower of the season at the lodge.
Good afternoon to you.  We've finally seen a few glimpses of the sun today, though it remains mostly cloudy.  The rain has not really been a factor today, though we received another 0.43 inches Saturday.  The cloud layer continued to insulate the lodge Saturday, as well, with a narrow high-low range of 55-51 degrees.

The forecast calls for improving conditions during the next few days.  If we get about three sunny days soon the flowers will explode all around the lodge grounds.  The flowers really put on an impressive (albeit too brief) show up top--our answer to Dollywood's fireworks show.  The purple monkshood are already blooming.  Just yesterday I saw the first hints of crimson bee balm.  By far the most numerous will be the coneflowers, with yellow petals and a brown center.  This time next week you should be able to take a photo of all three of these LeConte favorites, maybe even in the same frame.  The best place to look is between the hot water spigot off the exterior wall of the kitchen and lodge No. 2, though there's no shortage of beauty up here.  We do ask that people not tramp through the flowers so others can enjoy them, too.

In trail news, this afternoon I received a report of fresh bear tracks in the mud around the Rocky Spur area of Rainbow Falls Trail.  That doesn't mean you need to change any plans, just use good sense to protect you and our neighbor bears.

While they're unlikely to win any photography contests, I thought I'd post an interior and exterior photo of a portion of the work recently completed on our office.  The construction task was to buttress and support the wall of the building nearest the toilets, and a variety of methods were used.

Also, today I recall the four-year anniversary of one of my most memorable days on LeConte.  On July 20, 2010, my first year working the LeConte Lodge crew, I was taking a CPR/first aid course taught on the mountain that the company wisely offers all staff members
to help us assist hikers in difficulty.

One of my fellow staff members working the kitchen shift, knocked on the door of the room where we were doing our training and said, "Nathan, you got a phone call and you're an uncle."  She then turned around and walked right out without any explanation.  This was a big surprise to me, as my new nephew was supposed to be delivered by planned C-section on a specific day in mid-August.  I had arranged my August off days from LeConte to be present for the birth, as I had missed the birth of my first nephew three years earlier while I was horse wrangling in Hawaii.

Thus, the July 20 call was early and unexpected.  However, little Colton was undersized, early and anxious to meet the world.  Needless to say, it was a little hard to focus on splinting injuries during first aid class the rest of the day.  Looking up this morning at the sign above the dining room and reading "July 20, 2014" brought back some happy memories from four years ago.

It's not unheard of for crew members to have new additions to their family born while working at LeConte Lodge, though it's rare for guests.  Former crew member
Bethany became an aunt up here twice last year.  I will say I hope we don't have any births ON the mountain, as that's an episode of "Little House on the Prairie" waiting to happen.  Happy trails.

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Two of the internal supports installed during the recent office renovation.
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Larry O
7/20/2014 07:58:53 am

Nathan, you mentioned bear tracks on Rainbow, I thought I might advise hikers that Friday, Chrissy ( llama wrangler) and I ran into a large bear on our way down Trillium, I think it was at the 1st switchback. We tried waving our arms and yelling at him, when that didn't work I threw two rocks at him and he still didn't leave. I used my whistle and he decided to enter the woods, but he still passed by us within a few yards. Although he wasn't aggressive he showed no fear of humans, this and his size plus the fact we could not back off because of the llamas caused me concern. I don't think he intended to harm us and I don't want to alarm anyone, just be careful and remember they are wild animals.

norman
7/20/2014 09:37:41 am

Boy, that is enough to make one concerned!

Debi
7/20/2014 08:40:40 am

Nice! Can't wait to see it next month.

norman 'abr'
7/21/2014 05:45:51 am

Nathan, about what time do you do the blog??

High on LeConte
7/21/2014 07:43:30 am

Norman,

It really just depends on lodge operations and what jumps up on my "To Do" list when I update High on LeConte. Lodge operations and guest service on top of the mountain take first priority. As assistant manager (my title), you take over most of the responsibilities of both of the resident managers (Chris and Allyson) when they're on off days. Thus, when Allyson normally updates the blog in the morning, I'm cooking breakfast, working the office store and doing morning chores. It's rare that I get a chance to update the site before 1 p.m., but it usually happens before 4 p.m. However, I'm sure there will be a day when either the internet connection won't work because of weather, we don't have enough solar power to charge the laptop or lodge business forces us to skip a day. I hope that answers your question, though there's quite a bit of variability in the answer. Thanks for reading.

Nathan


Comments are closed.
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