Good afternoon to you all.  We've not seen any rain thus far, just a lot of clouds.  The clouds are a little brighter than they were earlier, so I hope the sun decides to make an appearance.  The high and low for Sunday was 57-50 with just 0.10 inches of rain.

As anyone who has pulled up a rocking chair in our office knows, we are a faithful subscriber to National Geographic magazine.  Those magazines are responsible for me getting farther and farther behind on my reading list because I can't stop by our "library" without finding another two or three or 15 places I'd like to visit.

A while back I noticed a different looking cover.  This National Geographic was published in October 1952.  It's so old, there's not even a photograph on the cover, just a white text box highlighting the feature stories with the familiar yellow border.

A couple of things caught my eye.  First, I noticed the tagline "$6.00 a year.  60 cents a copy."  Secondly, I recognized a now familiar name had authored the first story.  Jacques-Yves Cousteau wrote "Fish Men Explore a New World Undersea."  I wonder if the young Cousteau had any idea how many adventures he would author in his life.

However, the thing I paid most attention to was an article written by Val Hart, with photography by Robert F. Sisson, titled, "Pack Trip Through the Smokies."  That was a must read.  It was a thoroughly enjoyable read, and I found the reason we saved it from the incinerator was that the author visited LeConte Lodge as part of her journey in the Smokies.  They rode horses up the Boulevard Trail to reach the lodge, now illegal and never for the faint of heart.

I noticed other differences in the story, too.  Sisson's photo of Alum Cave Bluff included no stairs or railing.  The park service boasted 1.9 million visitors in 1951, a far cry from today's count.  Different times, I guess.

Other things remained quite similar.  Hart's assistant guide, a man named Glenn Messer, aptly described the speed of the boomers (red squirrels) in these parts.  "A boomer is the fastest little varmint in the mountains, kind of a red squirrel.  Hit goes so fast that if lightnin' strikes the top of a tree whar a boomer is, the boomer can beat it down to the ground, look back up, and say 'Hit's split!"  I'd have liked to have thought of that.

The author's head guide, Tom Alexander, offered another telling comment.  "Mountain boys leave here," Tom said.  "and go to work in factories in Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Wilmington, or on ranches out West.  But almost always they come back home, saying they couldn't drink the water.  Hart replied, "We could understand how anyone who had grown up in these mountains would find it difficult sinking roots in other ground."

Allyson has returned from her off days.  She'll be writing High on LeConte for the rest of the week.  Thanks for reading.  Happy trails.

Hello to all of you from the top of LeConte.  A moderate shower is helping knock off the yellow and brown leaves from the mountain ash trees around the mountain top.  Most of the day we've been surrounded by thick clouds.  The visibility has been so limited it looks like someone's dunked LeConte into a cereal bowl of milk (watered down skim milk since a short shower began about 1:45 p.m.).

When the weather broke Saturday, however, conditions were a different story.  It seemed the cloud layer hovered near the lodge in a unique way.  The sun was shining above us, but all through the air tiny particles of mist chased each other in the sunlight.  This was much different from our normal experience of filaments of cloud wafting through camp, but most interesting.

Sunset proved spectacular.  At first, the deck of the cloud layer hung just above us.  This caused the effect of the sunset colors bouncing off the bottom of the clouds and painting the bleached white spruce and fir trunks yellow and orange.  As the sunset progressed, however, we stood above a thick layer of clouds burying the valley.  Thus, we got the feel of sunset in an airplane, with the clouds walling off the world below.  The night was no slouch either, as I heard a couple different folks said they saw shooting stars.  Indeed, the sky was magnificently dark and clear until just after midnight.  Saturday's high and low temperatures registered 67 and 51 with a scant 0.06 inches of rain.

Today I want to introduce you to one of the stars on the back of the 2014 LeConte Lodge t-shirt--Pete.  "Sweet Pete," as llama wrangler Chrissy calls him, is the only nutmeg-colored llama in our string.  He's also the smallest working llama on the farm at 253 pounds, but don't let his diminutive stature fool you.

"He is mighty for small," Chrissy said.  "He's never a fuss.  Plus, he lets you pet him and love on him.  He's the easiest to work with on the farm and at the lodge."

Pete follows Chuck in the string because he is the only llama that can tolerate him.  Chuck is evidently a good citizen when he's at the farm, but the trailer ride and hike up the mountain brings out the professional wrestler side of Chuck's personality.  For all those reasons and more, Pete is former LeConte Lodge crew member Bonnie Northrup's favorite llama.  We all like him, too.  Thanks Pete for being one of the best of the best.

Hope you all had a nice weekend.  Happy trails.

Good afternoon to you.  This is Nathan writing from the lodge today.  Sorry about missing a couple of recent posts.  We've had four medical incidents the last three days on the trail which either required our assistance in a rescue or necessitated us being at the ready to dispatch help from LeConte Lodge in concert with the Park Service.  We thank the folks at the Park Service who frequently join us and venture out into some hostile weather to comfort hikers having an awfully tough day.

We've had plenty of nice guests the last few days.  The only problem is that a couple of them didn't get back to their cars on their own feet.  The trails have been quite slippery with the recent rain.  The good news is, that at last contact, the long-term prognosis on all seems good.  They were all friendly people, and we wish them a speedy recovery and a happier return trip to LeConte Lodge.

We've also been busy for a September Saturday with ho-hum weather.  Perhaps dayhikers are rushing to buy their LeConte Lodge t-shirts before the imminent solar storm obliterates the mountain and causes us to lose electricity.

I'll try to catch you up on the weather the last couple of days.  We surely ended up with a rainy day Thursday, accumulating 1.77 inches of precipitation.  When I called the weather conditions into the Park Service the next morning, the ranger said we doubled the amount of rain down in the valley.  Thursday's high and low checked in at 62 and 54.  Friday proved to be an improvement on Thursday, as we only tallied 0.3 inches of rain with a high-low of 66 and 55 degrees.  On Saturday, we've seen a light mist at times.  The sun has taunted us a bit, but mostly cloudy skies have ruled the day.  However, the forecast is improving.  Maybe we'll get some bluebird pretty autumn days soon high on LeConte.

We had a bear in camp last night.  If you're coming up to see us, it's imperative that you keep all your cabin doors closed, keep nothing on your porch and store your food according to lodge policy.  Keeping the bears and our guests safe relies on the same playbook--making sure no bruins visiting the lodge acquire a taste for human food.

Finally, whenever you close a chapter of your life, it's natural to consider all the good things you'll miss about a place.  There's too much to mention in this one update.  However, I'll let you in on a funny one that happened to me a while back, a situation where living on LeConte gave me a welcome out.

I was taking my off days down below and was in a store taking care of some grocery shopping.  Crew members almost always visit the produce section when we're down because that's one of the toughest things to keep fresh sending food up by llama.  I was headed to sniff out some mangoes and collard greens, when I got caught in the net of a salesman aggressively pushing satellite television service in the middle of the aisle.  He was passionate about his product and polished in his delivery.

Sure enough, he greeted me to rope me in, and I answered with a pleasantry to be polite.  "I'd like to talk to you about installing the ultimate in satellite entertainment value in your home," he followed.

That's when LeConte bailed me out, and I smiled and countered.  "You're not going to believe this," I said.  "I live on top of one of the highest mountains east of the Rockies with no electricity.  We use headlamps and kerosene lamps to see at night.  My food is delivered three times a week by llama train.  When I tell my nephews that back in my day I had to hike five miles uphill to work because there are no roads, I'll be telling the truth."

The satellite salesman had obviously never gotten that response before.  "I guess you're not interested," he moped.  Happy trails.

Nathan and the crew are monitoring an incident on one of the trails that might require their assistance.  It is not due to solar flare activity.  Hopefully Nathan or Ruthie will be able to post tomorrow. 

Hello from the top of LeConte.  This is Nathan filling in on High on LeConte duties for Allyson for a while.  Sorry about not being able to post yesterday.  However, we were assisting the National Park Service with a rescue for several hours yesterday afternoon and evening, and that takes precedence.

Our weather hasn't been much to brag about thus far.  We ended up with a high of 62, low of 53 and 0.08 inches of rain Wednesday under mostly cloudy skies.  Thursday morning has been quite wet with heavy showers dominating the weather.  It hasn't rained much during the afternoon thus far, but the clouds are hemming us in tight.

I mentioned the rescue yesterday, which reminded me of a few autumn hiking safety tips to consider if you're hiking up to see us.  First of all, the hiker we tended to yesterday didn't do anything wrong--just took a bad step.

One thing to keep in mind is that the days are getting shorter.  I know, prior to this weather front moving through, the weather in the valley still feels like summer.  However, we're in autumn mode on top of LeConte.  That means that you need be aware of sunset time and how much daylight you have left to descend on a day hike.

We've seen too many dayhikers without flashlights show up at the lodge recently around supper, telling us that it took them four to six hours to ascend Alum.  From this time of year forward that means you'll certainly be hiking down part of the trail in the dark.  Also keep in mind that the leaf canopy is still thick on the lower sections of the the trails.  That canopy means that darkness descends there sooner than it does on top of LeConte.  While the dropoffs may not be as severe as you near within a couple of miles of the trailhead on your return, keep in mind all the roots and rocks can easily trip you up, especially if you can't see them.

Also, know that if you do get hurt and are hiking down too late, there will likely not be anyone else on the trail until morning to pass along word to us at the lodge or the rangers at the Park Service you need help.  While we've been seeing seasonal temperatures up top for September, keep in mind that the mercury will soon be dropping.  On July 30, our morning low dropped to 34 degrees (which is a rarity in July).  That will become the norm soon.  Do you really want to spend a cold, wet night injured and alone out on the trail without proper lights and gear?  If you get a late start dayhiking, it's safer to turn around and prudently hike down in the light.

Enough of the serious business.  I'm going to close with a little levity.  A while back, one crew member up here was trying to remember which day of the week it was and couldn't recall.  They finally said, "Every day on LeConte is Groundhog Day."  They were referring to the movie in 1990s in which the main character is stuck in the same day, Groundhog Day, over and over again and is powerless to escape it.

We all got a laugh out of every day being Groundhog Day on LeConte.  There's a lot of truth to that--same schedule for the most part, nice guests, beautiful surroundings just about every day.

However, once in a great while we see something wildly different.  At the end of July, I was astonished to see someone at LeConte Lodge walking around in a Bigfoot costume.  I talked to this person, who wore regular clothes hiking up and changed into the costume when he arrived at the lodge on a day hike.  He seemed friendly and remarkably normal for a person who had just hiked a Bigfoot costume five miles up LeConte.  He did walk around with his nephew nearby to prevent a cheap shot from what would have been the most disgusted big-game poacher ever.  He told me he was headed for Cades Cove next.  And you thought a bear sighting caused a traffic jam on Cades Cove.

Sometimes it takes a Bigfoot sighting to realize that not every day is Groundhog Day on LeConte.  Happy trails.

The Lodge is experiencing technical difficulties. Hopefully they will be able to post this afternoon.

Wow, what a night. The Harvest Moon to the east and lightning shows to the north. We had a great time sitting out on the porch watching the storms in the distance. The high yesterday was 64º with a low of 51º. We are currently under heavy cloud coverage.

Thanks to everyone who commented on the photo from yesterday. I am going to ask a friend of mine who is incredibly knowledgeable about fungi. I do think Norman hit the nail on the head with his comment, "bright yellow fungus". Thank, Norman. After our discussion about hoverflies, I had a guest ask me what they were and could answer with a good bit of confidence. I love learning and keeping the brain exercised. This mountain provides so many learning experiences. I guess I will be going from studying our favorite mountain top to learning everything there is know about chili peppers. It will be fun to watch the mountain through Ruthie's eyes and words.

Judging by the feed back, I think Ruthie is going to do a fantastic job. She hiked down last night for a few days of rest and relaxation. Her days seem to be a little busier now learning all of the ins and outs of lodge site manager life. She is getting the hang of it quickly.

Now, I have another quiz for you. I found the fungi in the photo above and I am trying to identify it. Does this look familiar to anyone? I am sure it will be my project for the day. I would love to hear what you think it is.

It is starting out nicely this morning. The high yesterday was 68º with a low of 50º. We did get some rain throughout the day yesterday, but at the end of the day, the guests were treated to a beautiful sunset.

   Hello from the mountain top on a beautiful September day! Please allow me to introduce myself- My name is Ruthie Puckett (long time hiker, first time blogger) and next year i will be taking over for Allyson and Chris as the site manager of the lodge. This has been my dream job since the age of 11 when I first hiked up to stay as a guest with my parents and two sisters. Don't let anyone ever tell you that your childhood dreams wont come true because this is proof positive that they can!

   We awoke to a lovely sunrise and a clear morning today. Yesterday's high reached 68 with a low of 50 and currently we are at a comfortable 61...lovely weather for a walk in the woods.
    
   Over the past month I have been training with Chris and Allyson on everything from water pumps, to paper work, to the finer points in the art of biscuit making (llamas can be rather picky about the flakiness-to-density ratio...and more importantly, the guests would like them to taste delicious). Although there are certainly things I've found that I enjoy more than others (making breakfast v. cleaning out the incinerator- I'm sure you can probably deduce which would be more fun) the thing I love the most has remained the same from day one. Being able to talk to people and help them enjoy their own beautiful and unique experience on this wonderful mountain- to make them comfortable while leaving behind the comforts of the modern world. 

   I know that so many of you read this blog everyday in order to have a little piece of that experience and excitement everyday from where ever you might be. I'll confess to you, I've never written a daily blog. Some days might be more interesting that other, some days might be brief, some days I might go on so long you'll think you might never reach the end! But that is how life is up here on Leconte - just like the weather, it can vary wildly. But i do hope that I can give you my own perspective of this place that i love so dearly! 

   Until next time, Internet World! 

It is a cool, cloudy, rainy day on the mountain. The guests ate their pancakes by the warm glow of oil lamps. I am sure today will be a bit slow. Most folks will be at a game or sitting somewhere rootin' for their favorite team. Yesterday was a busy day around camp. A lot of hikers took advantage of the beautiful day to visit our favorite mountain top. The high yesterday was 69º with a low of 54º. We have had a couple of bear sightings over the past day or so. I have not seen the little guy so I am actually not sure if he is a typical yearling  like we are used to seeing or a bigger bear looking for a home. So, remember, if you are on the trail today, do not leave your pack unattended. Do not leave any personal items unattended. We want this bear to stay wild and continue his hunt for berries and acorns.