French Broad. River, that is...

During the late afternoon of Monday, May 4th, I arrived at the French Broad River Campground, just north of Asheville, North Carolina. It sounded like a more remote option than the KOA. I was glad I had decided to be sure there was daylight left. Setting up a new tent for the first time is always an adventure, and, of course, the “directions” were totally useless. After a few minutes of staring at it and walking around, I figured it out. It’s very light – too light for a bad storm, I think – but an ingenious design. Two sectioned graphite poles form a crossed arch beneath which the center dome of the tent is suspended. When the corners are secured by stakes, the result is a fairly comfortable shelter.

I tossed my sleeping bag inside, plugged in my extension cord and used my recently acquired hair dryer (thanks Elaine!) to blow up the air mattress, and then settled down to build a fire, eat and relax. I had decided not to grill a steak on this first night in a tent. I had no room in the car for another trip to the grocery store! So I opted for chicken salad pitas. The diced red onions I bought were potent – I’m fairly certain the smell of those alone would keep the bears away.

It had been so long since I sat by a campfire in the woods that I spent a few hours just watching and enjoying. A brief drizzle made me wonder if I was in for a miserable night (it had rained most of the day), but a few stars appeared. Then the moon broke through a hole in the clouds, and the river – just twenty feet away – was soon reflecting the narrow beam of silver light.

I had traveled 601 miles since Saturday afternoon, and I was now where I wanted to be – nowhere, for a few days, at least.

I thought I'd add a few visual aids...

My new tent on the banks of the French Broad:


I put Albert in the Rolling Rock chair to enjoy the view:


A video I shot that night, from my chair (it may take a minute to load):