First stop: Post Office in Hartford. I called for the mail to be sent last week, but it had not arrived yet.
Second stop: The hot spot they gave us at the AT&T store was no good. They had pulled it out of a drawer and gave it to us last week. We spent at least two hours in the store getting it to work. However, over the past several days it worked for a while and then quit. There is no way to restart it other than opening it up and taking out the battery, and the reassembling it. Over and over. So, today we took the one we bought last year into the store and they put a new SIM card in it. It works fine now.
Third stop: We picked up the Traffic Crash Report from the Sevierville police station. Oh, I forgot to mention that last week, didn't I? Last week, we left the AT&T store and stopped at a traffic light. The guy behind us did not. There is not much damage, barely noticeable really, but it will surely cost some to get it fixed. It was the day we got the 10,000-mile oil change. We've had this car since August and this is the second time someone had crashed into it! The police officer who came to the scene suggested that we get another car - perhaps one without a target painted on it.
Fourth stop: Tennessee RV, almost all the way to Knoxville. We were having power surge issues in the motorhome last week, so Andy wanted to get a surge protector. We bought one last year, but he didn't know where it was. We bought a second one and then Andy found the first one when we got back to Big Creek. I was dreading another trip to return one of them, but then decided we could make an adventure of it, by continuing west to Fall Creek Falls State Park, a place I've been wanting to see for several years now. However, by the time we finished our return at Tennessee RV, we decided it was too late in the day for the state park. Yes, I was disgruntled.
Fifth stop: Costco in Farragut, on the west side of Knoxville. If we were already that far west, we might as well pick up a few needed items at Costco. We didn't need much. I felt better after I got one of those frozen coffee drinks. We headed back to Big Creek.
What a waste of perfect weather.
These two happy hikers in Site 4 had just finished hiking the loop up the Big Creek trail to the Swallow Fork Trail and along the Baxter Creek Trail back to Big Creek. It is about twenty miles. They were tired and exhilarated.
I may have taken a picture of this plant growing from the base of a tree. Maybe it was two trees at one time. If you've already seen it, don't bother looking at this one. I enjoyed seeing it again.
We were crossing through Site 7 when I noticed the hole at the base of this tree. I am always curious about holes under trees, rocks, stumps, and rootballs. Did some little animal live there or spend last winter in there?
It warranted a closer look. I did not get down on my knees to inspect it nor did I stick my hand in there, though. The hole was big enough for a fox to get through if there was room deep inside to curl up. I have not noticed it before. Could it have been dug out for last winter? Maybe it is elves.
We were directing a young couple to the three best campsites overlooking Big Creek, especially Site 11. My favorite. I stopped to chat with the young man again as he was registering at the kiosk. He told us that they are biologists from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and were studying salamanders. I know the the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is "the salamander capital of the world", but have only seen one here - ever. He told me that they come out at night, one can see hundreds of them, especially during or after a rain. And, if we see one waving his front feet, that is a mating ritual. Now I know why we haven't seen many salamanders - we are tucked into the motorhome after dark, except on nights we have a campfire. Even then, we are not out late. I am going to make an effort to get out there one night for the salamander show. See more at https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/nature/amphibians.htm..
Here's another fact of nature: If you get boys in a body of water with rocks, they are going to throw rocks in the water. These three were picking up and throwing rocks as fast as they could.
The afternoon sun was shining through the trees, making a nice star. I probably took half a dozen pictures of it, but they all had this pattern of red dots. Maybe I should clean the lens.
I've been checking every day, but there has been no sign of mushrooms by the picnic area toilet building. They sprung up today while we were out.
These mushrooms have very short, wild lives. Up one day, full the second day and dead the third. I wish I had more confidence as a mushroom hunter, but harvesting anything in a national park is illegal in a national park.
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