Michelle and I spent 4 days in June hiking up and down (mostly up) the trails of Great Smoky National Park. We saw green mountains, deep vallies, mountain streams with moss-covered rocks, enough rhododendron to last a lifetime, lots of snails, salamanders, and even a bear. It rained on us at least once day, and one time we were lucky enough to pitch our tent in an area that turned into a lake. We learned that critters are more of a threat to bear bags than bears: ours was chewed into every night, no matter where we hung the bag. We are considering buying a steel plated bag to protect our peanuts on future trips. Our legs and shoulders aren't sure they'll ever forgive us, but we can't wait to throw on the packs again! Click on the pictures if you want to see more photos at Shutterfly.com.
