Another day off, another park

Today I ventured east to Crowders Mountain State Park, about 40 miles away. I got a later start on the day, so I didn’t get there until about 2:30. Right when I got there and ready to hike up to King’s Pinnacle, a thunderstorm rolled in. I waited in the car for a while, trying to decide if it would go away. After a brief nap, I decided it wasn’t going to, and that hiking to an isolated peak in the middle of a thunderstorm wasn’t such a good idea, so I opted for a short hike on Fern Trail. I posted some nice photos–click the picture of my car to go to them.

I found it amazing how dry I stayed, even in the thunderstorm. I think part of it is the California perspective that thunder = heavy rain (so it wasn’t really raining that hard) and part of it was that the trees kept the rain from striking me directly. I can see how folks here can go on hikes in the rain: it was warm and the rain was fairly refreshing.

Driving back, the storm got into full force, and the interstate got a bit hairy, but I made it back safe and sound.

Friday evening I drove one of my fellow teacher/students to the bus station so she could visit a friend who’s in the area. Gabriela is from Mexico, and is the only other non-local here at the workshop. We’re both staying in the dorm, so we are sharing the UNCC summer dorm experience. After I dropped Gabriela off, she called me 15 minutes later to say the bus was full! I was still in the bus station area, so I picked her up and we shared a nice dinner and chat at an Italian restaurant in the campus area. The owner comes out and plays the accordion, which was kind of fun (as the bumper sticker says, “I play the accordion and I vote!”). We talked about educational and cultural differences between the US and Mexico. A great conversation. Gabriela’s friend came and picked her up Saturday, and they were planning on gallivanting around Charlotte a bit.

Well, it’s getting late and it’s time to get ready for bed. Tomorrow is another class day starting at 8:30.

Lee