Asheville to Maggie Valley NC

Two people have said in the past 24 hours that they have never heard of Maggie Valley. I hadn't heard of Asheville two years ago. 

North Carolina is beautiful, whether in the muggy Outer Banks or chorusing tree frog populated mountains where I am now visiting another dear friend from Findhorn days. It's simply beautiful. Grab a Thesaurus and go to town; it's really that stunning. 

As well the people are kind. I lost my cars keys while jogging in the North Carolina Arboretum the other morning. I won't turn that tale into a drawn out oh please can we just get on to something else? bleating. It was annoying. To say the least. The trials of the day and night also included some honest gratitude, for example being relieved that I had left my armed Honda in a secure parking lot a stone's throw from above and beyond helpful Arboretum gatekeepers rather than say in the middle of the Blue Ridge Parkway. This was a good day not to have ventured too far. Long story short, they were found by that evening. I have also become a new convert to the idea of taking one's 2nd set of keys along on extended journeys. Yes, they were FedEx'd that day, and yes, I now have them. Along with the few self-defense martial arts moves my friend Greg showed me before I left the Bay Area, I hope I won't need them.

Maggie Valley is beautiful. I am told that its normal population of around 761 swells to over 15,000 in the pristine summer months, with many Floridians escaping their swelter to cooler mountain summer homes. Joan and I will explore the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, a Ghost Town and other nearby adventuring morsels. 

Lessons for the day: Breathe. Pray. Hydrate. Give thanks.