Asheville Forest Service Reunion

Thru the Smokies and Down Into Asheville

We had an uneventful (the best kind) drive south on I-81 and down into Asheville, NC.  We drove through some rain squalls over the Smokey Mountains and the Appalachians.  It was about a four hour drive and we got to the reunion hotel around 1700.  We were able to park the RV at the back of the property and checked in just in time to attend the opening reception.

Over the Appalachians at 3800 Feet

We have already met several friends and colleagues who we worked with in Alaska and Washington, DC and from the national teams that we both served on. 

The reunion is held every three years at different Regions of the Forest Service.  We attended the last one in Vail, CO and will probably go to the next one at Lake Tahoe, CA.  The reunion has sessions on Forest Service History, current management challenges, research and the wide variety of resources that embody 191 million acres of public land under the care of the U.S. Forest Service. 

Chase Pickering of the Vanderbilt Family

On of today's speakers was Chase Pickering who is a great, great, grandson of George Vanderbilt and serves as the marketing manager for the Vanderbilt Estate, hotels, wineries, and other enterprises.  His was an interesting historical presentation and a good introduction to our field trip tomorrow to Biltmore House and Estate.  It is an all day field trip so we hope that the rain holds off for a while.

Updating the RV Map in Asheville

Today we updated the RV map  during a dry spell in Asheville, and we are beginning to fill in a lot of the map and will capture several more states on our way west from here.  Here is what it looks like as of today:

We Wish We Had Diverted to North Dakota, But You Can't Do Them All at One

Tonight, we decided to take a break from the convention meals and went to the Ichiban Restaurant in Asheville, where we both had steak and scallops, along with some cold sake.

Hibachi Steak on the Grill

We will be here until Friday afternoon when we move west towards Nashville, TN.  We will probably post some photos from Biltmore tomorrow, but no promises.  Best wishes,

Neil and Pamela