I'm not home yet so the photos haven't been downloaded and I can't post them. Yet! I'm sure there will be plenty of photos here within a day or so!

Bob's Blue Ridge Parkway Gathering this past weekend was an awesome event. Some of us started arriving on Thursday afternoon and by the time the campfire was going that evening we were already telling "war stories" from the day's climbs. If I remember correctly, that first evening had Becky, Oldtimer, JimK, Hunabku, Trebuchet, myself and ,of course Bob himself.

On Friday morning the bigger crowd began arriving and by dinnertime Friday evening we were about up to twenty people, more or less. I sorta lost count somewhere in there. There were peole going back and forth to the trees all day long and trying to see everybody at once to get a count was an impossibility. Friday evening had everybody circled up around the campfire and the serious socializing began.

Saturday morning started off with Wiley Coyote making a presentation to J~Bird. First we hung the large four-foot banner proclaiming this to be the "Drop Stuff On J~Bird's Head" festival. (Don't worry...photos are coming!) Then we had the presentation of the fifty pound anvil which J~Bird claimed to be just as heavy as the weight that Clarence had dropped on his head at the last gathering. Finally the "Golden Anvil" award was presented to Clarence and it's a rule now that he has to wear it around his neck until somebody else can drop something on J~Bird's head. The last I heard, it had been passed along to Hunabku. I don't know the details on that one. Y'all need to consult J~Bird, Clarence, and Hunabku....

The rest of the day Saturday had people going in all directions and climbing most of the trees on the property. There was a lot of wind and some of the trees were really giving climbers a ride. There was at least one recorded case of motion sickness, but I don't know anything about that! Chilly temperatures, too.

The feast on Saturday night exceeded similar feeds from the past. Salsa and Pico de gallo for starters. Followed by boiled shrimp, barbecue, chicken and a whole lot of other stuff. J~Bird made his usual gourmet additions to the feast. J~Bird's and Lorrie's nut fudge brownies were the final touch.

Then it was campfire time...but first we had Forrest Kelly doing his fire dancing around the campsite. Finally the guitars came out and things turned a bit musical with people playing, singing, and beating on tin pots and drums. Somebody was using a doggy dish and a big spoon. Fun, fun, fun...

Saturday night was COLD! I don't know how cold but I figure it was darn close to freezing. It was clear and a partial moon hung over the campsite. At daylight on Sunday morning it was really hard to crawl out of the bag and start moving, but when I did, Bob was already up with a pot of coffee ready for drinking. Sweet!

Sunday had everybody out and climbing once again, but by lunchtime, some of the climbers were beginning to pack up and depart. Then there were those of us who smugly let it be known that we weren't leaving till Monday. J~Bird may still be there....

Monday morning JimK and I went out for a climb, then even we began to prepare for departure. J~Bird and Hunabku were still hanging in!

All in all it was the greatest gathering ever. Our best count had twenty-nine people there and there was more sharing of ideas and techniques than ever before. And for those of you who think that Ron has a lot of gear...well you might want to look at Jack's gear pile.... he has things in his gear bin that haven't even been named yet.

All right. I've gotten this report started. Those of you who were there, it's time for you to chime in!

Bob AWESOME event ... AWESOME place ... AWESOME JOB - Thanks, wish we could have stayed longer, maybe in the fall.

Here's a few pix. I'll post them separately in case anyone wants to identify themselves.

JACK

Great report and photos! It pains me so that I wasn't there, but I'm glad it went so well.
-moss

Thanks to all at Bob's Blue Ridge Parkway climbing event. Everyone was welcoming, really tolerant of, and downright friendly to us newbies That's us in picture # 4, tackling one of the poplars. Thanks to Joe for the knot review of the Butterfly and Double Fisherman presented in a way that even I could "get it".

I learned a lot and enjoyed Sat night's fire stick show and soiree.I even got to watch the Rouge Gear Lords scamper up a big pine 4 at a time

Could not ask for better weather, company, or setting for tree climbing. I hope to see everyone again soon.

To see the photos follow this link.
Specially the Drop something heavy on J~Bird Sign

http://www.flickr.com/photos/oldtimer1/ ... 775507459/

30 Climbers, Tons of Fun
Thanks to Bob Wray and BRTC for his hospitality and allowing us to enjoy his wonderful place

Here are a few more pix from around the central "kitchen" area during moments between climbs.



have any of you tried slacklining? Samantha and Sarah were pretty good at it, and I have a suspicion that playing around with this activity could seriously improve one's balance while moving around from limb to limb in the canopy. Besides...a piece of webbing strung between two trees provides entertainment for everyone watching while the lead climber is "up there" setting lines for those of you hanging out around the base of the climb.