LeConte 2010!!!!

i'm so stoked right now i cannot even explain it.

you know by now, if you've read much of my blog, that j and i have a love affair with hiking. we dig it. we love to camp, and hike, and play in the mountains as often as we can. in fact, we're spending j's fall break in the mountains in 14 days {but who is counting???}.

one of my favorite hikes is to mt. leconte - you can read about our hikes to mt. leconte here and here.

have you ever heard of mt. leconte? or mt. leconte lodge? let me educate you.... this information found on the LeConte Lodge Web Site. please take a gander around their website to learn all about it!

When night descends, you can wrap the silence around you like a cloak at LeConte Lodge. The only noises disturbing the stillness are the sounds of nature. Nocturnal creatures going their way, the rumble of thunder or breezes rustling through treetops. It's a place where the visitor easily bonds with the environment.

At 6,593 feet elevation, Mount LeConte is the third highest peak in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and LeConte Lodge is located near the summit at 6,360 feet elevation. When the movement to establish a national park in the Smokies was in full sway, a tent camp was erected where LeConte Lodge now stands to entertain visiting dignitaries from Washington.

Although LeConte Lodge is now under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service, it predates the establishment of the park in 1934. Jack Huff, a Gatlinburg mountaineer and founder of the rustic lodge, began building the retreat in 1926. Eight years later, Jack and Pauline Huff were married at a sunrise service at LeConte's now-famous Myrtle Point, the traditional place to watch spectacular performances of daybreak. Jack, Pauline and their family continued to operate the lodge until 1960. It is presently operated under the auspices of Stokely Hospitality Enterprises, supervised by General Managers Tim and Lisa Line.

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j and i haven't had the pleasure to stay at the lodge, just hiked up and enjoyed the scenery and hiked down. why have we not ever stayed there? because it's a special place and extremely difficult to get a reservation. in fact, they opened the phone lines up for reservations for the 2010 season yesterday morning at 8:00am EST. j started calling at 7:00am CST and made 100+ attempts only to get a busy signal and pass the task on to me. i made a total of 200+ calls throughout the day yesterday and never got to speak to anyone. and, it was posted today that every saturday has been booked for the 2010 season - in one day. can we say popular?

thankfully, i'm a "fan" of leconte lodge on facebook and was able to beg my way into a conversation with their fan page host. just so happens, i KNOW HER! small world. she got us hooked up!

we're in!!!! we will be staying here.....

(jess, i know you're jealous of my amenities)

{source}

...in a cabin at leconte lodge on october 19th, 2010!!! i can't wait!

i will spare you on that countdown....for now. :)

happy friday to me!
have a safe weekend, all!
GO BIG ORANGE!!