Campsite 24 March 28
By now you have probably heard the good news. During the week of Easter we got crucified by a federal judge who ruled in favor of the NPS. (context of article is in underlined hyperlink) But I will say more on that after this trip report.
The last weekend of March we went to campsite 24 to join Frank and Rick Steves.
And Frank still looks mad as hell. After this week, he has every right to be.
That guy to his left is BackCountry George. That is what AJ calls him. I believe he likes the new appellation.
I hiked in solo from Cucumber Gap. It was a splendid day. Outstanding, I should say.
I had been teasing Frank because he has wanted to stay here so many times and I have talked him out of it. I joked that we would spread his ashes there at some point. His wife begged to disagree. Apparently he has to die first.
Will Howe brought Mack. Another of his friends from the AT trip. Mack is from Alabama? Or is it Georgia. I forget. Nice guy.
Mack brought a few brown friends that visited us in camp after a super cold low teens night. I was in a 20 degree bag. It was lacking. It was water bottle frozen cold last Saturday. But the fire, oh the fire was so delightful. Those deer came into camp because no one was trying out scream the wildlife.
And for a change,. wood was quite plentiful. And nothing had to be, in the words of some former hiking associates, Trevorkianed. It is nice to have campfires where folks can actually have conversations without being interrupted or hijacked.
It did require some hatchery.
Oh deer.
Frank and Rick Steve's were rewarded for their drive from Nashville. We had a glorious outing. Frank and I told George that the end was near. A determination on the lawsuit was imminent. George asked if he thought we would win. We both responded that we had already won. Hands down.
The lawsuit was always a vehicle to expose the cronyism rampant in the park. We exposed a private trail system maintained by Blackberry Farms, an illegal land swap between the NPS and Sundquist, we exposed the GSMA and their janitor lackey, we exposed Vesna for the sycophant she proved to be. We exposed Leconte Lodge, the 1.7 million dollar enterprise with no bid contracts and weapons of mass deception. We showed Dale Ditmanson for the deceiver of the decade and what a journalist told me was the "most crooked Superintendent is Smokies history". We exposed decades of back door deals. We illustrated the network of wealthy people with their hands in the Smokies till and outed the Carpetbaggers who came down to make their living off land that was donated by our forbears. Not theirs.
I am very pleased with the SFW and all these dedicated Smokies lovers have accomplished and you should be as well. If you are reading this then you have probably supported in one fashion or another. Did you see this poll? The Asheville Times today is proving that most people (80% as of this writing, oppose the fee). Of course if you listen to the GSMA janitor and NPS we are in the minority. But the janitor also refused to meet any of us face to face to explain how bb farm didn't have a trail system, we were all imagining it. He also refused my fundraising challenge. The SFW vs his employer, GSMA. He isn't that convinced in his bootlickery. But perhaps they will promote him to digital rectal specialist.
We are still deciding our next course of action. If you didn't read any of the news, here is one decent article. The KNS is not one of them but is subscription only so not many will see it anyway.
So do not be disheartened. We may yet appeal. Yes, on Easter week a federal judge crucified backpackers and Smokies descendants. In the most telling statement of his ruling this is evidence of the King siding with his King friends. And if you didn't have time to read the Judge's justification (I don't call it a ruling but since they are Kings I suppose ruling is the right word) Let me share what I feel is the most relevant portion of it to me. This is what the Judge, King Phillips had to say when we presented information that clearly showed that ditmanson did not contact the chambers of commerce and Blount County or Swain County commissioners as required by the FLREA. Ready? Here is the Kings commentary on Ditmansons assertions that the NPS was unable to prove. from page 47. Scroll down. It is simply unbelievable. Remember, we have a sworn affidavit from Blount county commissioner, Tab Burkhalter affirming that he did NOT receive any notification of the tax on his constituents, which is required by federal law. Keep Scrolling
[AR 257]. Although there are no written notes or other documentation of these
contacts,
the presumption of regularity afforded to agencies leads the Court to conclude
that
defendants did what they claim to have done. Hon Judge Phillips
a Geo Bush Appointee
[AR 257]. Although there are no written notes or other documentation of these
contacts,
the presumption of regularity afforded to agencies leads the Court to conclude
that
defendants did what they claim to have done. King Phillips, Senior
Federal Court Judge, a George Bush Appointee
[AR 257]. Although there are no written notes or other documentation of these
contacts,
the presumption of regularity afforded to agencies leads the Court to conclude
that
defendants did what they claim to have done. Judge Phillips
from Oneida, ruling on the federal bureacrats. From a federal
employee. We are not allowed to subpoena anyone because they may slip up
and tell the truth.
How about dem apples? If Ditz says he did it, he did it. Now go away. The fix was on from the beginning but we anticipated it. The BB Farm crowd has long arms. It probably wouldn't take too much detective work or too many incognito lunches at Club Leconte to link some folks, would it?