#4: [12-Nov-19]

#2: [18-Oct-03]

#1: [03-Mar-01]

20-Feb-2013 -- 17th Annual International Confluence Day What a difference six months makes! At last report (way back in August of 2012) we were completing a 13 state, 1785 mile walk to visit New Hampshire's most northwestern whole integer latitude - longitude crossing. Today’s first ICD stop required no walking at all, as the confluence point sits right in the eastern lane of the paved road running just southeast of the Bear Creek Reservoir.

I initially considered celebrating this year’s anniversary of Alex Jarrett’s initial confluence visit to 43N 72W (can it already be a decade I’ve been doing this???) with a trip to the Pacific coast, but as we will be going to California later this year to hike the John Muir Trail, I decided instead to see if I could knock out three more visits to Atlantic coast states (SC, NC, & VA) while killing two stone birds by throwing in a visit to my brother’s. And along the way, I thought I’d take the opportunity to drop off some snacks and sodas (i.e., “trail magic”) for the handful of thru-hikers who are out already braving the winter weather in the mountains as they head north on the Appalachian Trail. So I spent International Confluence Day Eve driving from northern Mississippi to Wallace Gap, just west of Franklin, NC, where the left-over’s from a morning snowfall made most of the mountain backroads slippery, and restricted me to the main highways. However, in spite of these set-backs, "trail magic" misson accomplished...

Afterwards, I continued east on US-64 to Cashiers, NC, stopping briefly at Bridal Veil Falls in Macon County. Bridal Veil Falls is a 45-foot (20.1 m) waterfall located in the Nantahala National Forest, 2.3 miles (3.7 km) northwest of Highlands, North Carolina. With a short curve of roadway located behind the falls, it has the distinction of being the only waterfall in the state that one can drive a vehicle under.

As the icing on the curve of roadway behind the falls had made that section impassable, I was glad Highway 64 has since been re-routed around the front of the falls. I parked at the pull-off on the side of the road, and was treated to seeing a rainbow in the falls reflected by the afternoon sun. I took this as a positive omen for successful confluence hunting on the following morning…

This morning it was a short half hour drive south on State Road 107, then slightly northeast on Wiginton Road (SR 37-413), and then north on 130 to the entrance to the Bad Creek Pumped Storage Project. Although a decade since the last reported visit, this confluence point remains little changed. One noticeable difference is the gate now seems to stand open, at least during daylight hours.

35N 83W marks the 20th different state where I have visited a confluence point on February 20th. I did not linger long, as I hoped to add #21 three degrees to the east in North Carolina…