This may be my last visit to Greensboro. Come December I will have new assignments that may not take me back here.

Headed west on Friday after work, up to the mountains near Asheville. A three and half hour drive from Greensboro, the last hour on dark winding mountain roads.

I stay at the Kana’Ti Lodge near Max Patch. I have been here several times and become good friends with the hosts; David and Jeanette. It’s quiet, comfortable and cozy with a unique rustic style. The lodge is part of a greater plan which includes nature therapy, permaculture and other activities around to ecology and psychology.

Saturday morning after a hearty breakfast I trek up to Max Patch from the lodge, a good 2 hour round trip. The weather is fantastic though the wind on top of the summit is icy cold and blows straight through my clothes. Up here most trees have dropped their leaves but there is still some colour. The view from the top is fantastic.

David takes me to the farm, a short drive from the lodge, where he grows apples and makes cider, and has a number of other horticultural and agricultural projects. The plan is to use it as a platform for getting modern, stressed professionals to get a more holistic perspective by connecting with nature.

I decide to catch the sunset from Max Patch. This time I take the car to get there quicker and not get lost in the dark on the way back. I am not alone, there are many cars and lots and lots of people with the same idea. Everyone is there to stand in awe of the sunset and the almost full moon. A couple look like they are getting married and I see other couples getting engaged and exchanging rings. Even if there are lots of people here the atmosphere is calm and friendly.

A cold hits me in the afternoon and makes my joints ache and my head feel heavy. I decide not to let it stop me from catching the sunset but I feel pretty awful when I get back for dinner. A good stew, some red wine and a taste of local Moonshine picks me up enough to enjoy a good conversation with David and Jeanette. An early night and a good sleep has me feeling a little better on Sunday morning for the drive back to Greensboro.

I drive down through Hot Springs and stop off in Marshall where I eat trout for lunch at the Star Diner, a nostalgic roadhouse with great style and food. I follow the French Broad River almost to Asheville before getting on th I-40 and the long, boring run to back to Greensboro.