Not far from the campground

   I find the screened in porch place. Of Wildwater.  Just standing under a platform up a pole, my mind quickens and I recall coming on a group trip here.  A little brother said to another brother, "It's like your pirate ship!"  

  "There is someone here!" I tell another guy wandering around looking for information when I see a smiling face behind a front desk. 

           Taylor, manages the rafting and ziplining center of (i)Wildwater(i), Summer 2025, and is also a 5th season Ranger.

  RAFTING AND ZIPLINING in the Nantahala Forest, "That is so cool."

  One part of Wildwater's "center" handles jeep tours and whitewater rafting and Taylor's holding down the fort on the ziplining side.  She tells me one platform is 100 foot tall, and there are eleven ziplines which have you go across about 30 acres of property.  "Whoa.  Do you have to do them all?" 

  Taylor explains that some people do a couple and then decide they want to get off the course.  "There are multiple spots where they can?" 

  "Oh.  Why do they?" 

  "Some people are nervous." 

  "Like a fear factor?" 

  "Yeah.  They try a couple lines and decide..."

  "it's not for them?"  

  The center sells tee-shirts and stickers and I spot a map on the counter and ask if they have any of those.  Taylor gets a brochure map and explains that it's not exactly the same, but, she opens it up it's kind of, some people like it better.

 

  We fall quiet for a few minutes and I can hear the Summer's insects and I ask Taylor if they still do group-stuff here.  Then I reminisce just a little about the long ago time some of us outdoors types with scholarly and administrative interests came to this place or some place similar to have a group thing. 

  "We can accommodate pretty much any size group...we've done a group up to 120 people," Taylor tells me.  After asking if I can take her picture for the blogpost and she says, yes, I go outside to get my cameraphone. It's just so beautiful here.

  NO SANDALS OR CROCS ALLOWED a sign on the counter reads.  "How come?" 

  T: Crocs can fall off; it's not cool to zipline barefoot." 

   "Okay, ready for a picture?" She is, so I take a couple and ask her to see if they're too blurry or anything.  "Mind if I ask if you work here or do an internship?  You don't have to answer." 

  She smiles.  "I do work here.  I 'm a manager."  We chit chat a little more and she let's me know, "We do offer internships and it's a seasonal job March through October." 

  I thank her for such a nice visit and she let's me know, it is a good day.  "Me too."