I ran into an amazing southbounder last week near Franklin. He is Ron-from-Israel. He hiked through Virginia and Tennessee through the winter and wound up staying 19 consecutive days in the fabulous Partnership shelter near Mount Rogers. Through the worst of the winter, he never built a fire once and was totally alone most of the time. The rangers knew he was in Partnership but eventually turned a blind eye. I say he ranks with the best mountain men of the old West. He admits to being a slow hiker. He started in New York last June!