We arrived at the Cannon tram building at 10:30, PVC pipe in hand and small flags strapped to our packs. We were approached by a woman named Anita who asked if we were the Flags group. She was with a large group from NJ, some of whom were hiking Cannon, some of whom were taking the tram. All had come specifically for the flags event, as many NJ lives were lost on 9/11.
We reached the observation tower at 11:30 with a stiff wind blowing and clouds surrounding us. Although we had participated for a number of years, this was the first time we were “in charge” of the flag, and I was a little nervous. But up in went without a problem! Jordan had made a poster of pictures of previous Flags events, and I put up a poster with the mission statement and a list of 62 victims names that sno_gabe had provided to me. Thanks sno_gabe!
Cannon was busy, despite the poor visibility. We were surprised at how many people had come to the summit specifically for the flags event. Many had visited the web site, others had seen it in newspapers.
J&J from Views arrived around 1:00 and stayed with us until the flag came down at 2PM. We were treated to a fly over of 4 or 5 large cargo planes. They circled Cannon, starting from the west, and coming around to fly through the notch. What a treat! J shot a good video that he will try to post.
Sometime after 1PM the clouds lifted a bit and we spotted the following flags: Garfield, Lafayette, Lincoln, Liberty, N Kinsman, and S Kinsman.
Thanks to my “team” – Jordan and Pop – we had a great day, and I think we made a meaningful statement on Cannon. Thanks to all the good people we met on Cannon who were so supportive!
