12-Mar-2004 -- I was on the final leg of my move from Reno to Washington, DC, this leg being from Atlanta to a new home in Arlington, VA. As usual, I included several geodashing dashpoints and a confluence on my travel itinerary. The Confluence at 35N 82W was but a few miles off my route along I-85 near Spartanburg, SC, in a sleepy community of older small brick homes. I arrived at about 8:30 Friday morning. My GPSr indicated that the confluence was either inside or in back of the house at the location. It was a bit early in the day to be knocking on someone’s door. On the other hand, I didn’t want to be wandering around in someone’s back yard unannounced. Mrs. Patterson took care of my dilemma by emerging from the side door as I was in the driveway with GPSr and compass in hand trying to assess exactly where the confluence was. I explained my mission and she granted access to her back yard to get as close as I could there. Getting the GPSr to settle on all zeros (Photo #5) was difficult because the confluence appeared to be right at the corner of the back porch under a large tree (Photo #1). Photos #2, #3 and #4 show the view of the back yard to the south, east and west respectively.

The previous visit to this confluence by Don and Cathleen Converse was in October of 1999 before selective availability was turned off. There is no estimate of the error in their visit presented, but they found the confluence in front of a house that I’m guessing is next door to the Patterson house. Comparing the house in their photo with Photo #6 of the Patterson house, they appear to be mirror images.