  We show how to create maximally entangled EPR pairs between spatially distant
atoms, each of them inside a high-Q optical cavity, by sending photons through
a general, noisy channel, such as a standard optical fiber. An error correction
scheme that uses few auxiliary atoms in each cavity effectively eliminates
photoabsorption and other transmission errors. This realizes the `absorption
free channel.' A concatenation protocol using the absorption free channel
allows for quantum communication with single qubits over distances much larger
than the coherence length of the channel.
