Vol 5, Issue 3

The garden has certainly taken on the look of fall the last couple of weeks as the Golden Rod and sedum began to bloom. Summer is over and if you haven't already planned for a fall get away, it is time to start.  We still have a few opening for October.  If those do not work for you keep in mind that the  

last couple of years the leaf color has lasted well into November and we still have several opening for that time.  

After the leaves fall it is still a great time to visit Asheville to see the holiday decorations and shop for gifts.  See the coupon at the bottom to make those visits an even better deal.

Summer in Asheville has been great!  All the really hot, dry weather much of the country has suffered through avoided the area.   We didn't have nearly the number of humming birds as last year but we did have this young one that Jodee found while weeding the flower bed.  It appeared to be exhausted, hungry and unable to fly.  It readily ate from the flowers and sugar water that Jodee offered it.  We left it in a little makeshift nest where it seemed to recover and then the mother came and coaxed it to fly away with her.  Click on the photo to see the short youtube video of it.  

Fall  Happenings

Asheville continues to grow and evolve.  The new Aloft Hotel on Biltmore Ave. across from Barley's brew pub opened last month.  We wouldn't actually want to encourage anyone to stay there when you can choose a certain B&B so ideally located in the mountains but it is an interesting addition to down town.  It is the new "hip, contemporary" place to be. Perhaps more importantly it adds three levels of sorely needed parking to that end of town.  It also includes the  Wxyz Bar overlooking Biltmore Ave. and the Blackbird restaurant, another "handcrafted, southern food" venue.  It will be hard for them to beat the new restaurant opening right across the street.  Kevin Westmoreland and Joe Scully, owners of the Corner Kitchen in Biltmore Village, are opening a new restaurant, Chestnut, in the old Ed Boudreaux's at 48 Biltmore Ave. The fare will include affordable, eclectic American food, including seafood, and a full bar.   It sounds like another great place to eat in Asheville.  

We thought Tal McThenia was just a regular guy traveling with his parents, aunt and uncle and a cousin till we discovered they were all going to Malaprops book store to listen to him read from his new book, "A Case for Solomon" he co-wrote with Margaret Cutright.  It is an intriguing novel based on a true story about a 4 year old boy that was kidnapped, rescued from an old piano tuner shuttling him around the south, then claimed by two different families as their own. Jodee loves her books so she went out and bought it and got Tal to sign it.  

The same week a woman stopped in looking for the old Bent Creek Lodge.  She had visited it as a young girl.  As we talked we discovered that she was Deborah Squier, the outstanding artist that Jodee and I had admired at the Blue Spiral Gallery just that weekend.  You can see her work at www.deborahsquier.com   .  

We get asked that fairly often.  Occasionally by people that seemed to think innkeepers never get to go anywhere.  Fortunately that isn't the case or we never would  have survived this long. We have had some some wonderful trips.  This July I got to go on one for which I've been waiting 20 years.  My friend David Lee applied for a permit for a private trip for 16 down the Grand Canyon in 1992 and we finally got to go. Jodee was part of the original group but opted out due to some physical issues.  In spite of missing her it was still an indescribably, awesome trip.  Click on the picture to see a few more pics from the trip. 

Jodee is going to get her turn soon. She has planned a trip to Nova Scotia with her friend Marcia.  One of the highlights of the trip is a three day cooking school at Trout Point Lodge.  

Sincerly,