Travel Experiences with Jeff and Cindy Barganier
Out of Africa the fireplace, either side of which are French doors leading to an attractive screened porch with comfortable seating. The best part of all, the house is surrounded by glorious, serene woods. It’s all so…soporific (sleep-inducing).
If you have a weak stomach, don’t eat a big meal immediately before negotiating the hairpin curves over the mountain to Cashiers, North Carolina. But before enduring that drive, Cindy and I go ahead and stop at Cupboard Café in Dillard, Georgia for lunch. This friendly country café is located along Highway 441 North and serves a little bit of everything. It’s one of the few restaurants I know of that can satisfy my occasional craving for liver and onions. Cindy found a 2-bedroom cabin on Cashiers Lake via VRBO. The sky is deep blue today and so is the water. At elevation 3,481 feet, tucked in scenic mountains, Cashiers Lake is aquatic tranquility flanked by upscale cabins on one side and shops/ dining on the other. I love that our rental is a short drive—even an easy walk—to the Town of Cashiers, one of our favorite getaways.
Cashiers Lake
After the 300-mile drive and hot lunch at Cupboard Café, our most pressing objective is a nap! Our typical Highlands Craftsman cabin proves to be the perfect place for a snooze, featuring a stacked stone fireplace, quirky handcrafted bannisters and railings from dark tree branches. White-washed board and batten walls exude an easy elegance and make the pine floors pop. A vaulted ceiling and exposed beams accentuate
After our nap, we drive to the local Ingles Market and stock up for the weekend, then return to the cabin and search for firewood. One would think the proprietor of a nice joint like this would have a stack of split, slow-burning oak supplied. Instead, we find a note directing us to get our own! Fortunately, the woods are loaded with dry wood from downed trees. I gather a supply that I can “break.” The cabin doesn’t come with an axe either. Nor did I think to bring one. While Cindy cooks a pizza and finds the Hallmark Channel on the big-screen TV, I get busy employing novel methods of breaking dead limbs and creating an awesome fire. The balance of the evening is pure bliss.
Cashiers Lake, North Carolina
42 BOOM!
February 2022
RiverRegionBoom.com
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