Cabin in the Woods

Sitting on the back deck at the cabin

Ryan's family has a sweet cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Blairsville, GA. I have only been a few times but Ryan and his family have been going since they built the cabin in the early 90's. We went last summer and this year for Memorial Day and I thought it was about time I posted about this beautiful area!

Blairsville is about an 8.5 hour drive from New Smyrna Beach (closer to 10 from Orlando). With traffic and  a few stops for lunch, gas and potty breaks, it can take longer but if you take the scenic route towards the end, it's a beautiful drive. Whenever we go to Blairsville, the first stop is usually to an Ingles grocery store (pronounced like the ingle in jingle) to stock up on food we can cook at the cabin. Mostly I love Ingles because we pronounce it like the Spanish word for English which makes us giggle but probably makes us look like clueless tourists....which we are.

During our 2014 trip with Ryan's family, we packed a lunch and hit the road to Asheville, NC, about 2 hours away. Ryan's mom and sisters went to the Biltmore and we visited with friends who live right near downtown Asheville. The cool thing about their house is that it backs up to an edible park. There is a path that leads through it to the downtown area and you can nibble on apples, chestnuts and blackberries as you walk by. We went to Wicked Weed Brewing for a few drinks and snacks and we only had a few hours before we had to leave but I think there is another trip to Asheville in our future! The downtown area had a very cool hipster/hippie vibe where I think we fit in quite nicely :) If you have enough time, Asheville is the perfect day trip/overnight trip from Blairsville.

Last year's trip also included a journey to Helen, GA to go tubing (the one with the pink tubes just past the immediate downtown area, this is very important); a trip to High Shoals Falls where we found a secret pool after a harrowing trip up the mountain on an unpaved road in a rental car; a trip to Jumping Goat coffee and the businesses around it (antique store, old mill store, winery); and finally, a relaxing glass of wine at Crane Creek Vineyards, where, if Ryan and I ever get married again, will be the future site of our nuptials.

Crane Creek Vineyards

This year for Memorial Day weekend, Ryan and I went to the cabin by ourselves with our dog Romeo (who, by the way, got car sick on the windy mountain roads...whoops). I had done my crazy person Internet research and I had quite the itinerary planned for us! We went back to Crane Creek Vineyards for live music and tapas on Friday night, hiked Blood Mountain which is the highest peak of the Georgia portion of the Appalachian Trail and then perused an art fair in downtown Blairsville on Saturday, watched a movie at the Swan Drive-In  Theater (highly recommend!!) Saturday night, and wandered around downtown Blue Ridge and picked strawberries at Mercier Orchards on Sunday. So rarely do trips work out the way you want them to but it seems that every trip to this area is filled with fresh mountain air, beautiful weather, and kind people.

Hiking Blood Mountain

Swan Drive-In Theater

St. Marys, Georgia

(Mr. Freezes and parades...yeah summer!)

This 4th of July all that I wanted to do was to see a parade in a small town.  Growing up in the Upper Peninsula (UP) of Michigan (practically Canada), I get nostalgic and misty eyed during the summer months, which were my absolute favorite in the North. Summertime in the UP is amazing for several reasons: 1. No snow!; 2. Many families have cabins or "camps" on lakes and rivers and even if you don't have one, there is no shortage of hospitality in the UP! Sooner or later, an invitation to a BBQ and swimming or jet skiing/boating in the river/lake is sure to come; 3. Each town has their own festival and  they are usually during different times in the summer so you can attend all of them...they usually have fireworks too; 4. and last but certainly not least PARADES. I don't think I appreciated parades until recently but, especially in a small town, they are a shining display of a community's pride and sense of togetherness that can be hard to find elsewhere.

St. Marys, Georgia did not disappoint! We arrived about 20 minutes before the start of the parade, parked along the side of Osborne Street and walked a few blocks to a shaded area along the parade route. They really went all out for their parade and it was awesome! I kept saying "I'm so glad we came here" to Ryan and he just nodded and smiled and kept his thoughts about how crazy I am to himself. After the parade, they had a street festival and if we had stayed until evening, we would have seen the fireworks show after dark.

Swinging on the porch swings by the water

Even though you may not be able to recreate my perfect small town 4th of July parade and experience, you can still visit St. Marys! While they have been hit by the recession just like everybody else, it seems as though efforts have been made to keep the immediate downtown area looking very nice. There are many well kept Victorian style houses and B&B's, restaurants and a charming park near the water with porch swings that overlook the river. We went to Captain Seagle's outdoor patio area and enjoyed a delicious shrimp basket with hush puppies and seasoned fries....the drinks were inexpensive and it was lovely to sit out there and enjoy the view.

I highly recommend taking the short (45 min-1 hr) drive from Jacksonville to St. Marys, GA to take a break and get a taste of small town life!

Walking the pier in the only red, white and blue shirt I own...thanks Bex :)

The hostel won!

We will be going to The Hostel in the Forest this weekend for our 1 year anniversary! We chose this place for many reasons, chief among them being our broke-ness :) But also because it will be a fun adventure and interesting to learn how they live sustainably in the forest. I'll have more info when we get back next week!