Welcome to Our Mountain Home!
When we first found this treasure of a chalet, nestled back on the side of a hill in the mountains of North Carolina, we knew immediately that this was the one. This would become our mountain home. It is secluded and quiet, and a perfect restful and relaxing (not to mention romantic!) retreat.
We live and work in Atlanta, and with the fast pace of life associated with living in a major city, we needed a place to escape, to relax and unwind, and well, to just breathe! And it's only two hours away, so it's close enough for us to be able to go whenever we need to, or want to.
And what an escape it is! Once we got through the "work" part, of furnishing and getting it setup just the way we wanted, the first weekend of pure leisure and relaxation was heavenly. There is a little creek and waterfall just off the side-screened in porch off the master bedroom, and we had a great thunderstorm which got the waterfall going. We sat out there for hours talking and sipping wine, and just enjoying the sounds of nature. We left all the doors and windows open at night (this was in September and it was the perfect temperature) for the soft breeze to keep the air fresh inside.
When we first took the plunge and bought our cabin, I thought that it would be mostly a Spring through Fall thing. When Winter came, I discovered more to like about being in the mountains.
The Winter is the ultimate quiet. While it's true that you don't have the lush green of the Spring and Summer or the bright colors of November, the quiet is almost spiritual. Maybe because the numerous activities of the warmer months are missing or because the weather limits outdoor living, Winter is the most relaxing.
In addition it's the perfect time of year to crank up a nice wood fire in the wood stove fireplace and cozy up. Watching the fire and diving into a good book or listening to favorite music, it's easy to drift off to a lovely nap. Romantic moments are just as plentiful in front of a warm fire.
We were up at the chalet the last couple of weekends. The sound of water running in the creek next to our chalet is music to our ears. For the last couple of years, this sound has been pretty scarce with the severe drought in the area. So, getting to hear water rushing in our creek is a sign that things are slowly recovering.
And as for the music to our eyes... Well, we just installed a 47 inch LG flat panel into our cabin. 1080 HDTV is a beautiful thing thanks to DirectTV. While we're still not getting full HD on the local channels out of Chattanooga, we are getting MANY full HD channels. Add to that DVR capability and we now feel that the experience is complete. We even have a DVD player with great upconvert available to make the most of your favorite DVDs that you might bring along.
