Blue Boar Inn

 The Blue Boar Inn

After three nights of camping at the quite nice Standing Indian Campground near Franklin, N.C., Kathy and I spent our next night at the charming and secluded Blue Boar Inn in Graham County, North Carolina. Located on pristine Lake Santeetla near Robinsville, the inn was originally built in the 1950's as a hunting lodge by a Cincinnati beer magnate. It has since been renovated and updated with each of its eight rooms now including a private bath, sitting area, private porch, TV, telephone and CD player. Wireless internet access is available and there is a computer terminal in the lobby for the use of guests.


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The real charm of the Blue Boar though is not the amenities common to a modern hotel, the Blue Boar is exceptional for the pleasant and serene atmosphere created by the mother and daughter owner/operators through their attention to detail and loving care. We were not only provided a CD player, for example, but there were three disks with selected music labeled morning, afternoon and evening. The desk in the sitting area had guide books for nearby hiking trails and for identifying local birds and plants. Common areas are eclectically appointed and comfortable. And the grounds? Storybook.Not in a Disney way, but in an epitome-of-real-love-and-human-effort way.

View of the pond

While the inn offers dinner five nights a week, we were there on an off night so we scooted a few miles up the road to Snowbird Lodge for dinner, the only place to get an adult beverage in the county as it turns out. Graham county is a dry county--bone dry--even the grocery stores are prohibited from selling beer or wine, so bring your own or visit the restaurant or bar at Snowbird which has a "country club" exception to the alcohol prohibitions.

Snowbird is a rustic yet beautiful place with a view of the Smokey Mountains that you'd swear is too perfect to be real. They offer a prix fixe menu of quality entrees and an extensive wine and liquor menu including a mindbogglingly vast selection of scotches. A funny thing happened to us during dinner that added to our delight. After we were seated, Kathy kept saying to me, "I know the hostess from somewhere." I was sure I'd never seen her before, although I had. Kathy kept at it and finally waived the hostess over and introduced us. Her name was Tina, she said. Kathy proceeded with the usual starting places for solving the "where do I know you from" riddle. Schools, home towns, work...

Tina was coy. Kathy insistent. Finally, Tina fessed up: "I won Survivor," she said. Ah, yes! That Tina.

 A private patio

Before bed, I took a walk around the flowered grounds of the Blue Boar, around the lily-padded pond with splashing fountain and croaking bullfrogs and back to the inn twinkling like a ship at night, floating in the forest pitch.

Breakfast

The next morning, we dined on the complimentary breakfast then headed down to the lake for what was to be a short paddle in one of the Blue Boar's canoes. The warmth of the sun met the cool morning breeze to make paddling seem effortless, cozy almost, and the green of the water was so pure it was hypnotizing. We kept going further and further along, nearly an hour and a half out and back, never seeing another soul on the way. We packed our bags, said goodbye and thanks to owner Pam then headed to the nearby Cherohala Skyway and to hike in the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest.

The grounds

The Blue Boar Inn is one of those special places where the experience transcends the place; where the physical is perfectly in support of the soulful. The price was more than we usually spend for accommodations, even after procuring a last-minute deal. But it was so thoroughly serene and invigorating that I can only recommend it.

Common sitting area