Lancaster, SC & Lake Santeetlah, NC 8/15/22 - 8/20/22 (No camping)

My friend Debbie, invited me to come to SC for a couple of days & then on to NC for the rest of the week. I left Nelly with Greg for the week & headed out on Monday morning.

I arrived at Fox Trot Farm on Monday afternoon, relaxed with a drink (or two) & then dinner. We got up early the next morning to go to a 'Sew Day' she organizes once a month. It's held at The Homeplace Bed & Breakfast which is the same place where the annual Featherweight retreat is held. I didn't feel the need to pack up my sewing room so I just took a small baby quilt that I needed to finish. I saw many old friends from the retreat & met a few new ones as well.

We got up the next morning & drove to Bob & Debbie's lake house on Lake Santeetlah a few miles from Robbinsville, NC. On the way up we had lunch at a fantastic Tavern in Landrum, SC /  The Hare & Hound. Loved the atmosphere & I have to say it was one of the best Reuben sandwiches I've ever had. 

We made a few more stops along the way & got to the lakehouse around 6:00p. 

Her husband Bob was waiting on us & after we got unloaded, we had dinner/drinks & overall, a relaxing evening. This is the view from my suite on the bottom floor which was the original cabin.

The next morning, after a great breakfast, Debbie dropped Bob & I at the marina to get the pontoon boat & she went to town for a few provisions. Here's a pic of the marina building It is timber framed, made with wood beams & timbers from old tobacco barns. It's a beautiful structure.

Here are a couple of shots as we made our way back to the house.

You can read all about the lake in the above link but it is basically a private/pristine lake with very few buildings/homes. The majority of shoreline is surrounded by The Nantahala National Forest. With the exception of a small condo unit at the Marina (where the old lodge once stood), no additional structures will be built on the lake. There is a National Forest Campground, Cheoha, as well as several primitive spots spread around.

The next day we drove around & visited a few sites including a stop at Wherloom Honey Store. I brought home a few cans of mead & a few small jars of honey. We then had a delicious late lunch / early dinner at Tapoco Lodge which is home base to adventure seeking people including canoeing, rafting & the more popular - motorcyle riding. There is a very famous road near there (at least it's famous with adventurous drivers of both bikes & sports cars, but mostly bikes) - The Tail of the Dragon. Here are a couple pics of a tree in Deals Gap that is called the tree of shame. 

As you can see it's a whole bunch of bikes that didn't make it. Here are few more pics from around town.

318 turns in 11 miles!

Looks like it would be a fun town to hang out, as long as you didn't have to drive the road again, after hanging out.

Overall, it was a fabulous getaway & so nice to catch up with my friend.

I left fairly early on Saturday & stopped in GA to drop off the quilt I finished. My original plan was to head to the farm but decided to continue on back to Jax. It was a long 9.5 hour day but so worth it to get home to see Greg & Nelly after five long days. I slept well on Sat. night!

Next trip coming up at the end of September beginning of October......