OUT FOR A WALK

Now that Fall is officially here, we'll be heading out on a regular basis to track fall foliage in our area of Pisgah National Forest. Watch for our 2008 fall foliage reports starting next week. (2007's reports are still on the blog for your viewing.)

We were out for a walk last week and came across some beautiful scenery that we wanted to share with you. First, a five-leaf clover was spotted near the Solarium. Resisting temptation to pluck it and take it inside, we instead took a photo:

We then took the innpugs on a walk starting on our property and heading up the eastern Forest Service access trail (about 150 yards from the Inn) that goes toward Point Lookout.


Roses in the Pool Garden are still going strong


Goldenrod lining the path along the blueberry bushes

The trees weren't giving any hints as to when the fall foliage would start at that point. However, we did get some great end-of-summer shots:


Lots and lots of trees

The Jewelweed in its final blooming stages


Hide-n-Seek Pugs on the forest trail


Hide-n-Seek Hummingbird in the birch bog near our little lake

GOOD NEWS ABOUT GASOLINE

As some of you might have heard, cities in the South, including Asheville and Black Mountain, have been experiencing fuel supply challenges this week, and many drivers have become treasure hunters, looking for gas instead of gold.

Today, we received great news from the media, government officials and the tourism industry. Every day sees an improvement in the amount of gas coming to the mountains, and the latest reports indicate that although many gas stations are currently operating at a limited capacity, drivers will have a much easier time finding gas within the next few days.

Governor Easley emphasized, "This is a temporary shortage. We have been assured by the oil companies that some supplies are on their way today (September 24) and larger additional supplies are expected through the pipeline very soon." The governor said he expects the situation to improve this afternoon and tomorrow.

The Asheville Chamber of Commerce echoed Governor Easley's comments that fuel supplies should be increasing throughout the next week and, hopefully, returning to normal by late next week. Already, some stations are reporting a small increase in gas allotments.

Drivers are encouraged to take steps to conserve gasoline and to only purchase the gas they need as supplies return to normal.

Coming to our area from the east? Cities like Marion (about 20 minutes east of the Inn on Mill Creek) are not experiencing shortages at the same levels as was seen in Asheville, so you may consider filling up before getting to the mountains to avoid any potential lines at the gas station over the next few days.

SEPTEMBER OUTDOOR PROJECTS

It appears that the dog days of summer are behind us and we're entering a great time of year in terms of weather. The daytime temperatures are in the 70s and the mountains cool off in the evenings to somewhere in the 50s. Perfect. No complaints here.

We took advantage of the nice weather this week (with just a little bit of misty rain mixed in) and completed some outdoor projects that we put on the to-do list this year:



First, we installed shutters to dress up the Lake House windows. They look great! Dave put on his handyman hat, climbed the ladder with drill in hand and proceed to put up the shutters in less than an hour.


Bob Vila, eat your heart out


Looking good next to holly and a volunteer morning glory

We then installed flower boxes on the front windows of the Lake House. Our goal was to have them up by October 1, so we're happy to have this project completed ahead of schedule.


Brigette avoids stepping on a cricket...that was close

The flower boxes are exactly what the front of the Lake House needed. We started out with ornamental cabbage, caladium (elephant ear), dusty miller, aztec grass and vinca.



Brigette is already making plans for what she'll put in the boxes during winter and spring.

The third project this week involved replacing the concrete bird bath in the center of the pool garden. We ordered a black bird bath that has several perching spots shaped like twigs and a glass bowl. We'll try to get a photo soon. We're moving the concrete bird bath to the front porch garden where we hope a few birds will put on a show for people in the Great Room.

Speaking of projects, a rather nice project is being completed over the next few months less than two miles from the Inn. The three-mile barricaded section of Old Hwy 70 is being converted into a greenway bike trail that will be linked to other greenways in the area. This is a beautiful stretch of road known as the Point Lookout trail that runs through the woods and offers scenic views of mountains, railroads, and woods. We'll keep you posted on the progress.

TASTE OF BLACK MOUNTAIN COMING UP

The town of Black Mountain has several really good restaurants. You can find southern cuisine, contemporary American, European, seafood, southwestern, German, Thai, Mexican, pizza and pasta, the list goes on. It goes without saying that we're really excited about heading to the Taste of Black Mountain on September 11. We love food and we love the Black Mountain restaurants, so for the second year, we're throwing our support behind them by sponsoring this yummy event.

Our fantastic local restaurants will be serving samples of their cuisine to the public from 5:30pm to 7pm in the tent next to Sun Trust Bank on Route 9 in Black Mountain. Several restaurants and breweries are participating, such as Madison's, Highland Grill & Oyster Bar, Camino's, Thai Basil just to name a few. Plus, our innpugs, Csaba and Bugsy, were happy to learn that our friends at Bone-A-Fide bakery will also be on hand.

Tickets to Taste of Black Mountain are available at the Black Mountain-Swannanoa Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center on State Street (828.669.2300). You can also pick up tickets at the event.