Dreaming About a House

My wife owns some acreage just below the summit of a 4,200-foot mountain near the North Carolina/Virginia border. We've daydreamed for some time about being able to build a cabin there. Maybe something suitable for us to retire to when we're finished working. Or maybe just a weekend getaway.

One of the views from the property.

With a big writing payday becoming a possibility, we drove up to the place today to look it over. It has been a while since we were there and we just felt the need to walk around the property. We looked at some decent building sites. And the place reminded me more than a little of the north Georgia mountains where I spent my teenage years. This place is only one-tenth the acreage of the huge chunk of land my dad owned; and the forests are a little different, owing to the much higher elevation and the more northerly latitude. The feeling of being at peace is the real deal.

Waking up to this every morning? I could live with that.

Best of all, this land is relatively isolated and is composed mainly of cove hardwood forests. It's a nice place to be. My son and I saw a deer as we were walking through the forest. Carole missed seeing it, but we got a pretty good look. This was rare, since it's hunting season and the deer are wary just now.

Hey! Let's build here!

Carole, Andy and I climbed up to the ridge line and looked around. We sat on a high slope and wondered what it would be like to have a cabin not quite at the top, looking out on just the trees rather than the horizon. If we build near the summit, we'll have a world class view, looking across a vast distance toward Mount Rogers, the highest peak in Virginia. We'll have a lot to consider should the opportunity to begin building finally arrives.

We'll see.

No pesky humans! I like it!