Balsam Mountain Inn #WW

Welcome, Kittens & Dawgs! Last month on one of our day trips to Dillsboro, North Carolina reminded us of a place we wanted to see for years but never got around to it.  Unlike today, finding these out-of-the-way places without was once tricky and perhaps one reason we didn’t visit before now.  Stroll with me through time at the Balsam Mountain Inn.

Built in the early 1900s. The inn is now a registered historical landmark  The 100-foot front porch is spacious and offers an awesome view of the mountains.   The inn became known as “Grand Old Lady of Balsam”.

The front entrance to the inn has double doors leading into this amazingly cozy lobby area.

The wide-built corridors were for steamer trunks that traveled with extended summer guests of the inn as seen in the below picture.  Nowadays,  this space is used for local craftsmen to sell their products.  What got my attention here is the water cooler on the left, isn’t that coolest thing?  I’ve not seen one of these before, have you?

Another view of the lobby area from the other end with the front desk in the far right corner of this picture.

This is one of the dining areas with only two small tables. I love the amber light in this room. I’m shooting toward one of those long, wide corridors and if you turn right it’ll take you back to the lobby.

Here I’m just outside this room ⬆︎ looking into this huge sunroom dining area.  The light is harsh compared to the room above even with the sun making its way over the horizon.

The next room’s view is on the sunroom side and this really transported my mind to another time.  I could almost see ghosts of Christmas past dancing or dining in this room.

I altered the exposure in some of these pictures with a Pixmelator photo editing software, like the one below.  This place was really hard to photograph.

I’m standing at the main entrance taking one last look at the great dining room.

It’s was dark by the time we left the inn but I had one last opportunity for a neat shot.

I hope you liked the tour of Balsam Mountain Inn.  Perhaps, we’ll have a chance to visit another time.  I would love to capture it at various points in the different seasons.  Can you just imagine how gorgeous it is here when it snows or when the tree buds begin to show or in when the mountains display her fall colors?

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For another peek through my lens, I hope you’ll join me tomorrow for my new blog post, Skywatch Friday & Celebrate the Small Things.

Have a fototastic day.

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39 comments

  2. Hi, Cathy!

    I’m so glad I didn’t miss seeing your pictures of the old Balsam Mountain Inn. It is exactly the type of natural, restful, rustic setting that appeals most to Mrs. Shady and me and this point in our lives. I love the Inn’s inviting slogan “Come rest, read, ramble and romp in our mountains!” I could feel the tension leaving my body as I gazed at the pictures you took of the Inn’s spacious lobby, dining room and other inviting areas. I would love to stay there when it is snowing. Thank you again for playing show and tell, dear friend Cathy, and for adding another great vacation destination to our list!

    1. Tom, I glad you made it over for tour. I knew this would be a place for you and Mrs. Shady. While we were there I saw a snowy photography of the inn hanging on the wall and I thought, “Boy, I’d love to be here to see that!” It hate to travel rural roads when the weather is bad, so chances are slim that we’ll ever see that kind of view unless we happened to be staying there when they got a snow fall. Now, that would be really awesome! 🙂

  4. What a beautiful escape….if only for the day. Happy New Year, Cathy! So glad you stopped by.

    1. Kristin, oh definitely this would make an excellent spot for a winter wedding or other times of the year. That dining room or sunroom portion would make excellent places to be married. Thanks for stopping in for a visit!

    1. Sandee, Perhaps you can venture to the western hills of North Carolina to see or to stay at Balsam Mountain Inn yourself. Thanks for visiting!

    1. Myke, thank you for such a nice compliment! The Balsam Mountain Inn is definitely picturesque and would make look good on a postcard. In fact, I think I remember seeing some in the gift shop. They even had a few photographs hanging inside the inn of during different seasons. One of a winter scene which was gorgeous! They had a lovely wintry scene sweatshirt that I would’ve loved to have gotten but they didn’t have it in a small, so I had to pass. The medium sized sweatshirt would swallow me up. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by, my friend!

    1. John, many of the western North Carolina communities are home to mostly longtime residents or retirees. During the warmer months (May – October) many Floridians flock to their summer homes in there. There are many resort communities in mountains for golfers and outdoor enthusiasts. I guess if I lived in Florida and could afford it, then I’d like to have a summer cabin there, too. If you’re used to big city life then you might not like it but Asheville, North Carolina and Knoxville, Tennessee (where I live) are within 2-hours of western NC. I often wonder how these little towns survive but I reckon it’s the summer months that keep them floating. I’m really glad, too.

  11. Love, love, love it and I like how you said you could almost see ghosts of Christmas pasts. It’s funny I was thinking the same thing. Ahhhhhh if walls could talk. Can’t wait until you go back again for more pics in another season. Would be awesome. hugs

    1. Marie, it’s truly a beautiful place and oh what I wouldn’t give to just sit on that porch! The view is very nice of the mountains and there’s just that quaint feeling abounding. Thanks for visiting, my friend!

  15. What a beautiful place! My family visits Mackinac Island every summer, and the photos remind me of the Grand Hotel, and victorian style bed and breakfasts there. Happy Wednesday, from the Wordless Wednesday linkup !
    Megs

    1. Mackinac Island is a place we’d like to visit someday. From the photos we’ve seen it’s a quite charming location. Thanks for visiting!

    1. Steve, I’m glad you enjoyed the tour. It truly is a grand place. The inn originally had 100 rooms but when they modernized the place to include bathrooms with each bedroom it now has 50 bedrooms. Although it doesn’t sleep as many people as before it’s still rather impressive.

    1. Karren, Yellowstone Park is a place we hope to see one day. Actually, there are several western state national parks we’d love to visit. Perhaps when DH retires we can plan an extensive trip to enjoy these sights. Thanks for visiting!

    1. We didn’t stay in the Balsam Inn but it would be nice to do this sometime. The old place has a lot of stories to tell. I got the feeling I had stepped back in time just a bit. Thanks for stopping by, Deb! I’m heading your way in a few!

  19. I like the water cooler. Never seen anything like it before. A beautiful grand place. I am sure it has many interesting stories to share.

    1. Nancy, I think you’re right the Balsam Inn probably has some very interesting stories to tell if the walls could talk that is. lol I just imagine the Victorian days – women in long flowing dresses with parasells strolling on or playing crochet on the lawn while the men sit on the porch with their pipes playing chess or reading a book. It’s just a delightful place to visit and I hope to go again. Thanks for stopping by for a visit. 😉

  20. This looks so nice to stay in. I wonder if it is haunted?? I could imagine that and picture people from the 1930’s having a grand time here. Very nice to see

    1. Birgit, I don’t know if it’s haunted or not but I thought the very thing. It would make an excellent spot to either film a scary story or to gather inspiration to write one. It’s a grand old place to see and to feel its charm. 🙂

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