Last weekend Troy and I celebrated our anniversary. It's hard to believe it (and it makes me old when I say it) but we have now been together for 14 years!
Each year we try to take some time out to commemorate this accomplishment and to get away from it all. We've had some great trips over the years. Most notably, a couple of years in a row at a fantastic "Bed-n-Beach" on the Oregon coast which had a hot tub overlooking the ocean.
For the last two years in Virginia we've gone to Bear Mountain Farm. It's been great but I was looking for something a little less expensive since we have to save for Belgium now. I lucked out and found a Craigslist posting for a reasonably priced little cabin near Franklin, WV.
Unfortunately we had brake trouble on the mountain on the way down (about 15 miles from our destination). It was pretty scary. We pulled over after smelling burning rubber and there was smoke billowing out of the front tire. Having no cell reception, we ended up having to press on to the next town.
We were lucky enough to find a guy at the gas station (pretty much the only business in town) who knew a mechanic down the road. They couldn't reach the mechanic by phone so the guy offered to drive Troy over there. So I sat with the car at a gas station for a while, feeling a bit uncomfortable (kept thinking I was hearing banjos).
Eventually Troy came back and then the mechanic, Dan Pope, (who in the words of my dad ended up being a "helluva guy") drove up on his Harley and took a look at the car. He figured our caliper had seized up on the mountain and would need to be replaced. We set up a time to go to his house (he works out of his front yard) to have it fixed the next day and moved on to the cabin, using engine braking and the e-brake over the next mountain. Yikes.
We finally arrived safely at our destination. It was a really cute cabin with all the comforts of home and a big deck outside. We grilled some food and were thankful--we made it in one piece and some really good people salvaged our weekend.
After we got the car fixed on Saturday, we stopped at a nearby lake. It was hot so we thought about swimming but didn't end up actually going in, just drank a beer by the water.
Because there was some funny business going on...
Later that day I kicked back on the deck with a book and Troy went for a 10 mile bike ride where he had to navigate cattle guards and chicken coops. Each of us has a different way of relaxing I guess.
Troy planned a wonderful dinner on Saturday night. He made a delicious jerk marinade and grilled a pork tenderloin. And then we finished the night by staring up at the stars on the deck while sipping Oregon Pinot Noir.
Here's Troy preparing the grill.
And the final result. Mmmmmm. 
I think the next time we're in West Virginny we'll have to check this place out.
3 comments:
as usual for you guys, this looks like another amazing (and eventful) trip. it's cool that you were able to both find different ways of relaxing while away on an anniversary trip. i too would opt for the book vs. bike ride! i LOVE the frog pic.
Congrats on the anniversary! I believe I also have a picture of fat boy's pork palace. did you guys try it??
Thanks Jaimee and Alex. Jaimee, the frogs were going nuts. There were a couple of teenage girls freaking out about what they were doing. One of them even picked up a pair in the middle of it and brought them over to show some younger boys. They boys were unimpressed. It was a weird interaction to witness!
We've yet to try Fat Boy's but that's on the list of things to do before leaving Virginny!
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