As a late birthday gift for Lise and an early one for me, son John $ arranged for us to have a night in a cabin by the river. What a treat! John drove us to Madison County and treated us to lunch.
After John left for choir rehearsal, the rest of us had a light supper. $’s friend Rose had her dog Sadie there. Lise loved playing with Sadie, as did $. When we sat in the living room, the old family stories began to come out. There was lots of laughter as we teased each other.
Brother and sister shared the dog, much to the dog’s delight. Both are very good with dogs.
The next morning I took a photo of the French Broad River from the porch of the cabin. It was very soothing to watch the flow of the water and hear it through the night.
$ was taking us up the mountain behind his place when he suddenly stopped and said, “There’s a bear!”
I got my best shot out of the window. Lise jumped out and took a video of the bear climbing down the tree. I meant to ask her for a copy of it before she left. We were all excited at that close viewing.
$ knows the owner of the house on top of the mountain. He took us on the porch to see the marvelous view. The people are not there often, but when they are, they have it all! You can’t beat mountains and a river. I take that back. You might prefer a desert or a view of skyscrapers, but I’d vote for peaks and falling water every time.
I was surprised at the sound of the river that high up. $ said in the summer, he can understand conversations of rafters on the river. They talk louder than normal, and the sound rises up.
Staying in the cabin was a marvelous way to end our two-week Thanksgiving celebration.
Mehrling Muse 
Such beauty. What a marvelous gift.
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I prefer peaks and running water, also. Beautiful views and the bear was a nice treat!
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This is so joyful Anne thank you for sharing your time by the river and mountains! And the bear of course 😀
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Staying in a mountain cabin was something Lise and I had never done. We really enjoyed spending hours with son/brother $, too.
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How wonderful! I love a mountain cabin!
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Beautiful bear…lovely idea to spend the night in a cabin, and the view…spectacular.
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We’ll remember this cabin retreat for a long, long time.
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Wow! How wonderful… and mountains and water and bears oh my.
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How cute, a bear up a tree!
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The bear came down and ambled away from us. We were close enough to the car to scramble back in if we had needed to.
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Wow, how wonderful! I’d love to be able to see nature like that. I live in the suburbs of London so I get to go to Richmond Park and look at the deer, but bears . . .
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We didn’t see bears when we lived on Long Island (New York). We moved to North Carolina four years ago and now see more animals in the wild. I saw a fox cross our garden when we lived in Walton on the Hill, Surrey, in 1982. That’s the only wild fox I’ve seen.
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Walton on the Hill – not too far from where I live – Surbiton. 🙂
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Yes! Husband John worked in London. We were there for two years, 1980 – 1982. We adored England and the many wonderful people we met. Those were two of the best years of my life.
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What a lovely birthday gift!
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How exciting! A bear sighting! The cabin looks beautiful. Hope you enjoyed your birthday present.
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The gift of a night in a cabin was like no other! It was great fun, especially being with my son and his friend.
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What a marvellous holiday from a holiday. Your visit to $’s cabin was like a holiday and your daily life in the mountains is a life long holiday( for us). Mountains, cold weather and rivers, nothing beats that view.
I was scared for you when you saw the bear- how did you all continue with your trek up the mountain knowing that a bear might be around ?
Susie
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We were in the car when $ spotted the bear, and we continued to the top of the mountain in the car. Our situation was not dangerous at all.
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Did $ build that cabin himself ? It is beautiful. Also is the cabin warm ?
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No, $ does not own the cabin, and he didn’t build it. The heating system was good, so Lise and I were not cold. The place was nicely furnished and is available for renting. This was a memorable break for us.
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Those were great pictures and what a wonderful treat. I like all the woodgrain in the cabin – the table matched the walls. Sadie was in hog heaven with all the attention she was getting. Nothing like the great outdoors, especially when you spot a bear that close up. You got a good shot of him – hopefully the video Lise took turned out well and you can share it here too.
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Lise may have put her video on Facebook. I’m still behind with almost everything.
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I believe it – I caught up last night as I won’t get to my computer until early evening and I want to do my post about the group of Canada geese … I hope to do that. Will be productive in the house til I can head out.
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Sounds like a fun adventure you’ve had and that bear is adorable!
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We didn’t get too close in case the bear became unadorable.
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that bear looks very young Anne.The Sow must of chased it off? Should be sleeping by now.
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Our son thought the bear might be a yearling. I figured bears should be sleeping now, too. They say the mast was not good this year, so I’m wondering if that would keep the bears on the move hunting for food.
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yes,a yearling.What is a “mast”?
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Locals talk about “mast” as food for animals such as seeds and berries. Yep, Wikipedia says: Mast (botany), the edible seed and fruit produced by trees or shrubs that wildlife species will consume
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thank you Anne for explaining!
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What a great gift! So glad you had a terrific time..:)
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Wow! What a thoughtful gift and amazing experience…the bear was incredible!
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What a fabulous getaway! And what a delightful family you have.
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I wish I could take credit for a delightful family. I’m happy to be part of the group.
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Such heartwarming pics! Oh Anne, your family seems to have the best times!! The dog looks cute too – a Heinz 57, part Border Collie maybe and a little bit of Bernese Mountain dog, going by the size and the patchwork colours. I find dogs with little “eyebrows” irresistible, and have had 2 in my life that had them!
Impressive bear pic!!
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We do have fun as a family. I might point out that we are out of the child-rearing stage, and even our grandsons are no longer children.
I don’t think I asked about the background of the dog, Sadie. She has exuberance for life and inexhaustible energy.
How many dogs have you had?
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I had 3, I just realized. And all three (2 when I was a teen, and one when I myself was a mom) were black with tan markings including eyebrows!
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That is something. I wonder if lots of people pick dogs that are similar in looks.
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Don’t know, but in our case it was actually coincidence – each of the three doggies kind of ‘fell into’ our lap in different ways. Go figure!
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Those particular dogs were meant for you!
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