A place to stay

Georgia

Augusta Combines History with Style

By Kathie Farnell and Jack Purser

Visitors to Georgia golf mecca, Augusta, can steep themselves in historical elegance at the city’s Partridge Inn. Surrounded by magnolias, the Inn exudes graciousness combined with surprising cutting-edge cuisine at its Bambu restaurant. First built as a two-story private residence in the early 1800s, by 1900 The Partridge Inn was the gathering place for Southern society. The hotel grew through a series of renovations to the present six-story edifice which occupies an entire city block.

Rooftop View Century Club, Partridge Inn
Rooftop View Century Club, Partridge Inn

A million-dollar upgrade in 2001 completed its transformation to one of the South’s greatest historic hotels. The Inn was the first Georgia hotel to be selected for inclusion in the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Historic Hotels of America collection. No two of the 156 rooms are alike; accommodations include full suites, some with kitchens, balconies, and in one case a patio. The rooftop Century Club, featuring sweeping views from its open-air deck, is open to guests every evening for cocktails and complimentary hors d’oeuvres.

Partridge Inn
Partridge Inn

The hotel’s second annual Best Chefs of the South culinary series, monthly dinners running through October, spotlights celebrity chefs from across the region. The Inn’s executive chef Philippe Chin, the world’s youngest French Master Chef, works closely with the visiting chefs to map out food and wine pairings for the elaborate four-course menus. The series winds up with the October appearance of Kelly Yambor of the award-winning Elizabeth on 37th in Savannah.

Chin, who came to the Inn in 2001 from Philadelphia, masterminded the hotel’s culinary renaissance, including the transformation of the property’s vintage Bamboo restaurant into the state-of-the-art Bambu on Hickman. The restaurant draws diners from as far away as Atlanta to sample Chin’s innovative fusion cuisine, which marries French technique to Asian spices.

Chef Phillipe Chin of the Partridge Inn's restaurant, Bambu on Hickman.
Chef Phillipe Chin of the Partridge Inn's restaurant, Bambu on Hickman.

Many visitors to Augusta come for the golf. The Masters Golf Tournament, at the Augusta National Golf Club, draws huge crowds each April, but golf is big business year-round. The latest LPGA tournament, the Asahi Ryokuken, is held each October at Mount Vintage Plantation Golf Club. The city is within easy driving distance of ten public or semi-private courses which allow nonmember play.

Augusta Canal
Augusta Canal

Augusta’s most recent outdoor attraction is the Augusta Canal Petersburg Boat Tours. The 65-foot-long electric boats, replicas of the Petersburg boats which used to carry nine tons of cargo from the Augusta mills, leave the downtown Enterprise Mill docks for one-hour narrated tours down the scenic and historic waterway. Tours glide past Augusta’s two remaining mills—at one time thirty-seven lined the canal banks—which now produce electricity as well as textiles. One of these, Sibley Mill, has the odd distinction of being built in a reasonable likeness of the British Houses of Parliament.

Canal Interpretive Center
Canal Interpretive Center

Enterprise Mill, home of the Augusta Canal Interpretive Center, provides a fascinating look at Augusta’s industrial past and the lives of its boatmen, millworkers and merchant class. Today more than 2000 acres on the banks of the canal have been designated a National Heritage Area, and are home to turtles, otters, alligators, and a variety of birds. Canoes and kayaks are available for rent, and a canal side tow path accommodates bikers and hikers. The 10th annual Head of the South Rowing Regatta will bring boating aficionados to the area in November.

Augusta’s “front porch”—the Riverwalk area—hosts a variety of festivals and events on the banks of the Savannah River. The Riverwalk’s brick paths provide access to the Riverwalk Marina, the Morris Museum of Art, and the National Science Center’s Fort Discovery. The Augusta Common, a park and festival venue, links the area with the shops and galleries of downtown’s revitalized Broad Street. Fall sees a number of special events here, including the 23rd annual Arts in the Heart of Augusta festival in September, and Oktoberfest, as well as the Hispanic Festival, in October.

For more information about Augusta:
www.augustaga.org or call 1-800-726-0243.

The Partridge Inn
2110 Walton Way
Augusta, Georgia 30904
1-800-476-6888
Local: (706) 737-8888
Fax: (706) 731-0826
info@partridgeinn.com
Sales and Reservations: (706) 262-1111
Augusta Canal Petersburg Boat Tours: www.augustacanal.com

SMITHGALL WOODS-FISHING AND FOLIAGE

By Kathie Farnell; Photos by Jack Purser Jr

Photo of Creek

This time of year the North Georgia mountains beckon with colorful fall foliage and crisp days. The Lodge at Smithgall Woods, located in a 5000-acre preserve near Helen, Georgia, offers travelers in search of Fall color the opportunity to fish one of the 100 best trout streams in the United States. Dukes Creek, which runs right past Smithgall Lodge and its neighboring cottages, is home to any number of brown and rainbow trout. When I lobbed a handful of thoughtfully-provided trout food off the balcony of Creekside Cottage, I was reminded of one of those piranha specials on the Discovery Channel.

All fishing at Smithgall Woods is catch-and-release, which does not seem to deter either the trout or the anglers.

The Lodge at Smithgall Woods includes five luxury cottages within easy walking distance of each other, brainchild of the millionaire Charles Smithgall, who in 1994 donated the entire 5,555 acre parcel to the State of Georgia which maintains the facility as part of the Dukes Creek Conservation Area. Centerpiece of the facility is the Lodge itself, two stories built of Montana lodgepole pine, which houses four bedrooms. The Lodge's entrance is a covered bridge across Dukes Creek, and the wide porch surrounding the building has room for rockers and swings. .A short stroll away, Creekside Cottage has three bedrooms on the banks of Dukes Creek. Nearby Garden and Laurel Cottages each feature one bedroom and identical log cabin construction. The larger Dover Cottage, with five bedrooms, houses the facility's restaurant-grade kitchen and includes five bedrooms. All cottages have great rooms with fireplaces, residential-style kitchens, outdoor decks-and computers.

Three meals per day are included in the room rates; breakfast and dinner are served in the Lodge dining room, while lunch takes the form of a picnic basket delivered to your cottage. Chef and Lodge Manager Phil Mastin, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, arranges menus to cater to visitors' dietary preferences. Trout is a staple at Smithgall, not from the protected streams on the property, but from nearby Hiwassee. During my stay, a smoked trout spread appeared as an appetizer, and baked stuffed trout showed up at dinner. Desserts included blueberry cobbler and apple strudel. Gardens at Smithgall provide fresh vegetables and herbs for the table, and Phil and his staff put up pickles and preserves for use year-round. The breakfast fare on our trip included blueberry pancakes and preserves made from the garden's bushes, as well as apple butter from nearby orchards.

I hiked up to see Duke's Creek Falls with staffer Renee Latour, who paused along the one-mile trail to point out wildflowers and the profusion of mushrooms brought out by fall's rainy weather. The Falls, 200 feet high, were spectacular with more water pouring through them than had been seen in recent years; the area has been in the grip of a five-year drought. Nature-related special events are scheduled on a regular basis. A staff naturalist teaches Appalachian life skills in a primitive log cabin which was moved onto the property several years ago.

The Lodge is planning a special Thanksgiving Package beginning Wednesday, November 21 and concluding with brunch on Saturday the 24th. The traditional Thanksgiving dinner will include turkey, ham, sweet-potato souffle and of course trout.

For information on rates and reservations at Smithgall Woods, call 1-800-318-5248 or visit the website at www.smithgallwoods.com

Mountain Grove Bed and Breakfast

By Kathie Farnell

Cloudland, Georgia, about two hours northwest of Atlanta, is home to the new Mountain Grove bed and breakfast and retreat center. Mountain Grove, which opened its doors on Valentine's Day, 2001, is the brainchild of Susan Cherones and Ellen Thompson, who have lovingly converted a circa-1922 home into a luxurious, rustic retreat.

The two-story house was originally built for the Stearns family of Miami, whose name is still carved in the stone doorstep. The Stearns were part of a trend-wealthy Northerners who wintered in Florida and purchased second homes in the mountains of Georgia and Alabama to escape the Florida summers. The Stearns were the exception in that they loved the mountain area so much they made it their year-round home. The present site of Mountain Grove is located within the boundaries of what was once the Cloudland Park Club, an ill-fated resort project which sought to make the Cloudland area into a grand development with a hotel, clubhouse and hunting trails; the Depression and the invention of air conditioning put an end to the ambitious plans. Today, Mountain Grove sits on its own three wooded acres, surrounded by flower gardens, blueberry bushes and cherry trees. The house's renovation, which took more than a year, uncovered heart-pine floors throughout the house. Bathrooms were added for the guest bedrooms, and spacious decks and balconies serve both the downstairs and upstairs. Resident Innkeeper Carrie Walls shows the visitor a book of before and after photos documenting the renovation and confirming that the elegant hardwood floors once suffered under an inundation of shag carpet.

Each of Mountain Grove's four guest rooms is named for one of the types of trees which ring the grounds. The Spruce, my headquarters, is painted a sumptuous purple. Its private bathroom is tiled in marble, and a private balcony allows the guest a view over the woods and terrace.

Breakfast at Mountain Grove is served on the downstairs deck, weather permitting. During my stay, we were treated to fresh fruit, omelets with area-grown vegetables, and pancakes made from the garden's blueberries, as well as homemade cherry preserves from Mountain Grove's trees. The blueberry bushes and cherry trees line the drive, allowing the passing guest to lean out of the car and experience what Susan refers to as a "drive-by fruiting." Breakfast is included in the room rate, and other meal plans are possible in connection with special packages. Mountain Grove gets fruits and vegetables, as well as flowers, from a nearby organic farm. We accompanied Susan to the farm one morning to see what was ripe. Heirloom tomatoes, including the bulbously delicious Brandywine, cucumbers, squash and herbs all found their way from farm to kitchen. Workshops at Mountain Grove on herbs and jam and pickle making give guests a chance to check out the area's bounty for themselves.

ExperienceWorks Inc., the company founded by Ellen and Susan to provide learning adventures in the Lookout Mountain area for businesses and other groups, conducts a variety of corporate retreats based at Mountain Grove to promote teamwork among co-workers. Activities include rock climbing, caving and experiencing the "challenge courses" offered at nearby summer camp facilities.

ExperienceWorks also offers one to five-day school field trips in fall and spring, working with classroom teachers to tailor experiential education activities for the students. This summer, Mountain Grove is hosting Conversational Spanish classes twice a week, and a Wellness Weekend, with a physical therapist and massage therapist, is set for September 14-16.

Room rates at Mountain Grove start at $85/night; special rates apply to the customized retreats and workshops. For more information call 1-800-226-5585 or visit the website at www.experienceworks.com

From Mountain Grove, it's a short drive to the Mentone, Alabama, area which is home to a number of good restaurants. Dessie's Kountry Chef on Highway 117 in Mentone has recently celebrated ten years of authentic country cooking, and Dessie Newberry herself was recently named one of Alabama's Unforgettable Faces by the State of Alabama Bureau of Tourism and Travel. Dessie's unforgettable dishes include terrific catfish strips, chicken with dressing, fried green tomatoes, and for dessert, buttermilk coconut pie from a family recipe.

Little River Caf, on the other side of DeSoto State Park from Dessie's, occupies a cabin built by a descendant of one of the area's original German settlers. The menu includes barbecue, home style pinto beans and cornbread, and daily specials.

Music Mountain, right next door, is the brainchild of Tony Goggans, offering live music outside, weather permitting, and inside the former mountain store in case of rain. Friday nights, Music Mountain presents a non-electric jam, with a variety of music including bluegrass, folk, old-time mountain, gospel and acoustical. Saturday nights feature oldies by groups including Tony's own family groups the Malibous and the Tony Creek Girls. The audience is invited to bring lawn chairs; admission is $7 with a discount for seniors and groups. For more information about activities in the DeKalb County area, visit the DeKalb County Tourist Association's website at www.tourdekalb.com

Getting There: Mountain Grove Bed and Breakfast is located in Cloudland, Georgia, just off Georgia Highway 48. From Atlanta, take highway 41 North to highway 411 and follow it to Rome, Georgia. In Rome, go west on Highway 48; the community of Cloudland is just west of Summerville.