West Virginia

The Homestead was awesome, just as beautiful as in pictures and delivered even more than it promised. We left on Saturday morning and spent some time in Charlottesville on the way there. It was a nice way to break up the trip, because it was about half way. A little over 2 hours to Charlottesville and then about 1.5 hours to Hot Springs, VA. We arrived just in time for tea time, little crustless sandwiches and a lot of Southern hospitality. Built in 1892, the resort is now considered a National Historic Landmark. It's located in Bath County, population roughly 4,800 and 1/3 of those work at The Homestead.

We quickly found out that the "Jefferson Pools" (hot springs) were closing at 5pm, so we quickly changed and headed over there, not sure what to expect. The spas are naturally fed by a 98 degree mineral spring and are made up of two separate spa structures---men and women's. However, the women's one was closed, so we all congregated in the "Gentlemen's Pool House", which is the oldest spa structure in the United States. I wish I had a picture, but I couldn't bring in my camera, because "clothing is optional". However, imagine a big jacuzzi, filled with people and "floaties" (because it is 7 feet deep). Underneath, there was also a strong, waterfall type stream that gave the best back massage. Below is a picture from the Internet, but it does not quite show the full effect:

Then, we went back to our room and got ready for dinner at the "Casino", which sadly does not have a casino in it or near it (we've been tricked). We didn't actually expect one, but we are curious as to how it got its name. Anyway, we ended the evening with a yummy and relaxing dinner, followed by a movie.

The next morning we got up at the crack of dawn to get breakfast and continue onto more activities. Breakfast was included and it was delicious, hard to "be good" when you have every option imaginable, in this beautiful dining hall---omelette's, hasbrowns, donuts, cereal, fruit, sausage, bacon, fish, eggs, etc, etc, etc. Then, Matt headed out to golf and I found myself in an interesting (read: odd instructor) yoga class, followed by a swim in the indoor pool and horseback riding on my new found friend Pebbles.

Sadly, after another yummy lunch, our vacation had to come to an end. We stopped again in Charlottesville (looked for Kath, but did not find her) and then headed home. It was a wonderful, but short, getaway and I would love to go back. I highly recommend this place, I'm on the lookout for another good deal!