This is where it all begins...
North Carolina 2020 | June 12 - June 20
The Kustin Family is returning to western North Carolina for our annual summer trip and we'd love to have your son join us. If you have more than one son, just pick the one you like best.
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We'll depart from our house on Friday, June 12 and stay overnight at a carefully chosen hotel near Savannah. This will allow us to get to the cabin around midday on Saturday, our official check-in day. The cabin is in a gated community called Riverbend and is about equidistant from Lake Lure (the filming site of Dirty Dancing) and Rutherfordton (the site of nothing you've heard of). Check-out is Saturday, June 20; we'll make the long ride home in one shot, fueled by happy memories and coffee.
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We've been to the area more than a dozen times. Each time we return, we discover something new while rekindling something familiar. Having your boys with us guarantees we'll do both.
Itinerary
The word itinerary makes it sound like every minute of every day is accounted for. Technically this is true if the categories are Have Fun, Eat, Swim, Watch Movies, Play Wii, and Sleep. We do have activities laid out for every day, but plenty of downtime as well. The weather will drive some of our decisions, and Duke Energy - who controls the dams - will also play a role in our choices. In a nutshell, here's what we're thinking:
Saturday
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Get into town, get settled in the cabin
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Go to Ingles (nearly a Publix) and load up on provisions for daily feasting
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Head to Mirror Lake, which happens to be down the rear staircase, and take in the sunset with a dive off the dock.
Chow Time
Our boys are large, constantly hungry, and somewhat selective - for different reasons - in their food choices. This is not our first rodeo... rest assured, nobody will live in "food fear" while we're in North Carolina. For the most part, breakfast and dinner will be at the cabin. Convenience, economics, and COVID are all mitigating factors. Lunches will be on-the-run with sandwiches, fruit, and snacks at the cabin and/or indulgences at several tasty-yet-terrible-for-you fast food joints.
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Dinners at the cabin also ensures there's plenty of chill time, which, despite our two months at home, seems to be in short supply.
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Your son may be selective. Or have food allergies. Or only eat chicken during a full moon. The point is, we can accommodate selectivity if we know about it. In the meantime here's our meal plan:
Breakfast
Standard Fare.
Each morning we'll have some combination of eggs, pancakes, cereal, toast, coffee and juice. Some mornings the adults will make it, some mornings it's every man for himself.
Lunch
More functional than fancy. We'll have cold cuts, peanut butter & jelly, perhaps leftovers from the night before.
Always plenty of snacks to fill in the blanks.
Dinner
Every night a theme:
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King of the Grill
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Pasta
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Chicken Soup / Pot Pie
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Taco Tuesday
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Return of the Grill King
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Chili and Baked Potatoes
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Chicken, Rice, Veggies
The Cabin
Over the years we've stayed at several cabins in Riverbend. As a point of reference, the closest bigger cities are Asheville to the north, Spartanburg to the south, and Charlotte to the east. This year's cabin has 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. It has 8 beds, so everyone should be comfortable.
The lower level has a pool table and Wii. There will be plenty to keep everyone entertained and occupied.
Gearing Up
We'll be bringing all of the essentials. And while we're not next door to a strip mall, nothing is too far away. Here's what your son should bring:
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Clothing for most of a week. The cabin has a washer and dryer, but of course nobody wants to do laundry every night.
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Drawstring for day trips
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Water bottle
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Backup glasses, contacts, etc.
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River shoes; these are critical
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Personal spending money
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Chainsaw
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Hat and sunglasses
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Bathing suit
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Spirit of adventure
Safer. Funner.
We're going to have a great time, but we not at the expense of our children's safety. We'll monitor the COVID situation, maintain a sense of caution, and ensure everyone is safe and secure. The Town of Lake Lure maintains a COVID page with a battery of statistics - you can check them out here.
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Let's do this.