As a commercial pilot, Bill Blackford spent his career hopping from one metropolitan area to another. But the bright lights of a big city are not what calls to him. Raised in a small Illinois town, he always knew he wanted to return to that lifestyle. His cabin sits six miles outside of Blue Ridge, Georgia, near the Aska Adventure Area, home to hiking trails, waterfalls, tubing, canoeing and trout fishing. Ideal for an outdoors lover, he’s been enjoying his cabin for a little more than three years.
Bill: After days and days of searching cabins for sale, I finally came on this one, it checked off all my boxes. I had already purchased a building lot, but when I got the estimated cost for building what I wanted, I sold it. Shortly after moving in, I started writing a memoir, this is the perfect surrounding for this. It is almost complete at just over 75,000 words.
This cabin, being all wood (no drywall) with the soaring ceiling in the great room and dining area with the rock fireplace that goes all the way to the ceiling in addition to the leather chairs and couches make for a very comfortable “homey” atmosphere. On the upper level the master bedroom has a screened in balcony that is large enough to have a hammock and a bentwood easy chair for reading and having your morning coffee. The lower level is a three room area – I have set it up with a real log bedroom suite, a library with a leather couch and chairs and a rather large space set up as a kitchenette.
Christmas is my favorite season, but fall/Halloween is a close second. The day after Thanksgiving I have my Christmas decorations up. There’s a tree in every room and lighted garland everywhere. An old-fashioned Santa — the illuminated life size plastic ones that are very hard to find now — greets visitors at the door.
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