From fishing and boating to taking in tall tales, historic Jonesborough, Tenn. provides everything you need for an enchanting escape in the Blue Ridge region.
If spending the night in a charming bed and breakfast, dining in locally owned restaurants, browsing interesting shops, listening to stories and floating and/or fishing on one of the region’s great rivers is your idea of a romantic getaway, then a visit to Jonesborough, Tenn. is in order.
Jonesborough offers a look into the past with period storefronts and brick sidewalks. Driving through the historic area, we spot a covered carriage, its horse swishing its tail in the afternoon sun while waiting for passengers.
We lodge at the Hawley House, built in 1793, the oldest home in Tennessee’s oldest town. Owner Marcy Hawley says guests overwhelmingly consider the Dr. Spencer Gibson room, overlooking a meadow, as the most romantic. What stands out the most in the room? A handcrafted four-poster bed with an antique canopy and down-filled mattress cover.
“Guests tell me that they feel like they’re floating on a cloud when they’re in that bed,” Hawley says.
During our visit, we enjoy what guests consider the inn’s premier breakfast – a crème brulee French toast with fresh baked peaches (also covered with crème brulee sauce) on the side. The meal is accompanied by fresh fruit and a potato-cheese casserole as well as coffees and teas. Hawley also offers Charleston grits as another popular side dish.
After breakfast we browse the shops lining Main Street. The town attracts many artists and craftspeople, so jewelry, pottery, wood and textiles abound. The Jonesborough Art Glass Gallery showcases stained glass; woodworkers might check Sammons Craft & Wood Supplies for materials, and if you like dulcimer music, the Silver Chord is for you.
Of course, what is a historic town without antiques? The Jonesborough Antique Mart, Old Town Hall Marketplace and Shoppes on Main give us plenty to browse through in this realm.
Jonesborough is also noted for its International Storytelling Center, where a gift shop provides books and instructional items related to storytelling and, from May through October, a different national storyteller is in residence each week. Each fall the town also hosts a national storytelling festival attracting more than 10,000 visitors (this year’s is Oct. 1-3.)
But there is more to Main Street than shopping. Located in the old post office building, Main Street Café & Catering offers lunch in a wooden booth overlooked by photos of previous visiting storytellers is a relaxing treat. For dessert we enjoy ice cream at the Old Sweet Shop, found just a short stroll away.
The Bistro 105, where chef Todd Dawn reigns, is our lunch spot another day. Here, Dawn begins with Southern-style food and fuses it with European cuisine using many French and Italian sauces, creating dishes reminiscent of comfort foods, but with a flair.
Much effort is required to prepare food to Dawn’s standards. To create a demi-glace, he allows eight hours to make the stock from local beef bones and another 36 to reduce that to a natural glace. He might be found gathering herbs from planters in front of the restaurant, guaranteeing absolute freshness.
“Our ideas come from our minds and our hearts,” Dawn says. “If we do 10 meals, we do them very well. But I could not do this without a strong team. We are all in this together – that’s a testament of love.”
Another favorite spot for light dining is The Cranberry Thistle. Noted for home-cooked foods and an impressively full dessert case, it is the place to go for beans and cornbread.
When it’s time to hit the Nolichucky River, a good place to learn current fishing and river conditions, plus stock up on fly fishing or whitewater rafting gear is Mahoney’s Sports in nearby Johnson City.
“The upper section of the Nolichucky from Poplar, N.C. to the Chestoa Recreation Area in Erwin is class III-IV whitewater and is fantastic for couples wanting whitewater thrills,” says Mahoney’s fly fishing guide Jimmy Dobes.
“If a couple is more interested in fly fishing, the section from Chestoah to Greenville is great for smallmouths and muskies.”
We catch plenty of smallmouth bass, including some up to 15 inches, a good size fish in any of the Blue Ridge’s upland rivers. Indeed, we land the largest fish near the take-out, a perfect way to end our stay.
