Finally a bit cooler. Temps only up to the lower 70's, but still humid and no rain.
After our busy day, it was a pleasure to arrive at our b&b for the evening. I found the Spread Eagle Inn through a Goigle search, looking for a place to stay near the Hippley Gardens. It was a perfect choice.
We arrived early and took a drive around the little village of Hanoverton, Ohio, where the Inn is located. Then back to the inn for dinner. We kinda choked when we saw the dinner prices! Way out of our budget, but soup, salad, and wine? Why yes, that was fine, and honestly, the salads were so large neither of us finished them. Service was impeccable too.
The exterior of the inn. The Spread Eagle was built around 1827. The back, which is the current entrance m, is the original part of the inn, and the rest built when the area was growing quickly with the construction of a canal. Of course, the canal boom ended almost as quickly as it started as railroads soon made the canals outdated.
The current entrance through the log cabin beings you into the tavern part of the inn. There is a swing on that little porch.
A flag flowerbed. We quickly realized that the owner of the inn was a staunch Republican--- pictures of Eisenhower, Nixon, Lincoln, etc, were everywhere but nary a Democratic president was represented. Ah well, it's a free country, right? At least, it was. Not so sure anymore.
Our room was small but charming and so comfy. Coffee and large chocolate chip cookies awaited us and were very welcome.
A bathroom with a bidet! A first for me.
A large group was to be at the Inn for dinner, and ro get to our room we would have needed to pass right through their dining room. But the manager offered us an alternative--a way to go through the basement.
The owner had had the basement redone to resemble a wine cellar and indeed it did. No photos, unfortunately, but the labyrinth of halls and nooks had many dining tables, and there was even a bar down there. I asked if this area was used very often, because Hanoverton is not exactly populace or on any beaten path. The manager said that yes, on weekends they were very busy because of the proximity to Canton, Akron, and Cleveland.
This is the room where the large group was dining.
Around Hanoverton---a cool old feed store,
an antique car, maybe being restored? You can see the "parts car" on the back right of this photo.
I wanted to browse here, but sadly they were closed. Junk heaven!
The inn was part of a long street of stately brick buildings.
The little courtyard, tucked between the buildings that make up the in. It is completely enclosed. We took our drinks out here after dinner and were joined by another guest. Great conversation ensued, and we learned which room was haunted (not ours!).
After a while the men and one woman who were dining in the large room started peeling out the door at us, and it wasn't long before they came outside too. A bit of moving table and chairs ensued, and soon it was quite a merry party! Turned out that they were part of an organization called Jobs Ohio, and this was a regional get--together.
Next morning we went down to the tavern for breakfast. It was wonderful--eggs, sourdough toast, potatoes, fresh fruit, excellent coffee, and bacon crusted with brown sugar. Oh. My.
Finally it was time to head home. We meandered along, stopping at a few places along the way to pick up things for our booths.
All in all, it was a great little getaway, which we both sorely needed. Larry has new meds and is back to being his usual happy, busy self. What a relief. We got back to real life, and the past week has been pretty busy, but more relaxed.
