Cashiers Vacation Rental cottage

Our stay at the Flocco vacation home was terrific
and exceeded our expectations as experienced
VRBO users! The home was impressively appointed
with leather living room furniture, a dining room
table that seated 10, screened-in porch with
fireplace, slept 10 comfortably, and had wireless
Internet service to stay in contact with the world we
left behind. We found the kitchen and grill
sufficient to prepare any meal we desired from
biscuits and gravy to Adana Kabobs to pork loin
with peanut sauce over noodles. The cottage was
nestled into a beautiful mountain resort community
where we took full advantage of the Bear Lake
clubhouse. At the clubhouse we swam daily in the
saltwater pool, kiddy pool, and hot tubs as well as
the lake, enjoying lunch poolside with summer
drinks from the Tiki Hut. The kids loved the virgin
margaritas! The wait staff was terrific. If you get a
chance, you must take one of the high quality kayak
and/or canoe (available on first come first serve
basis, at no cost!) to the little island in the lake (20
min trip) and jump off the big rock and swim; then,
paddle another 20 minutes to the shores of the
“Bear Lake Falls”. From there it is a 20-minute hike
from the shore up the eastside of the stream to the
base of the falls. It was beautiful. The location was
the perfect base of activity for all and we had 7
children to accomodate. We slid down little slippery
rock falls in Cashiers (40 min S; directions in the
Bear Lake Reserve activity book), went whitewater
rafting on the Nantahala River outside Bryson City
(70 min WSW; Adventurous Fast Rivers Rafting),
and, for the little ones, we visited The Factory, an
arcade/bumper car/go cart/mini-golf center in
Franklin (60min) on our sole rain-out day. A couple
of things to note: (1) the Lake Clubhouse is ~4
miles away on windy mountain roads, but within
the resort community, which was fine for us as we
often made a day of it working out in the top-
notch workout room, swimming in the pool, and
eating at the restaurant/bar and (2) you will have
absolutely no cell phone signal, with the possible
exception of Verizon, so get the phone number to
the house phone from the owners if you want some
one to contact you or bring your wireless computer.
The house was the perfect family get-away with a
porch table and the dining room table perfect for
those nightly games of Hearts and Scrabble. We
spent every evening on the porch listening to the
tree frogs, eating Sam ores, and playing games.
What amazed us was how dense the forest was and
how “hilly” the hikes were. This place must be
amazing in the fall since the forest is primarily
deciduous. This was a first class vacation in a
resort area that provides an experience worth
remembering.