Wyndham Sapphire Lake, North Carolina

Please Note: I am a Club Wyndham Presidential owner so my reviews are always based on that criteria.

We were upgraded from a one-bedroom unit to a one-bedroom lock-off, which includes the original reservation with the addition of a one-bedroom deluxe unit. It's two units with an adjoining door. We use the front door to the deluxe unit.

The door to the right was the one-bedroom unit, and when you entered that door, it opened into a small sitting area with a tv and couch. The girls used that unit as their own apartment. It went downstairs, where there was a kitchen, a bedroom, and a bathroom. They also had a porch. It was very cozy but very buggy. They had big black ants and various LARGE spiders. I probably should've called and had something done about that, but I didn't venture down after the capture of the first spider, and I had that well-it's-the-mountains mentality. I did report it when I left. It needed a good spray for the next group.

I think renovations of the units were being done while we were there. Ours had the new flooring and furnishings, but it still seemed more rustic than modern like I'm used to in the Wyndham units I've visited recently. I thought the rural fit the area, so it didn't bother me at all. The units were spotless, although two small spiders had taken up residence in my shower the first night. Madison relocated them back outside. She's our savior of animals. Darcy and I are more the shoe-squashing variety, so we always give Madison first dibs.

Our upstairs unit was large. We had ample room with a big living area, a lovely porch (although a spider shared it with us), a decent kitchen and dining area, a large bedroom, and a small bathroom. It was perfect for the three of us. The added bedroom unit was a bonus and only necessary for the extra bed.

The resort shares with a subdivision, which means homeowners and a homeowner association. Wyndham guests are allowed to use the same facilities as the homeowners and are issued an activity card to carry around as proof. There is a clubhouse that housed a small gift shop area, a restaurant that was closed, and an activity room they must use for the Wyndham welcome breakfast, which is only on Mondays. 

Bonus: NO Wyndham sales pitch!!

There is also, across from the clubhouse, a recreation center. It housed the exercise room with cardio equipment and weight machines. Also, there was a massage room, game rooms, video game room, an indoor pool, and an outdoor pool. It was the activity hub. Also on site are two restaurants, a gem mining area, the River Walk, a children's playground, a river, and an outdoor track.

Everything is within walking distance from the units if you don't mind walking. We were the farthest units, and we walked every time we wanted to go anywhere in the resort area. There is also a ski resort somewhere on the property, but we didn't visit it although the ski chair lift was visible from our unit balcony. During the summer, they offer activities like zip-lining, but I couldn't talk the girls into checking it out.

Pluses of Wyndham Sapphire:

• Restaurants on the property - Only one was open while we were there, and while the food wasn't spectacular, it does offer something on the menu for most everyone, and I didn't have to drive down the damn mountain to eat. The restaurant also provided live music almost nightly while we were there.

• Plenty to do in and around the area - Tons of hiking. Waterfalls. Swimming. Boating. A state park. Horseback riding. I was told there was shopping but the hours were wonky while we were there, so we missed out on local treasures. 

• Quiet 

• NO SALES PITCH - It is always a real vacation when I don't have to dodge the dreaded people insisting we attend the sales pitch meetings where we will "learn new things about Wyndham." I don't have anything against hearing new things or pitches, but not while I'm on vacation. Even if I wanted to purchase something, it would take more than half the day to sign and seal the deal. Who wants to do that while on vacation? I don't have the answer for Wyndham other than offering people an extra day free for just the sales pitch.

• Little Details - This is the first Wyndham that I've been to where there were extra towels and washcloths in the hall closet. We never used them since we had two units and only three people, but YES, I love that! I also liked the blackout curtains in the bedroom and the wood flooring.

Improvements we felt were needed:

• Spiders and ants - It required a proper spraying.

• Kitchen utensils - The kitchen lacked a few vital supplies like serving spoons, oven mitts, and frying pans.

• Light Switches - In both units, the switches on the walls didn't coincide with the lights nearby. It took us two days to learn the odd pattern. For example, the light to the dining area was in the kitchen behind the coffee pot, where we expected the garbage disposal, and the living room lights were also in the kitchen area. The downstairs unit was even worse. At the bottom of the stairs, the light switch turned on the garbage disposal! It was crazy.

• Uncomfortable chairs - I found the living room chairs to be inhabitable. Too straight-backed and narrow. I ended up using a kitchen chair or the couch. 

From the travel journal - Sapphire - last day

Darcy: "I'm done with waterfalls like I was done with churches in Italy. You see one waterfall and church, you've seen them all."

Okay. We spent the last day at the resort. Darcy worked out at the gym. I worked out by hiking the River Walk on property. It began at the track and children's playground, wound around by the pool, and then followed the river. About three minutes into the forest, I suddenly wondered what I'd do if I encountered wildlife. Bears are prevalent in the area. Suppose hiking alone is like swimming alone. A no-no? I survived, and then Darcy and I walked it again.

Everything is so green here. In Florida, we have green, but we have more brown. North Carolina must get lots of rain. We came at the right week. By next week the area will start filling with tourists. Supposedly, the temperatures stay in the 70's throughout summer, but since we experienced one day of 82 degrees, I'm not sure how much I believe that. I'm not looking forward to going back into the Florida heat. I think if I ever start selling books, I'll buy a property where I can escape for the summer. That's how it is done in Florida. While the rest of the world wants to escape winter and come to Florida, Floridians want to avoid the summer and head north.

The rest of our day was peaceful with reading and conversation. Madison and Darcy had an episode with a spider in the evening, which resulted in me sharing my bed with Darcy, who made sure to get a good night's sleep. She was very insistent that she would get us home in one day of driving. She's more than homesick now.

We rose early, loaded the van, and headed up the mountain ahead of schedule. Not Darcy's agenda, but mine. The GPS had us going up the mountain in the opposite direction of where we entered and holy, winding roads. By the time I was out of there, a good hour and a half later, my knuckles were sore from gripping the steering wheel. Even the girls were a bit queasy.

Note to self: Don't buy a property where the roads leading in and out are winding up a mountain.

The trip home was very familiar as the route took me on the very roads we drive to and from Indiana to and from Florida. I drove the first leg, and Darcy took over the last leg. We got into Tampa after about 10 hours driving, and we stopped to have dinner with Darcy's boy-man. They'd been apart since she left for New York via Italy, so I suggested the detour. By the time we got home, it was after eleven. Maddy and I weren't as excited as Darcy to be home and back to reality, but we've agreed to take the week to settle back in. Darcy starts work right away, so there is no rest for her.

My house is full again! I'm back on the job. Here's to a great summer with the family!

From the travel journal - Sapphire - day four

While Maddy slept, Darcy and I planned today's adventure. She made reservations for horseback riding, and I added another waterfall hike that was a half a mile from the horseback riding stables.

Me: "Please. This hike is only half a mile. Why that's just a warm-up. Probably I should look for another hike after we warm up."

The horseback riding information assured me there was a beautiful shady area for non-riders, and so I brought along my writing notebook. We were the only ones there, and we started out by gathering on the porch in rocking chairs while the owner told us an Indian story about a Princess who fell in love with a warrior from another tribe. Her father did not want her marrying outside the tribe, so he created a sporting event with the winner getting the hand of his daughter. When it became clear that the Princess' lover was going to win the sporting event, her father left the warrior to be dealt with by his minions, and he took his daughter into the canoe and paddled off with her. The princess, knowing her loved one, was probably being scalped, jumped out of the boat to her death.

Me: "So, the moral of that story is that parents should stay the hell out of their kids' love life."

Him: "Or kids should stay in their own tribe."

Hmm...forgot I was in North Carolina. Oh boy. I let that one pass. The girls went off to ride the trail, and I sat with a nice woman on the porch. She felt like she had to entertain me when all I wanted to do was write. But we chatted and the hour went by quickly. We thanked the people and headed off to our next adventure.

This hike was on a paved trail, and despite telling us it was half a mile, it seemed like a hop, skip, and a jump, and we were there. Definitely more my speed, and that was even after climbing down 154 steps to the bottom of the falls AND climbing back up those 154 steps. Yep. That hike was nothing compared to the previous days' hike.

On the way back to the resort, we stopped at one of the recommended places to eat. It was a Brewery, and we had the Appalachian nachos that Christopher highly recommended. Those turned out to be potato chips covered in chili with a tablespoon of onions. There was maybe a dollop of cheese on top as well. We do not recommend them. The Brewery was at a golf resort, and the view from our table was quite lovely. The food? Not so much.

Day four in the books.

From the travel journal - Sapphire - day three

I've managed my anxiety reasonably well on this trip. I'm a believer in signs, and before this trip, I grabbed ahold with both hands the signs. I've driven up and down this godforsaken windy, give-one-carsickness road with locals riding my bumper, and I've still been able to get back in each day to do it all over again. Inside, I'm giving myself high fives.

Today I had to drive back down the mountain and then up another one to get to Gorges State Park, which is a must when visiting this area according to social media and hospitality industry peeps. The girls seem okay with me planning everything as long as Darcy gets to visit the resort gym for her daily workout, and Madison gets to sleep in late. I had read that this area was the Waterfall Capital or some such moniker, and Christopher's suggestions all included waterfalls, so I took his information and my research and decided today was the State Park.

The directions were simple, and we found it with no problem. We parked at the welcome center, and while Madison went to use the restroom facilities, Darcy and I ventured inside. A ranger behind the desk observed us from her seat, and when I strode to the counter, she asked me if she could help me. It was said in a tone that made me think she didn't really want to do so. Very reluctantly.

One of the things my mother taught me was to defer to the experts when in doubt. My father taught me to use people's names when conversing. I use both advice often, making sure I always let the experts know while using their given names, that I trust them thoroughly, whether I really do or not. 

Stroke their egos. 

I'm, if anything, a great game player. 

However, here in the Blue Ridge Mountains, nametags are hard to come by. It's thrown me off my game somewhat. 

Me: "Hello. We are first-time visitors and open to suggestions." 

Now, let me first say, I was dressed in my usual skort, which looks like a skirt because the shorts are entirely hidden, unlike the skorts of yesterday, where the shorts were visible from the back. These skorts look like skirts. I always let others know in certain situations, such as my drumming lesson, and when I get a pedicure, that I'm wearing shorts underneath the skirt to avoid excitement.

Me: "FYI, before anyone gets excited, I'm wearing a skort with shorts underneath, so settle down."

This is all to say, I wasn't exactly wearing hiking clothing, and while I was comfy, the Ranger should've taken a look at us before she offered hiking trail advice. Just saying...

Shorts, shirts, tennis shoes, and my skort... Not hiking boots. We had no water. No hats. No sunscreen. No hiking sticks. We were typical tourists and very ill-informed ones at that. Had I been the Ranger, I would've eyeballed us and then sent us to the .8 mile meandering through pretty scenic butterfly trail. 

But not this Ranger.

This Ranger gave a heavy sigh, heaved herself out of her chair, came to the counter, and pointed at the map before me. In a very grouchy tone...

Her: "Well, everyone and his brother wants to see Rainbow Falls. It's right here on the map. It isn't in the park, but you can only get to it from the park. That's what everyone wants to see. Go out the parking lot, take a right, drive a half a mile, and you'll see the signage. Park and follow the directions. The trail is 1.5 miles in."

Then she returned to her seat. Job complete.

That was it. No helpful advice like I was told to expect via my Yelp app. In those reviews, I heard about the helpful Rangers who warned hikers of bears and prepared hikers with water and sunscreen. 

So, I took the map, bought two water bottles (sorry for the plastic usage Jason Mamoa, but sincerely, shouldn't State and National Parks be avoiding that?), jokingly discussed purchasing a walking stick and left to follow Ranger Can't Be Bothered's instructions. 

Before we even got on the trail, signage warned us of the many dangers: severe injuries on the trails, falling rocks, slippery rocks, death. Death was mentioned several times. We joked about the signs out loud, but inside each one of us wondered what we were about to get ourselves into. But since we were there...

In my mind, the trail would be this worn, dirt path covered in the occasional leaves. Which it was--at the entrance in the pictures above. After that, it was more like the rainforest in Costa Rica. There was a path, but it was muddy, uneven, rocky, and wooded. You know, like nature, a trail in the middle of a forest on a mountain. The kind of path where a nice hiking stick would've been useful.

Everyone we passed, or I should say those who passed us, were hikers. Like professional people decked out in ankle hiking boots and thick socks. Hiking shorts with multiple pockets that I expect housed compasses, trail mix packets, and emergency supplies. They carried water canteens and used hiking sticks attached to their wrists. We should've turned back after the first two groups, but we kept joking about getting in our steps.

We came to a stream that we had to cross. It required much balancing on my part to not get my shoes and ankles wet. At that point, I quit taking pictures and just concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other and in breathing. The first half mile was downhill. The last half mile was uphill. I was bent over, hands on my knees, trying in vain to catch my breath and slow my heart rate. Then we came to a set of stairs. Giant, widely spaced steps that went up, up, up, and when I got to another staircase, I urged the girls to go without me, and I collapsed on a giant rock. 

Where I sat for ten minutes, catching my breath and moaning my misspent youth. And for being out of shape and fat. And for becoming my mother on vacation twenty years before even she became that person. But mostly on my youth. 

I also checked the map and discovered that this hike was labeled Strenuous. Unlike the other walks in the park that were labeled Easy and Moderate. Strenuous!

Then one of the girls' heads popped up, and she shouted that the falls were not far and I drug myself upright and made it up the fifty million steps to the trail that led to the falls.

It was beautiful. I'm not sure it was worth the hike to get there, but it was beautiful and cooler with the spray hitting us. There was another path to another falls, but even the girls opted out of seeing it, despite my encouragement. We hung out at the falls for a long time. Because we knew what we had to do to get back to the car. And we were out of water.

On the first mile to the falls, I began writing my second book. On the first mile back to the van, I wrote the letter I wanted to send Ranger Can't Be Bothered. Both of those got me through the first mile. The second mile? Ugh. It was all about breathing. One point five miles my ass. Our Apple Watches put the hike at 4 miles, and it took us over two hours.

By the last half mile, Madison was bent double, and I had resorted to sucking on the ice cubes left in Darcy's water bottle. Anything to moisten my dry mouth. Even Little Miss Daily Workout was complaining about the cardio she was getting. I spent the last half mile hearing our friend Karl Smith in my ear. He was an avid, experienced hiker who owned a walking stick and wrote about his adventures. I was one of the people who got to read his typed blog back in the day, and boy, was he giving me hell while entertaining me with the things he would write about me on this little adventure.

Signs, people. I'm a believer. Karl got me out of those woods.

We were never happier than when we saw our van. We headed back to our resort, where we drank glasses and glasses of water. Then Darcy headed off to the gym while Maddy and I showered, and then Maddy rallied to cook dinner.

We toasted our adventure and our lives with some wine and were in bed before midnight.