Hikers Find Welcome Rest in Secluded Hamlet : Appalachian Inn Operator on the Trail of Tradition

This isolated mountain hamlet is tucked away so deep in the Unaka Range that the Appalachian Trail runs along its main street, prompting local wags to claim more visitors arrive by foot than by automobile.

“Technically, that’s probably not true, but we do get between 2,000 and 3,000 hikers each year,” said Elmer Hall, who puts up a number of these footsore folks in his two-story, seven-room inn.

Housed in a 110-year-old Victorian dwelling complete with gables and gingerbread-style trim, the inn has a timeless quality that fits right in with Hot Springs, whose mineral springs used to attract thousands of visitors each year.

That was around the turn of the century. Now, Hot Springs has only about 600 residents. It is surrounded by the Pisgah National Forest.

“Really, it’s more of a ghost town than anything else these days,” said Hall, a former Duke University chaplain who, like many others, found Hot Springs while hiking the Appalachian Trail.

‘Quiet, Slow Pace’

“I love the quiet, slow pace here,” Hall declared. He said he doesn’t miss the pulpit because he now draws his spiritual sustenance from the surrounding mountains.

Hall bought his 14-room house in 1978. He rents out seven of the rooms, but only to people with the “right” credentials, such as blisters and sore feet.

“Most of my guests are hikers, friends who have stayed here before,” he said. “I do take referrals, but you must have a reservation.”

In order to stay at the inn you almost have to know somebody who already has, because Hall doesn’t give out the phone number of his establishment, known simply as “The Inn.”

“All of our advertising is by word of mouth,” said Hall, 48.

In his inn, Hall has shunned many 20th-Century trappings, such as television sets and air conditioning. He heats with wood stoves and serves vegetarian meals, which he personally prepares.

Varied Clientele

The guests frequently entertain each other with conversation or songs in the spacious, instrument-filled music room. On a recent weekend his clientele included a pair of musically inclined Australian hikers, a potter from Chapel Hill, and a woman who runs what she described as “an underground bakery” in Manhattan.

Hall, a native of Elon College, N.C., said he originally saw the inn as a short-term venture when he purchased it eight years ago.

“I’d been in Hot Springs about a year and was living on a friend’s farm nearby. I planned to buy this place, fix it up and sell it and use the proceeds to buy myself a farm. But so far I’ve never gotten around to stage two,” he said, smiling.

The inn, included in the National Register of Historic Places, was empty when he bought it. He has since filled the house with antiques and old furniture from local attics and rummage sales and with curios borrowed from friends. Dozens of plants and hundreds of books complete the mix.

“The place was built by a rich Eastener but has been an inn for more than 80 years,” he said. “I’m continuing the tradition.”