Blackberry Farm: A Smokies Shangri-la
The sweeping valley view is hypnotic. It beckons the soul to go soaring, releasing the cords of worries and cares that have tied it down too long.
Here, you can get lost just sitting on the veranda.
Despite its unpresumptuous name, Blackberry Farm is a close-to-home Shangri-la. Guests at this pristine wilderness resort, tucked high in the Smoky Mountains, come here to escape the frenzy of Western civilization, unplug from the world and take in the pleasures of life at nature’s pace.
“There is a gentleness about hospitality in this part of the world, in the spirit of the people here,” says Brian Lee, Blackberry Farm’s director of guest relations for the past 13 years. “They so genuinely care about our guests, offering a level of comfort that you can’t get just anywhere.”
Personal attention is a hallmark of the pastoral estate: the award-winning resort has more than 300 employees catering to a maximum capacity of 126 guests. But more than just pampering is involved. Blackberry Farm serves up nature’s splendor both in outdoor revelry and through its internationally recognized gourmet cuisine.
“This piece of land has had so much amazing history,” Lee says. “It has brought so many people together.” The property, in West Miller’s Cove near Walland, Tenn., has been significant since the earliest days of our country’s history. Running through the property is the “Hawkins Line,” part of the Holston Treaty negotiated by President George Washington and the Cherokee Indians. That line is now part of the present-day Great Smoky Mountains National Park border adjacent to Blackberry Farm.
Settled since the late 1800s, the property was purchased in 1976 as a private residence by Kreis and Sandy Beall from Knoxville, Tenn. They opened up a six-room country inn with the vision of making it a corporate gathering place as well as a venue for entertaining family and friends.
Their dream has slowly expanded into a multi-faceted estate with more than 60 rooms, cottages, a retreat center, a gourmet “barn” dining facility and other farm amenities. Today, son Sam Beall ably manages the resort as proprietor, continuing the family tradition of Southern hospitality by hosting cooking schools, wine tastings and other elaborate epicurean events. For the complete story, please read the Holiday 2008 issue of Marquee Mountain South.
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