Category Archives: Interesting Guests

Unexpected Visitor at our Ohio Bed & Breakfast

May 16, 2012 – 12:22 pm

Last week we had an unexpected visitor. Radar did not make a reservation in advance, just showed up, but we let him stay anyway – free of charge.

We named him Radar because he is a Racing Homer Pigeon who lost his way and was looking for a place to rest his tired body for a few days to try and figure out what went wrong. He stayed by our ponds in the daytime and roosted on our roof in the evening.

We learned a lot about racing pigeon’s. Because Bill was able to get close enough to see the numbers on his band and feed him, we called the AU – the American Pigeon Racing Union. They were able to match the numbers to the owner. He lived in Louisville Kentucky and raced Radar 2 weeks ago. He got lost and ended up at our Bed & Breakfast, about 300 miles north of Louisville. The owner was not interested in driving here to pick him up so with the help of the AU we found Richard, another pigeon racer who lives about a 1/2 hour drive from us. He asked Bill to contain him so he could get him home. So, at midnight Bill climbed up the ladder to capture a very calm and non-resistant pigeon and place him in a ‘Have a Heart Trap’ for the night. Radar eventually found him way back to Kentucky when he was driven by another man who was racing in the area. He let him go when he got to Louisville and they were 100% confident that Radar would find his way home.

What a great story that he would pick a Bed & Breakfast for lodging and food.

I’ll look forward to seeing you soon,
Linda
Whispering Pines Bed and Breakfast ——————————-

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Atwood Lake Carroll County Interesting Guests Ohio lodging Romantic Bed and Breakfast Things to do

Bed and Breakfast Ohio – Ohio Getaway Itinerary

July 7, 2011 – 11:43 am

Moving on to Day 4 for your getaway experience at our Ohio Bed and Breakfast. Have fun and be sure to call for other suggestions.

Day 4 – Museums

A visit to our area would not be complete without experiencing a tour at Warthers Museum, Worlds Master Carver who left behind an amazing legacy. The Reeves Victorian House was home to Jeremiah Reeves, a wealthy Dover industrialist and banker. And finally a visit to Historic Zoar Village founded in 1817 by German separatists. Try dinner at Tozzi’s Italian Restaurant located in Magnolia, but save dessert for homemade ice cream at Taggerts.

I’ll look forward to seeing you soon,
Linda
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Atwood Lake Bed and Breakfast Carroll County Interesting Guests Ohio lodging Romantic Bed and Breakfast Special People

Great Memories from our Romantic Bed and Breakfast

February 17, 2011 – 3:05 pm

This is a story we will never forget. One summer day a few years ago, a couple arrived at WhisperingPines carrying a very large clay pot with a plant of enormous leaves. We were a bit confused and curious as to why someone would bring a plant on a getaway. Well, this is the rest of the story.

There is a plant called ‘night blooming cirrus’. It blooms only one time a year and lasts only during the night. By morning the plant is shriveled up. Really, it’s true. They had this plant for several years and it never developed a bud for a bloom. Well, this particular year it did. You guessed it – this was probably the night it was going to open – and they were absolutely correct. Our lovely couple did not want to miss it. We understood completely and had them place the pot in a prominent spot in the great room for everyone to witness. They went out for dinner and returned just in the nick of time. Indeed, the flower opened in front of our eyes. It was amazing to see the bud open and expand to this incredibly beautiful and very large flower. All of us were in awe and sat by the flower for at least three hours. In the morning it was gone, with only a memory of how nature works its wonder.

I’ll look forward to seeing you soon,
Linda
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Atwood Lake Bed and Breakfast Interesting Guests Special People

Beef Wellington for Innkeepers of Dellroy Ohio Bed and Breakfast

January 30, 2010 – 8:06 pm

Today the temperature is a very cold 16 degrees outside, ice has formed on the entire lake, snow is covering the ground and it’s very cloudy. Our memories take us back to last September when the sky was blue, the sun was shining, the lake breeze made little ripples and it was in the high 70′s. On that day we were invited by Bill Rini and his wife Dawn to dinner at their Atwood Lake summer home. We were very excited because Bill is a renown chef from the Cleveland, Ohio area who owns A Taste of Excellence. They have three lovely children and a dog, but this September day their children were with grand parents.

I spend a lot of time in my kitchen at Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast, so I was especially thrilled at the thought of having dinner served to me.

We began our wonderful dinner with, as you can see the most unusual plating of a salad that we had ever seen. The rose was shaped with tomato skin, the huge croutons were exceptional as well as the hollowed out cucumber filled with tomato salsa and drizzled with his home made caesar dressing. Then came the masterpiece – beef wellington with a mound of garlic mashed potatoes, perfectly steamed asparagus, all swimming in a plate of his made from scratch gravy.

Can you tell from the photo that it tastes as good as it looks? Yes, that is chef Bill sitting down to enjoy the fruits of his labor. Bill’s wife Dawn, my husband Bill and myself were so immersed in eating we almost forgot to snap this picture.

Chef Bill then took us all for a boat ride on his pontoon. It was a beautiful night, the air was cool and there were just a few boats passing us by. When we returned to their lake house, we finished off the night with an apple pie topped with vanilla ice cream – delicious.

Another piece of the story is Bill and Dawn were our guests at Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast on several occasions. They fell in love with Atwood Lake and purchased a home right on the water. They have become great friends and we really enjoy their energy level.

Thank you Bill and Dawn, it was a night to remember.

Do you have a memorable food experience to share? What is your favorite restaurant?

Hope to see you soon,
Linda
Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast
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Bed and Breakfast Interesting Guests interviews scenery

Vineyard

December 7, 2009 – 5:25 pm

One of the joy’s of being innkeepers is meeting people with unique and unusual jobs. Cindy and John Moorhead along with their son, Mike, fall right in that category.
The Moorhead’s own a vineyard in Erie, Pa. They do not make the wine, they grow the grapes that get sold to winery’s mainly in Pa. and N.Y. The Moorhead Farms actually grow twenty-two separate varieties of wine grapes: Riesling, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Vidal Blanc, Cayuga, Pinot Gris, Traminette, Pinot Blanc, Dornfelder, Valvin Muscat, Corot Noir, Noiret, Baccus, Merlot, Chardonnay, Viognier, Chambourcin, Vignoles, Niagara, Steuben, Carmine and Concords. Some of them are white and some are dark blue and they all taste divine. We were spoiled to the point that it will now be difficult to buy grapes from the market.

We know the grapes are wonderful because we were invited to see their operation during harvest. We toured their acres of grapes and did a complete “grape tasting”. Each and every variety had a distinct and aromatic flavor. We found this so much more fun than a wine tasting, and we knew we were being treated very special. Even though the day we chose to visit was cold and raining grape harvesting continued. Both Bill and I enjoyed riding the harvester. This huge machine traverses the vines, shakes the grapes loose allowing them to move up the conveyor belt where someone hand picks out the larger stems and branches. They are then dumped into a cart traveling right beside the harvester. It’s amazing how smoothly the operation runs.

After a few hours Cindy served us a wonderful hot meal with a bottle of wine (their grapes) and an absolutely delicious grape pie made from their more than a dozen table varieties of grapes. Her pie could without a doubt win a blue ribbon. John and Mike were still harvesting into the night because a truck was ready to drive the grapes to a New York Winery.

We had a great day and wonderful memories of our time spent with friends we met at our bed and breakfast. We left with several baskets of grapes and when we arrived home Bill made several jars of grape preserves.

We arrived later in the evening at The Bootby Inn, fellow Select Registry innkeepers. I highly recommend their Inn when traveling through Erie, Pa. The night before we stayed at the Buhl Mansion, another Select Registry Inn located in Sharon, Pa. Another Inn I would highly recommend. We had a good night’s sleep, nice conversation and a lovely breakfast served to us at both places.

Well after all this wine talk I think I’ll open a bottle of ‘Traminette’ wine from Mazza Vineyards in North East, Pa. Yes, grapes from the Moorhead farm. Do you think I can get Bill to take a break? For sure if I add some cheese and crackers.

Have you had the opportunity to go on a private tour of a vineyard? Would love to hear about your experience. Send me a comment to share with my readers.

Hope to see you soon,
Linda
Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast
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Atwood Lake Bed and Breakfast Interesting Guests Special People

Succulent Cornish Hens

November 29, 2009 – 8:32 pm

Food, food, food – I love to make it, we love to eat it and I love to have it prepared and served by a talented at home chef.

This past labor day weekend two couples met at Whispering Pines, Bev & Michael from Pittsburgh, Pa. and Cindra and Darryl from Southfield, Mi. They were definitely foodies, especially Darryl. Knowing that part of our family lived about a 15 minute drive from their home, Darryl and his wife Cindra invited us over for dinner during Thanksgiving week. Naturally we accepted the invitation with much anticipation.

The menu: Armagnac and fig glazed roasted cornish hens – mashed root vegetables and golden yukon potatoes with roasted shallots and a mix of sauteed wild mushrooms with baby spinach and bacon. All this served with Peirano Estate Heritage Collection Chardonnay from Lodi Valley, Ca. Darryl used to be in wine sales, so he has a good deal of knowledge regarding wine and lots of great stories to share.

As you can see from the photos chef Darryl at work, the golden finish of the hens and the beautiful plated presentation. It was a 5-star dinner. Thank you Darryl for all the time and thought you obviously put into this masterpiece.

The evening was a lot of fun and we enjoyed meeting their good friends Gail and Dewey. They shared many stories that left us in laughter.

Well, we really do meet the nicest people as innkeepers, one of the many perks of our ‘job’.

Hope to see you soon,
Linda
Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast
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Atwood Lake Bed and Breakfast Interesting Guests interviews Special People

That’s Life with Robin Swoboda

November 14, 2009 – 12:56 am

A few weeks ago I had a call from Rachel, the producer of “that’s life with Robin Swoboda” at Fox 8 Cleveland. Robin wanted to visit Whispering Pines, stay overnight, have breakfast and include us as part of her travel show on Atwood Lake and things to do in the area. Of course we jumped on that request and thought this would really be fun. The show was taped and was aired on Tuesday, November 10th at 10 am. Since we were out of town attending a Select Registry innkeeping meeting we’ll have to wait until the dvd arrives from the station to see it ourselves. We have already received several reservations from this. Thank you Robin.

I’ve included a great picture of Robin – in the middle – Rachel, the producer and Herb, the camera man. This was after they had indulged in a terrific breakfast of Lemon Ricotta pancakes.

The night before we all visited AlBi Winery, located on the lake where Bill, the owner, poured wine and chatted with Robin. I’m sure it was a very funny segment. They walked right next door to have dinner at Casablanca where Jim and Karen entertained them and fed they quite well. The following day they were going to visit the Resort, Warther’s Museum and possibly a tattoo studio.

We enjoyed the experience as Robin really has a magnetic personality, making everyone feel very comfortable in front of the camera.

Would love to hear any comments if you were able to watch the program.

Hope to see you soon,
Linda
Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast
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Interesting Guests Packages Things to do

Grilfriends getaway at our Ohio bed and breakfast

October 28, 2009 – 3:43 pm

Over the years Whispering Pines has been host to many girlfriend getaways because we created a very appealing weekday package to take advantage of. Since I’ve started to blog, I thought I would share two different groups, one with four friends and the other with eight women. We always look forward to these occasions and because of all the laughter we know they are having a great time. Who wouldn’t enjoy a complete body massage, a welcome tray of cheese, crackers and a beverage, two lovely dinners, a delicious breakfast and roasting s’mores out at the fire pit. Bill has just about completed the sun room, a perfect place for groups to hang out without disturbing other house guests. Many a card game and board games have been won and lost and memories relived.

The group on the left were friends from the Columbus, Ohio area. Darlene, Linda, Nancy and Jennie stayed two nights. When they arrived they enjoyed their welcome tray and promptly made a decision to spend the following day in the Amish area. They were a lovely group and enjoyed their time together. We enjoyed having them.

The group of women on the right actually stayed four nights. Their story is quite unique. Carol, Ann Marie, Sharon, Mary, Edna, Linda, Rahjini and Carolyn began their history in a little superb of Pittsburgh – they were neighbors, young mothers raising their children. Twenty-seven years ago they decided to take a trip and thus was born the “Escapees”. They truly were the pioneers of the “girlfriends getaway” concept. Even though they have all moved, some as far away as Texas, Connecticut, Maryland and Ohio, this is a yearly event in their lives. This group took advantage of the activities in Canton, the Amish area, loved the Alpaca farm and went clay pigeon shooting. They even allowed me the honor of looking at their sacred memory book which began 27 years ago. We enjoyed them as much as they enjoyed being at Whispering Pines.

Let me know about your girlfriends getaways and how we can customize your package for your great escape.

Hope to see you soon,
Linda
Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast
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Interesting Guests

Senior Citizens

September 26, 2009 – 10:28 pm

In the twenty years of being an innkeeper, we have hosted many groups of friends, relatives, wedding parties and business groups. This is a post about a group of friends from southern Ohio who chose Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast for their annual getaway. And this is the first such group we have had since I’ve begun to blog.

They call themselves “seniors”, but in reality they are as vibrant and productive as any younger folks. They claim to be in their 70′s something – to Bill and I they look like 60′s something and act even younger. In fact Ruby and Harry are still hold hands. For two days they have been laughing, talking, playing games, drinking wine, planning dinner and running around having fun. This year they stayed fairly close to home, but in the past they have chosen Las Vegas, Florida, Chicago and houseboating on Lake Cumberland. We’re glad they stayed at our inn on this early fall weekend.

Gail & Judy is the only couple who is actually retired but keeping very busy and the other two couples still work jobs they love. Audrey and Jim own and operate a kennel, Harry runs a luxury aircraft auction and Ruby works for an e-business company. I believe this is what keeps them young at heart. They have 14 children between them, 31 grandchildren and 6 great grand children. This alone keeps them busy.

We enjoy having groups at our bed and breakfast. There is ample space inside and out for them to gather and not interfere with other guests.

If you are planning a getaway with your friends, we invite you to visit Whispering Pines. Call me toll free at 866-452-5388. I’ll be delighted to help you plan your stay. We can even arrange massages for the ladies and clay shooting for the men. We’ll look forward to meeting you.

Hope to see you soon,
Linda
Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast
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Interesting Guests

Ohio Bed & Breakfast Travel Writer

August 19, 2009 – 12:08 am

Travel writer Steve Stephens of the Columbus Dispatch was researching a story on wineries located in Northeast Ohio. Al-Bi Winery, a two minute drive from the Inn, was his last stop of the day and Steve needed a place to rest his weary and slightly wine filled bones. When he arrived at Whispering Pines, I didn’t even know he was a travel writer. In conversation he explained what he was up to. In my inimitable way, I asked him if he would mention a one liner on our Bed & Breakfast. To our astonishment he said he wanted to do a full story for his series on Inns across the state. Steve asked questions and took a lot of pictures inside and out. He would definitely talk to his editor. This was exciting.

In the story Steve mentions his car breaking down and in fact it really did. We gave him our car to use so he could go to dinner. He was so amazed that we would make that offer, but else would any innkeeper do? After all, we are in the hospitality business.

Steve was actually our only guest that evening so at breakfast we had a chance to talk about a lot of things. He thoroughly enjoyed his fluffy omelet and roasted potatoes served with an apricot scone. We had fun exchanging stories and invited he and his wife back for a “romantic” getaway. We said our good-byes and hoped that he would be permitted to write a story. Didn’t hear from Steve, August came and I assumed there would be no story. Was I ever wrong.

On Sunday, August 16th, in between serving breakfast to a full house, I went to my computer to check on any online reservations and there were four – all from the Columbus area. I knew something was up. I immediately went to the Columbus Dispatch web site and sure enough found the article. Didn’t have time to read it because my guests were hungry and I was needed in the kitchen. Within a couple of hours the phone began to ring and more online reservations. I was happily swamped. By mid-afternoon I had booked several rooms, had not cleaned up the kitchen, did not yet read the article and was jumping for joy. By early evening on Monday, I had booked over 30 rooms. Bill and I finally had a chance to read the article and we were amazed and humbled. It was a wonderful article on Whispering Pines.

Things happen when you least expect it, and we are very grateful for his last minute call to stay for the night. Steve apparently has a loyal following because he is a real likable, honest writer.

In this business when advertising is expensive, it is so nice to be able to receive some “free press”. Steve, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for sharing Whispering Pines so beautifully with the people of your city. And we thank all of the people who have booked rooms at the Inn relying on his advise to visit the Atwood Lake region, get a bottle of wine at Al-Bi Winery and enjoy it at Whispering Pines.

Hope to see you soon,
Linda
Whispering Pines Bed & Breakfast

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