Welcome to the Gilded Age

Day 26: Woof, what a place. The Biltmore Estate we toured was built in 1889 and I remembered my family on my dad’s side had just stepped off the boat through the Great Lakes during around this time period and were setting up their farm in northern Minnesota. Talk about two different worlds! Lol my family was just immigrating and starting again as a farming family while this other family was living off of the splendor of the steamboat and railway investments their grandparents had made.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPD6YiBFG1Q

Chad and I woke from the Mountain Energy truck stop and rode 20 minutes into Asheville. Travel tunes above lol Who knew these limp biscuits even were a big thing!? ;) Who even likes wet bread?? To break the trip up, I picked a new station on Slacker and never knew that rock could be pleasant to listen too. All these rock songs from the 2000s could be sung by little kids and they would suddenly sound so happy and friendly.  Maybe the new genre of music could be the Rat Pack (60s) or Reggae.

We pulled into a Starbucks to snag some wifi from the parking lot (weak signal) and I ended up hot spotting to post.  (No outside drinks in the estate, please!)  Chad tried to get tickets online (you get a free audio-guided tour!!) but the online credit card purchasing site was down.  He called in and over-the-phone purchasing was down too.  Uh oh.  Well, to the main gate we go.

There were cars everywhere and lined up like ants to get into the entrance. We walked inside the ticket cottage and there was a nice older gentleman that was able to help us get our tickets ahead of the lines. Somehow the online purchasing worked on Chad’s phone and we were able to snag the free audio-guided tour! THIS IS A MUST. Otherwise, get an actual tour with someone to tell you about the house/family. Otherwise, you will literally miss out on EVERYTHING.

Online, we purchased a buffet lunch at Deer Park Restaurant and they opened at 11 a.m. The older gentleman suggested we head straight there and then we get the first pick of the day! You don’t have to tell us twice! We happened to be there on a Friday and that is their specialty day featuring the Taste of the South menu of regional specialties. Field-to-table, here we come!

Our waitress was super helpful during the meal and we were able try sweet tea, a special strawberry lemonade (her favorite and we now understand why!), salads, meats, veggies, breads and desserts.

We asked her what her favorite dessert was and she leaned in secretly to tell us her favorite was the truffles (they also change out the fillings, making it a surprise bite!). But, the truffles are not out on the table. They are for special occasions only. She asked if we were celebrating anything like a birthday or anniversary….sadly, no. She walked away saying, “we can do something about that…”

She came back out with a cutting board freshly written with chocolate sauce and two little truffles glued to the board with newly cooled melted chocolate. The two little round balls were also just glazed with a decorative gold paint. THEY WERE SO GOOD!! For sure handmade. Somewhere. Thank you!

We were so full from our meal and we enjoyed the salad fixings the most. It was like we were able to have a 7 course meal just like they would have served at the estate back in the day! As we were about to leave, the wind kicked up and rain started dropping in sheets. Hard. Um??? We waited for a break and dashed to the car. It was now perfect timing to go check out the gardens!

When the 125,000 acres of land were purchased, the surrounding hills were in pretty poor condition. Vanderbilt hired a forester and together they planned the horticulture for the rolling hills to help the land become fertile again.

The family is known for replanting, farming and reestablishing the timber forests in the area to improve the overall quality of life for everyone. The forests were managed, and they established the first forestry education program in the U.S., the Biltmore Forest School, in 1898.

Over 75 acres of formal gardens surround the home estate and the plants were gorgeous. Vanderbilt sent horticulturists around the nation and to other countries to bring back specimens for the gardens to host.

There was a special redwood tree we saw in the garden and the sign said it was thought the specific species was extinct, but a grove was found in the depths of China forests not too long ago. Maybe this tree came from that grove! How crazy! These plants are from all over the place!

Happy and SUPER full from lunch, we walked the garden trails. We crossed bridges (wooden and stone), went up and down hills, climbed grassy knolls, and walked to a man-made lake (just dammed a little to allow for a little paddle boating). The views surrounding the estate were breath taking; mountain hills rolled in greenery and we were reminded that everything we see was planned and planted. WOW.

"The gardens included Italian formal garden, a walled garden, a shrub and rose garden, fountains, and a conservatory with special rooms for palms and orchids."

The conservatory was massive and each room was filled with some plants I have never seen before. The orchids were stunning and the rare colors (I think they are rare lol) were vibrant.

Orchids

Indoor Shots of Conservatory

More Beauties

Time for the house! The Biltmore Estate became a country home in the Blue Ridge Mountains and the house started construction in 1889 by the George Vanderbilt.

The home was constructed in six years and holds over 250 rooms designed in a French Renaissance chateau style. This is serious business right here. It is the largest privately-owned house in the United States with 178,926 square feet of floor space. (135,280 square feet of living space).

(The picture with the lady: They used pressed, decorative leather as wall paper in the breakfast room!) This house is literally in the middle of nowhere and the guy totally bought up part of a town (700 lots), 50 farms and cultivated over five cemeteries to build the entire 9,000-acre estate (just the house and living area…not the farming land lol).

Over 1,000 workers and 60 stonemasons crafted the home. The masons rappelled from the roofs and built scaffolding to chisel in-place the gargoyles, armored warriors and ANY stone work designs inside and outside of the facility. Hand carved. Uh, wow.

Chad was overwhelmed with the flooring (lol he investigates all floors since he is in the industry) because the large stone floors were perfectly sanded, large and perfectly aligned. They don’t have cup grinders back in the 1890s to make a level floor lol.

(Forgive the dark photos....lighting was not so hot for photography due to keeping the drapes shut.)

We were in awe the entire time we toured the facility. The audio guide was spoken in a storytelling manner with accents, different voices and we were immersed in the feelings of the time. They detailed what the rooms were for, shared about the living requirements of the time and shared about the furniture/ornaments of the home.

“The finished home contains over four acres of floor space, including 35 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms, and 65 fireplaces.”

Did I mention they built the home with electricity (outlets!!!!!), ductwork for boilers, hot water faucets and piping to heat the home in the winter?! They even had bathrooms in each guest room with a toilet and tub (no sinks because they wanted the interactions with the maids and guests to continue with old-school hospitality by bringing up fresh water urns). Indoor plumbing!!!!!

Basement Corridors for Guests & Servants

They had a bowling alley in the basement and a swimming pool! I know! WHATT?? There was a ladies’ and mens’ wing for changing rooms to keep everyone decent before swimming. They even had a workout room.

Bowling, Swimming & Working Out

My favorite was seeing the basement and kitchen spaces. There was a pastry room, rotisserie room, meat room and plenty of storage areas for food. They had walk in refrigerators that were cooled with coils! Their laundry room was crazy! They invented a drying system to dry the linens since they can’t dry them outside with the unpredictable weather (windy, rainy, sunny…).

Pastry, Rotisserie & Main Kitchen - Servants' Dinning

Servants' Quarters, Flower Prepping, Laundry, China

I could go on and on. This place was so big and we didn’t even see the fourth floor because of renovations. This floor housed the servants’ quarters!

Formal Dining Room

Chad’s favorite rooms were the Billiard Room and the Cigar/Hunting Room. These were in the Bachelors’ Wing (no ladies allowed! Go sit in the sitting room after dinner, please.) Chad also loved the garden spaces outside. Who doesn’t!?

Dinner Formal Wear of the Early 1900s

There was a little village (tourist trap) that had a free wine tasting, so we went and tried some wine. Apparently, the power went out and the village stores were completely reliant on their windows for light.

The winery was still open and we were able to try a variety of wines. My favorite part was the pretzels and dips sprinkled throughout the store so we munched our way out after our drinks lol.

We tried to check out the old barn, but there was an event in-progress. So, we wandered down and hung out with the goats in the pasture below. The sun was working on setting and the nature scenery was all lit up.

Square Hay Bales Anyone?

We ate a parfait in the parking lot and made our way out on a nature journey to the exit. I loved how the roads wound through the trees, hills and over creeks.

The rest of the evening was spent driving through Biltmore Village and downtown Asheville. The village used to be a part of the Estate!

“The village included rental cottages complete with plumbing and central heating, a post office, shops, doctor's office, school, and a church, known today as the Cathedral of All Souls. Intending that the estate could be self-supporting, Vanderbilt set up scientific forestry programs, poultry farms, cattle farms, hog farms, and a dairy.”

We rested a Cracker Barrel and during the night we heard people talking/singing in the trees in front of us. Yay, camping with the homeless! But, I guess we are also homeless lol and sleeping in a car.

Happy trails to all! (in the morning we found out that there was a Greyhound bus station right on the other side of the trees and we think the forest sleepers were waiting to catch the bus). Night night!