The Parker Ranch

My bedroom for the weekend.

I just returned from the most wonderful weekend at The Parker Ranch in Clayton, Georgia. Everything - the weather, the people, the food, the accommodations, and the activity – came together in a lovely harmony, making for one of the best weekends I’ve had in a while. My friends, Becky Hoover and Paula Jones recently acquired The Parker Ranch. Becky has had her eye on this place ever since she spent her 50th birthday there a decade ago. When the inn and the six acres it sits on went on the market a few years ago, Becky started dreaming about how she could make it hers. With the unwavering support of her partner, Paula, Becky’s dream became a reality earlier this year when she was able to open The Parker Ranch.

This large, rambling house was built in 1907 by the LeCraw family as a summer home. I think they lived in Atlanta, but I’m not sure. The house got my attention right away because of the deep front porch that spans the full breadth of it. I love porches, so I was doubly thrilled when I found the porch repeated across the back of the house, providing a breezeway that connects to a separate dining hall and kitchen.

The front door opens into a large, rustic great-room with dark paneled walls and high ceilings. A striking stone fireplace provides the focal point for this room. Becky and Paula have furnished it with leather sofas, an oriental rug, and big comfy chairs. This great-room was our meeting place on Friday evening for wine and cheese served from a big ole coffee table in the center of the room. It was here that I met the other guests for the weekend, Peggy and Gary, and Gary’s adult son, Ben. Kay, a friend of Becky and Paula, also joined us.

Off the great-room is a maze of seven bedrooms and six bathrooms. The high beds, tall ceilings, simple country furnishings, and cream-painted paneled walls remind me of my grandma’s house. Most of the bedrooms have direct access to either the front porch or the back porch, with screened doors that creak and slam shut just like the ones in my childhood home.

The weekend weather in Clayton was a Georgia girl’s dream: low humidity with cool nighttime temps. I thought I might have died and gone to heaven when I stepped out of my room Saturday morning to a chilly 56 degrees, the smell of coffee brewing, and breakfast cooking in the nearby country kitchen. I was instantly reminded of nights spent with my grandmother and the delicious breakfasts she always prepared for me.

Gary, Peggy, and Ben were there to celebrate Ben’s recent return from Afghanistan and attend a fly-fishing workshop taught by local fly-fisherman extraordinaire, Rick Claridad. I was there to do what I seem to enjoy most these days - hang out and write. I wrote an article about this place for the upcoming August issue of BuckHaven Lifestyle. I’ll be sure to share the link once it’s published.

Paula is quite the cook, and the meals were scrumptious and beautiful. I forgot all about how I like to eat gluten-free and avoid sweets. Her homemade banana bread was moist and oh, so yummy; I was more than a little jealous when she gave all the leftovers to Ben. ;-) But I scored when she gave me the remains of the herb salad. This is a great salad that I will be making again and again. I’ll share the recipe in a future post.

I hope to return soon. And often. I have been twice now, and I love being at The Parker Ranch. The energy is a perfect combination of relaxing and inspiring. I left feeling excited about writing more, taking more pictures, and about the people I connected with. Seeing Kay again was a pleasure; I haven’t seen her in years. And it’s always a joy to spend time with Becky and Paula. Meeting Gary, Peggy, and Ben was a treat. I so enjoyed talking with them for hours over the weekend. Twenty-six year-old Ben is so impressive – handsome, fit, articulate, respectful, and so at ease with a house full of his elders.

The Parker Ranch is still evolving, but Becky's and Paula's plan is to run it as a weekend retreat for workshops of all kinds and to offer it for rental for private events. So far, they have offered workshops on photography, fly-fishing, meditation and yoga, and fiction writing. They have already rented it for a few private gatherings, and I have vague thoughts of a future birthday weekend there. It's the perfect place for an easy, laid-back get-together with friends or family.

I had a lovely weekend. I hope you did too.
~Pat
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 For more information on The Parker Ranch and for details on upcoming workshops, visit their website online at http://parkersranch.com.


Another bedroom with beautiful late-day light.
Melvin hanging out on the front porch.

I love the porches and the painted furniture!

The Dining Room.

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