Virginia calls, and I must go

It has been 20 years, exactly, since I last saw Welbourne. (I almost wrote: "Last night, I dreamt I went to Welbourne again ...") This weekend, I will be there again.

With two friends, I will drive the Sycamore-shaded sunken road, pull into that graveled drive, alight from the car to the sound of horses nickering softly on the other side of the fence, and walk the worn steps across the old porch, likely stepping over a couple of black-and-tan coon dogs as I do so.

I'm looking forward to seeing Nat and Sherry Morison again, the latest generation of family who own and are tasked with the care of  this 250-year old plantation; for several decades, they've opened it as a bed and breakfast for guests who eschew the chintz-and-comfort type of inn in favor of the real thing.

There's plenty of chintz and comfort around Middleburg, Virginia, but since I discovered Welbourne, about 25 years ago, I've not wanted to be anywhere else.  It was built around 1770 by Peyton Dulany, who founded the first foxhunting club and the oldest horse show in America, the Upperville Colt and Horse Show,  in 1853.

The place was a recurring refuge for Confederate warriors Jeb Stuart and John Mosby as they strove to evade the Union Army during the War Between the States; the battle of Goose Creek took place on its back acreage even as a later Dulany served as colonel of a southern regiment.  Later, notables such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Thomas Wolfe, and John Foster Dulles were guests. Succeeding generations of the family have stepped into the role of caretaker/owner of the property, taking on willingly or unwillingly the accompanying financial responsibility. Besides the B and B, income is derived from the retired horses -- sometimes as many as 50 -- who are sent to graze their final years in Welbourne's pastures. 

So this week, Welbourne will be the base from which our sightseeing will be launched. We're headed for the Hunt Country Stable Tour.   It's a weekend guided tour of the finest that Middleburg's Horse Country has to offer: farms that feature hunters, jumpers, carriage horses, race horses -- horses of nearly every breed, used in every discipline.  We'll take breaks long enough to eat in the village restaurants and at the Red Fox Tavern, Virginia's oldest "publick house." We'll drive a few back roads and soak in history, history, history all around us. 

By Sunday, we'll be happily heading home, but ever so glad we went!