We LOVED Elk Springs Resort!
After planning a family road trip to DC (with a 15 & 11-yr old), I was looking for a place where I could relax and the family could fish for a few days. I happened upon the Elk Springs website and thought we’d give it a shot.
What a surprise! Elk Springs is literally in the middle of nowhere- at least a solid hour of driving country mountain roads up through the clouds and beautiful scenery! (Caution: Closely follow the directions the resort provides. Our navigation system almost sent us off the side of the mountain, and the roads are poorly marked.)
LODGING- We stayed in the Broadwater Lodge- a beautiful log building with a huge, shared great room that had a television, satellite, pool table, and several sofas and dining tables. There are two large suites upstairs, and four regular rooms downstairs. We were the only guests during our stay, so we had the entire lodge to ourselves, but I can imagine the massive community area would still be comfortable at full capacity.
The four of us were more than comfortable sharing the Western Room downstairs. Our room had a comfy queen bed, a pullout for the kids, a large bathroom with a Jacuzzi tub, a small refrigerator w/freezer, a microwave, and a television with satellite. Despite a previous review, the lodge and our room smelled clean and fresh- not musty, like you’d expect in the mountains. I did not see ONE bug (dead or alive) inside during our entire stay. The linens were soft and comfortable. We had plenty of towels and pillows. There’s even a brand new washer and dryer next to the kitchen, (which came in very handy after a day of fishing). There’s also a huge deck area with plenty of tables, lounge chairs, and places to hang and dry your waders and fishing gear. The resort also has several stand-alone cabins available, but I didn’t have the opportunity to check out their amenities.
DINING- As I said the resort is in the middle of nowhere, so the dining options consist of eating in the fly shop or cooking for yourself in the lodge. We did not eat at the fly shop, but every time we walked in there, it smelled delicious! The menu consisted of typical fishing resort fare and was bit expensive for traveling with the kids- sub sandwich $8.50, Spaghetti dinner $15.00, BBQ chicken $20.00. (You’ll need to make reservations if you plan to eat at the fly shop.) We chose to stop by the grocery store on our way, and cook for ourselves in the lodge. The shared kitchen had a full-size refrigerator, electric stove, dishwasher, and was stocked with just about anything you’d need to cook a simple meal (plates, cups, utensils, baking sheets, etc). There’s also a newer BBQ grill on the deck. We made burgers one night, and grilled our freshly caught trout the next. Wonderful!
FISHING- My family loves to fish, and Elk Springs offers several fishing options. There are stocked ponds about 50 yards from the lodge. If you cast a line in the water, you will hook a fish immediately. You have to keep what you catch and pay $3 per pound. My kids LOVED this!
On the other side of the stocked ponds is the Elk River and adjoining spring fed streams. A fisherman’s dream! You can hire a guide for an hour or day, grab your gear and fish on your own, or drive 5 minutes upstream to find your own sweet spot. Everywhere we were (except the stocked ponds) was catch-and-release fishing, and we used rod and reel. Of the five other people we saw (over the two days), four were fly-fishing. The water was a bit murky because of all of the recent rain, but I can imagine the fishing is excellent in good weather with the shallow, cool water and small rapids. (Think: the movie "A River Runs Through It".)
SCENERY- The entire resort looks like a post card. Everywhere you look, there’s another beautiful, undisturbed view of nature. The streams and riverbanks are clean and pristine. There were flocks of yellow and bright blue butterflies, and tons of wildlife all over the place. I completely understand how the new resort owners fell in love!
STAFF- The fly shop girl, the housekeeper, and the guy who weighed our fish were all incredibly friendly and helpful. (Ack! I didn’t catch any of their names, but they were there if you needed something, and otherwise left you alone.) This was awesome after a week of crowds in DC, and really felt like a home away from home.
To sum up, if Elk Springs Resort wasn’t 800 miles from our house, we would be back every summer. It’s just perfect- for families, couples, and fishing buddies. (CHECK OUT MY 2ND REVIEW FOR MORE PICTURES!)
- Elk Springs Hotel
