Melea Hames: [00:00:00] Welcome back to Unexpected Adventures in North Alabama, part of the Destination Marketing Podcast Network. Today, we're talking about rustic romantic getaways in North Alabama. I wrote a blog post about these unique places to get away and it was wildly popular. So we thought, hey, let's do a podcast episode about it. So our guest today is Cynthia Stinson from the Mentone Inn bed and breakfast. Thanks for being here today, Cynthia.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:00:28] Hi Melea, how are you doing?
Melea Hames: [00:00:29] I am good. I am so happy to talk to you.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:00:32] Yes, good. Good to talk to you too. It's been a while.
Melea Hames: [00:00:35] Yes. Well, tell us a little bit about yourself and how the Mentone Inn came to be.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:00:41] Well myself, I am a transplant from South Alabama, Greenville. But I moved here in 2006 with my dog and a tent and $2000. And I set up the tent in the backfield behind the pavilion and got a job working as a housekeeper here. So I was homeless working here as a housekeeper and did that for 2.5 years and was able to get inside the inn and live in the winter months. Then in 2009, Mike Campbell, the owner of the property approached me and said, would I take it over? And I did.
So I took it over in 2009 and just hard work, blood, sweat, tears and kept my head down and prayed a lot and we have come now full circle and we are five stars.
Melea Hames: [00:01:26] Wow, that is quite the story there.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:01:30] Yeah, yeah. It's a story of faith and perseverance for sure. And the end is, it was built in 1927 by a man named Hal Hal and his wife, Nelda and they built it and opened it as Hal’s House which was the Lodge/Inn. And they ran it from 1927 to 1954. And they served all meals here back in 1929, get a hot breakfast and dinner and hot water for seven days for $29.
Melea Hames: [00:02:05] Oh wow.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:02:06] Yeah, a little bit more expensive than that now. But of course, the prices have gone up a little bit, but we offer the same amenities that the house aesthetically itself has not changed. It is a Victorian-style wooden house. We have 12 rooms and we have modified some of the bedrooms so we could have private baths in all the rooms. So we have 12 bedrooms with private baths, some are upstairs, some are downstairs. We have quite a large dining room that can seat 30. Then we have a common area, we have one TV in the house and it usually gets turned on for college football and that's about it.
Most of the time. I encourage people to unplug. We do have really good WIFI service but to unplug and just enjoy one another. The porch is a great place to be. You can sit there and watch the world go by. I've got an outdoor pavilion that's covered with a fireplace. It's good for snuggling and reading or doing sports or whatever. But some of the amenities that we offer here because really and truly were just like grandma's house. And I say that because people say, what's it like at the Mentone Inn? And I tell people, go back on your childhood memories that when you went to visit grandma and you would go to bed and you have this comfy bed with these quilts and you would wake up in the morning and you smell coffee brewing and biscuits baking and sausage frying. That's the Mentone Inn. That's grandma's house.
The rooms are your basic bedroom in the house and they all have private baths. I can do birthday cakes and decorate the rooms for birthdays for someone to surprise their significant other with, chocolate-covered strawberries, sparkling grape juice, roses or flowers. I have it ready for them when they walk in the room so it gets them brownie points with their significant others and that's always fun.
I do small weddings, I do flowers, catering, whatever they need. I can also do the planning and the coordinating of a wedding too as well. With our food, since I am the cook and I do develop my own recipes, I have developed most gluten-free recipes because that seems to be a real thing these days that people have a sensitivity to gluten. So I do gluten-free. I can do vegan, vegetarian, I can throw it all on the grill and put some hot ham and sausage and some grease and you know. I can do it all, bacon grease and everything.
Melea Hames: [00:04:30] Like grandma’s cooking.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:04:31] Yes, ma'am, that's right. And homemade biscuits by my hands, so yes, definitely. And then some homemade sawmill gravy and when the tomatoes are in season because I do have a little garden out back. I have some tomatoes and peppers and stuff. I'll do a good tomato gravy too as well.
Melea Hames: [00:04:45] Yeah. Oh goodness. Okay, I'm ready to book my getaway.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:04:52] Come on.
Melea Hames: [00:04:53] Right now. Ready to book it.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:04:55] It's just quiet. Mentone is a very laid-back community. I think our population is 352. You can just about throw a rock from one end of the town or the other. But there's a lot of in-between and a lot of really good people, talented people, artists, were a community of artisans. We have a great Arts Council here. Little River Arts Council. I do concerts on the pavilion once a month starting in May, from May until September or actually October.
Then we have the farmers market right here on my property. I started that 15 years ago and it was just something for the local farmers to come and sell their goods and it's grown into a, actually incorporated farmers market now and it's every Saturday from 10 to 1. It's right here on the grass of the end, right next door to the parking lot there. We also have a food truck out there, full-time. Fantastic foods. My daughter is Fontana and she has a food truck, fantastic food, good food there. We also were right in the middle of town. So we're located within walking distance of all the little shops and we have some really unique shops here in town. Different types of artwork. We have a guy who does chainsaw art with wood.
We're also right here close to the Wildflower, we're two blocks from the Wildflower Cafe, 2.5 blocks from Elevation Bistro and Catering Company and about three blocks from the Mentone market. So once you get here really, if you don't want to get out and drive around, you can access everything from right here at the house.
Melea Hames: [00:06:23] Yeah, that is cool.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:06:25] And then yeah we have a labyrinth in the backyard, that Saint Joseph Church made a beautiful sacred garden out back and it's got a beautiful walking labyrinth out there. So you know, once you get here, if you don't want to leave, you don't have to. There's plenty of things to do right here within a three-block radius to do in the area. You've got the Soto State Park, you've got Little River Canyon, Shady Grove Dude Ranch, they have horses to do rides with, they'll take you to the falls, you can see the falls. We've got the Orbits Glass, which is a little bit further out, but definitely worth the drive out to see.
Melea Hames: [00:07:02] Yes. I've blown a few ornaments out there and that is so neat. It is such a cool experience.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:07:07] Well, Kent he's a good guy and he's worked hard and he's accomplished a lot and I'm so tickled for him that they're doing so well.
Melea Hames: [00:07:16] He's so talented. Yeah, we had the privilege of staying, at the Mentone Inn one year for our quarterly board meeting. I don't know if you remember all of us coming and spending the night.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:07:28] I do. That's been a while back. You got to do that again.
Melea Hames: [00:07:30] It has been. I think it's probably been about seven or eight years maybe. It's been a little while, but it was absolutely adorable. I mean I walked up and I remember this is something that I thought was so cool that my name was on the door. It was already read, it was personalized. And yeah, it was just –
Cynthia Stinson: [00:07:50] We did that for groups now. We do provide anonymity, people that want to come in and just be by themselves. But a bed and breakfast is a social setting. I've got guests, they have met here. As a matter of fact, there's three couples that met here a year ago, May and they hit it off and they've been here three times and they're coming back in June as a group. So that's always fun.
Melea Hames: [00:08:17] That’s so fun. Yeah. You've built a lot of relationships over the years.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:08:22] I have. I'm very fortunate that way. A big extended family.
Melea Hames: [00:08:25] Yeah, that is so neat. I know that seems to be a recurring theme in several of the podcast that we do is everybody talks about, it's the people. It's the people that you meet. It's the people that you see. It's the people behind the art, that's really cool.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:08:44] The back stories on people and everybody's got a story I think and talking to people, especially locals who live here and how they came to be. We've got some really fascinating people that live here. So, yeah, I enjoy it. I've met and formed a lot of good relationships with people that I'm hoping that when I'm gone, I'll be remembered fondly.
Melea Hames: [00:09:07] Well, I know that there's a lot of people that speak very fondly of you. So you've built quite the reputation there.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:09:16] I hope so. And I get to meet people and I hear them tell me about their lives and it can be hard sometimes because I hear so many stories and I have a very sympathetic heart and it doesn't really get to me. But I mean, I think about these people. So what I've done is I just pray for these people. All these different walks of life and different sets of problems and stuff and I'm glad they feel comfortable they can come here and talk to me about it because I care. That's I think it's what makes me successful here is because I do care about what I'm doing.
It's not about the money, anybody who does a bed and breakfast to get rich is in the wrong business because you're rich in everything but your soul gets enriched and you get to talk to people and you have hopefully make a difference. And I think that's what we all need to strive for as human beings is to make a difference in somebody's life. And so if you've done that, you've done your job as a human.
Melea Hames: [00:10:12] Yeah, just being kind and yeah, like you said sympathetic. Where is the farthest place that you know of that someone has visited the Mentone Inn?
Cynthia Stinson: [00:10:23] A matter of fact, just had one here two weeks ago, he was from Austria.
Melea Hames: [00:10:27] Oh, wow.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:10:28] We have a lot of international people over the years. Afghanistan, Australia, the Bahamas, Germany, Italy, France. The majority of my demographics are in the southeastern United States, Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana and I do a lot of groups that come. I got a group from South Carolina that comes every year. They’re a motorcycle group and they ride their motorcycles here and they're here for three days and two nights and we have a great time.
Melea Hames: [00:11:02] Yeah, that is so cool. I mean here I was thinking that you were going to say maybe Alaska somewhere and then it's like, oh wow, international visitors. That is amazing.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:11:13] Yeah, I've got a couple that comes every two years from Italy and I've got a girl coming in February that she and I met online. I played words with friends, that's my decompressing time. We met, we figured it out the other day, we met 10 years ago playing Words with Friends. She's in Michigan and they are coming in February so we can finally meet face-to-face.
Melea Hames: [00:11:38] Oh cool, that is so neat.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:11:41] So it's different but there's no bad time to be in Mentone but it can be a little cold here but just wear layers and in the springtime rolls around and we have over 1000 species of wildflowers in the area. Plants and herbs and it's beautiful. It really is. The waterfalls are gorgeous to the Soto Falls is three miles from here and it's beautiful. Then we've got the Little River Canyon, which is about 12.5 miles from here, definitely worth the drive.
Then it got summertime on the river is always fun kayaking, tubing, what have you. Then the fall there is just nothing like the fall in Mentone.
Melea Hames: [00:12:20] Gorgeous, absolutely gorgeous.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:12:24] Yeah, yeah. The colors are comical to anything in the New England States.
Melea Hames: [00:12:29] Yes, they're so beautiful. And then taking that trip along the Canyon Rim Road, it's breathtaking.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:12:37] Or back roads. I tell people when they live here. I said, well you know, just go and just keep turning right, you'll eventually wind up back at the spot you started in. If you get lost just keep turning right. You’ll get back here.
Melea Hames: [00:12:51] That's funny. Yeah. And you mentioned wildflowers, we did an episode with Brittany at DeSoto State Park about wildflower hikes and of course, there's the big one -- in May each year that they do the big hikes to search for wildflowers. So yeah, everything's that pretty green in the spring and then just –
Cynthia Stinson: [00:13:13] She's so knowledgeable too. If you're fortunate enough to get a hiking class with Brittany, she's one of the best. I've been friends for a long time and she has taught me a lot about different wildflowers in the area and herbs too. And of course, we do have some herbalists here and I've learned a lot about plants for medicinal purposes here. That helps a lot. I mean they're in abundance here, why not take advantage of it?
Melea Hames: [00:13:42] Yeah, that’s pretty cool.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:13:43] Then food, there is no lack of food here. We have like I said, there's a place in Valley Head, it's not quite in Mentone. It's about 2.5 miles from here. It's called the New Tigers Inn. It's an established restaurant. It's been there for 30 or more years. But a young couple and their friend took it over Miranda and Adam Golden and their friend Grady and they took it over about a little over a year ago. The food is fabulous. They have breakfast and lunch and they also do a dinner 4 to 8 and they have a full menu. If you can imagine fried deviled eggs.
Melea Hames: [00:14:19] Oh my goodness.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:14:21] That's one of their specialties. Top it off with candy bacon, I mean you cannot go wrong.
Melea Hames: [00:14:27] Yum. Well, as you can tell, the Mentone Inn B & B is a fabulous place for a rustic romantic getaway. There's several other places in North Alabama for the perfect getaway, too. And glamping has become all the rage here lately. Have you ever been glamping Cynthia?
Cynthia Stinson: [00:14:44] I have actually. There's actually a few that have opened up here in the Mentone area. There's one called Folklore Forest and I've met the couple that has it, Kelly Daspit and it's right on the river and then they have several places close by that you can rent but that's the one prominent one I can think of in the general area, but glamping is a new a new thing these days. It's rustic, you're out in a tent, but very luxurious on the inside.
Melea Hames: [00:15:14] Yeah, I say it's like if you love to camp but you don't want to sleep on the ground.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:15:20] Right. Well you know when I was talking about living in my tent out behind the pavilion when I first moved here and being homeless, that does sound kind of sad but I think I was glamping and just didn't know it because I had a little twin size bed in there and I had a dresser and I had a rocking chair. I had a two-bedroom-sized tent. It was quite a large tent and I had a screened-in porch. So I guess I was glamping and just didn't know it.
Melea Hames: [00:15:44] You started it. Let's just say you started the glamping rage. That's right.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:15:47] That’s right. Maybe I did. It changed my life. I know that. Go glamping, it changes your life.
Melea Hames: [00:15:53] Yeah. Well, there's another place near Coleman called the Palomino RV Resort and they've got several sites for glamping. Another unique destination is River Rocks Landing near Gaston and they have treehouses. I just think that Mentone is the perfect place like they need some treehouses, just stay in.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:16:14] We do have some tree houses with our company that peaceful retreats and that some of their listings is treehouses.
Melea Hames: [00:16:24] That is so cool because I mean just staying in a treehouse when you were a kid playing that was so much fun. Then getting to do it as an adult, like as a destination that would just be the ultimate getaway.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:16:38] Treehouse camping is like the glamping– Treehouse camping is like we used to as a child, this whole treehouse camping thing is a whole different level. It's luxurious, rustic but luxurious. You have all the amenities you would need and the location. Some of them by the river and I would think it would be really cool to be up in a treehouse with the wind blowing.
Melea Hames: [00:17:01] That would be nice.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:17:02] I do get a chance to get out and experience some of our rental properties. I went to a cabin for my birthday for three days and it was five miles from here. It might as well have been 500 miles because it was so nice. I was unplugged and sat on the porch swing and just sat there for almost three days and did absolutely nothing but eat and read. I read one of Shawn's books while I was there.
Melea Hames: [00:17:28] Oh cool. Yeah, that sounds like a perfect getaway to me.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:17:32] Absolutely, absolutely no cell phones, no internet. Just peaceful, unplugged.
Melea Hames: [00:17:40] Well there's other locations in the area too that have cozy cabins. Almost all of our state parks have cabins including some new ones at Cathedral Cavern State Park, Jackson County Park on Lake Guntersville, Stonebridge Farms in Coleman, Double Head Resort, Goose Pond Colony and several others have cozy little cabins and a lot of them are on the water which makes it even more of a perfect destination for a getaway.
And then Gorham's Bluff is another bed and breakfast that sits up on a bluff, hence the name, and overlooks the Tennessee River. It's near Scottsboro and you can have breakfast in bed. So that's another perfect getaway.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:18:22] We actually offer breakfast in bed here too as well as several. I have several husbands that will come to me and say can I give her breakfast in bed? I'm like, sure. And I fixed a nice little tray up and put everything on it, put her flowers and I want to know our car and then they take it to her or I actually have been able to take it to the rooms too as well and leave it. So that's a really nice amenity to have. Breakfast in bed is good.
Melea Hames: [00:18:47] Yeah, that's really cool. It adds an extra layer of romance to the getaway.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:18:53] Absolutely, absolutely. I want to say when people come here for a romantic getaway, I am not a hovering innkeeper. I'm available. I live here. So if they need me they all get my cell phone number when they get here and I am connected by an Apple Watch and Apple phone but they can get me until 11 o'clock at night it goes off. I have to get some sleep sometimes.
But yeah it is what you make out of it and I can help you enhance that here. Give you what you need to make it more romantic or fun for you and your spouse or your significant other. We just want people to come here and just enjoy themselves.
Melea Hames: [00:19:36] Yeah, that's so perfect. Perfect getaway.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:19:41] People ask me all the time, where do I go? I'm like I live in Mentone, why would I go anywhere?
Melea Hames: [00:19:47] You already live in the perfect destination, right?
Cynthia Stinson: [00:19:49] I live in a destination everybody's trying to get here to. That's one of the things that when I get up and I know people are coming in or go to bed the night before and people coming in the next day, I think about people are excited, they're packing their bags. What am I going to take? What I’m going to wear? I'm excited. I have to remember that this is a special treat for people and so I try to make it as special as possible. I want them to have a good time and leave here with a good big smile on their face.
Melea Hames: [00:20:17] Yeah. And then tell everyone at home and spread the word and then they want to come.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:20:23] Yep. Exactly. Word of mouth is the best advertising there is.
Melea Hames: [00:20:27] It is. When you have an experience like that you tell everyone and then everyone, no one wants to miss that.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:20:35] Well I do have a Facebook page for the Inn. It's Mentone Inn Bed and Breakfast. I do post things that happen in the area that's coming up and also things that are happening here at the Inn. I post pictures of my food that usually gets people excited. So there's ways to -- word of mouth is the best advertisement there is.
Melea Hames: [00:20:59] Yes, absolutely. And I mentioned that we have a blog post on northalabama.org/blog. So you can look up rustic, romantic getaways and find more information about each one of these locations and even some other locations that were not mentioned on here. So make sure you click on that. Thank you so much for being here today, Cynthia. I've enjoyed it.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:21:21] You’re welcome. Well, you're welcome. And I look forward to seeing you in person again soon. Hit your wagon up and come on over here for a couple of days.
Melea Hames: [00:21:28] I need to come have some breakfast for sure.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:21:30] That's right. I'll feed you some grits and some gravy.
Melea Hames: [00:21:35] Okay, I'm there. I'm there. Don't even have to twist my arm.
Cynthia Stinson: [00:21:39] Oh just come on girl. I'll take care of you.
Melea Hames: [00:21:44] Well, awesome. I appreciate it. Well, thanks for being here and North Alabama social platforms are linked in the description. Thanks for joining us today and we'll be back next time with more about North Alabama Adventures.
[End of Transcript]
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