Hi There! We’re so glad that you’re checking out Hemlock Hill Cabin for your mountain getaway in Blowing Rock, North Carolina. We love welcoming guests to our special place. We’re a husband and wife host/managing team, dedicated hosts and avid DIYers. We’ve been hosting since the height of Covid-19 in 2020. Since then it has since served as a much needed retreat for our family and countless others.
When we bought the cabin sight unseen, it was overgrown and overlooked after sitting empty on the market for over six months. A previous renovation in 2008 preserved the original exterior walls, which featuring hand-hewn logs that were cut from the property. Two of those walls remain on the exterior while two are now interior walls. While a lot of the major work was already done for us, we’re continuing to invest in the property to enhance our guests’ experience, and we do a lot of the work ourselves.
While we’re no longer local to the area, we both grew up in the NC mountains and love this area very deeply. Rachel grew up minutes from the cabin in Boone, NC and Peter was born in Northern Italy but eventually grew up in Waynesville, NC (near Asheville). When we first started hosting, we lived in Washington, DC nearly six hours away, but now we’re much closer in Charlotte, NC. We are business owners, parents and professionals (Rachel a Physician Assistant and Peter a Structural Engineer) that are always busy and thrive on adventure!
Our family can’t wait to welcome you and yours!
xo- The Whites
Have a question? We’d love to hear from you! Send us a message: here
In August 2020, five months into the pandemic, Rachel was burnt out — balancing healthcare work, life in DC, and raising two toddlers. In the middle of all that chaos, a long-held dream resurfaced: a cozy rental cabin in the NC mountains. We started browsing Zillow almost as wishful thinking, and then we found it.
A hidden gem in Blowing Rock – overgrown, overlooked, and sitting empty on the market for over six months. We signed on the dotted line sight unseen. When we finally made the drive from DC two weeks later and laid eyes on it for the first time, we were completely smitten. It needed TLC, but we saw exactly what it could become.
A previous renovation in 2008 had preserved the original exterior walls, featuring hand-hewn logs cut right from the property – two of which are now stunning interior walls. With a tight timeline, we loaded everything onto a 28-foot moving trailer, hired three Appalachian State students to help unload, and spent three days unpacking, assembling furniture, and bringing our vision to life. We listed it for guests shortly after.
We’ve continued to invest in the cabin ever since -and we do a lot of the work ourselves. One of our favorite projects was building the fire pit area from scratch because the portable fire pit wasn’t going to be adequate for our guests. We had over 16 tons of rock from small river stone to half-ton boulders delivered to the driveway along with a rented Bobcat. Peter built the boulder retaining walls by hand, we leveled the land, laid the river rock floor, and even carefully relocated the moss we displaced into the crevices between the rocks. It took back aching determination, but the result is one of guests’ favorite spots at the cabin.
Every project we take on is driven by the same goal: to make Hemlock Hill feel like a true home away from home for the families who stay here.
At Hemlock Hill Cabin, we are passionate about providing our guests exceptional quality, hospitality and authenticity. Since we started hosting during Covid in 2020, we have always prioritized excellence in cleanliness, thoughtful details, modern amenities, and clear communication. Drawing from our own travel experiences around the world, we have a deep understanding of what it takes to make your mountain getaway truly memorable. Guest satisfaction is paramount!
