Incredibly spacious, bright, cozy, clean, and homey. Nicely stocked kitchen & mountain views. "Larger than we expected. Great beds &linens." Awesomely located Minutes from Shen. Nat. Park, Skyline Drive, Blue Ridge Pkwy, wineries and the Brew Ridge Trail. Hike - Bike - Relax. We like questions: Airbnb parameters are restrictive. We try to accommodate when possible. Our property narrowly abuts the very popular Blue Ridge Tunnel Eastern Trailhead. The space Located just 3 minutes from The Nelson 151 Trail and overlooking the newly opened Claudius Crozet Blue Ridge Tunnel Trail system our cottage features a remodeled open kitchen with new appliances. The Nelson 151 Trail provides a convenient way to sample Nelson County's many wineries, cideries, distilleries, and breweries along scenic Route 151 plus many more scattered around the county. The house is over 100 years old and has been thoroughly modernized. The unincorporated Village of Afton was established in 1859 with the opening of a train station and Post Office. Richmond families escaped the heat of summer at the nearby Afton House Hotel. Air-conditioning changed habits and the Hotel was converted to a home that unfortunately burned to the ground in 1963. The freight station shipped tons of fruit from the surrounding orchards. The Albermarle Pippin (or Newton) apple was made famous by Thomas Jefferson and was one of the first apples exported to the U.K. when Queen Victoria lifted import duties on Virginia fruit to encourage the availability of her favorite apple. The train station was closed and demolished more than 50 years ago with a replica built as an attorney's office. The original rail line to Crozet's tunnel was replaced in the early 1940s with another line about 50 feet to the south. Amtrak's Cardinal still comes through 3 times a week in both directions during the afternoon making its way between NY-Chicago and unscheduled empty coal trains move westward with varying degrees of frequency. We estimated from 0-3 times per day on average and most often during the day but they also come through at night, there is, as stated, no schedule. The active track lies about a football field's length below the house. In 2021 we sold our Shenandoah Valley home and now reside in another cottage on the property. We also travel frequently in our little RV but are are always available to answer questions: local history, hiking, biking, restaurants, etc., and have a crew of people to call on should any emergency needs arise. For correct pricing, when making a booking request please describe the total # in your party, the number, and ages of any children traveling with you. Dogs - (1) small to medium sized well behaved dog may be approved in advance along with the payment of the pet fee (50 per dog/per week max.) Ask for rates if you have a 2nd dog. If your pet is crate trained and you would prefer to leave yours at home but bring some bedding since none is provided. We also provide dog waste bags. We consider our home dog friendly for responsible pet owners. Please bring a blanket to protect our furniture if your dog is used to being on furniture. Taxes Airbnb collects and remits only the combined state and county sales tax of 5.3% The Nelson County Transient Occupancy of %5 is not collected by Airbnb but is included in our posted rates for remittance to the county. Stays of 90+ days are tax exempt. Guest access Guests have access to the entire house and 1 acre +/- property with the exception of the crawl space, eaves and the tool shed. There is a small storage shed with combo-lock available for guests to store items like skis or bicycles. Other things to note Afton is considered quiet countryside, however, the house is 120 yards from an active rail line. There are 6 Amtrak passenger trains that pass through per week plus the occasional empty coal train or freight. Snow and ice during the winter can block the driveway so we provide a parking area along the primary road when weather threatens; we have no way to guarantee when the driveway will be plowed/safe. Stink bugs plague the east slope of the Blue Ridge for a couple of weeks in the fall during daylight hours. An afternoon roundup with the dustbuster and dumping that outside is all it takes to keep the house clear of the little buggers. Slightly more annoying are the Asian Lady Beetles aka the Harlequin Ladybird. They look like Lady Bugs but they're not. They sneak into the house in the fall and then try to find their way out ever sunny warm day until spring. Once again a late afternoon vacuum and release out of doors will provide a quiet night. This list may read like a nightmare but every house on the eastern slope of the Blue Ridge deals with most of what is written here. snow/ice/stink bugs and lady beetles. The train probably sets us apart. A lot of folks find the train exciting or charming;to each his own. As hosts our philosophy will always be to keep our guests well informed, we don’t like surprises so we try to avoid creating them.