WAYNESVILLE – About a dozen years ago, Bob Wilkerson was working on a report in his Houston home, and like many people who work at home, he had the television on for background noise.

But something caught his attention. It was a PBS special about great inns of America.

The show featured a country inn nestled on 250 acres high atop a North Carolina mountain just on the eastern outskirts of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

And it took just one visit to the Swag Country Inn in Waynesville, and he and his wife, Elaine, have been coming back ever since.

"It's like a cruise on land," Bob Wilkerson said. "It's a real treat here."

True, meals are served to both guests and locals who want to make the trek up the mountain. The Swag's driveway is 2.5 miles long, and it climbs 1,100 feet. So make reservations because it's a long haul up the mountain.

Specialty events include the Swag's Sunday brunch, a Wednesday picnic lunch and a Thursday night barbecue dinner.

"We've been here 11 of the 12 years," Elaine Wilkerson said during last season's visit. "We drive up (from Houston) so Bob can bring his banjo.

"He plays impromptu banjo concerts for the guests."

That's the kind of atmosphere you won't find on a cruise where the "talent" is under contract and the shows are strictly scheduled.

"That's not unusual," said Deener Matthews, who runs the Swag with her husband, Dan. "We have several people who bring their instruments."

Another regular guest, Doug Peters of Stone Mountain, Ga., has even written three songs about the Swag.

It's true, there are activities planned at the Swag, but even those choreographed events have an informal feel to them.

Experts on birds, bears, buds and blossoms lead guests on hikes on the Swag's 2.5-mile nature trail as well as other nearby trails.

Charles Maynard, author and storyteller from Jonesborough, Tenn., leads hikes for Swag guests, enthralling them with tales of Cherokees and how the Eastern Band hid in the North Carolina mountains to escape the forced Trail of Tears march.

The edge of the Cherokee Reservation is about six miles from the Swag.

Some Swag hikes lead to the Appalachian Highlands Science Learning Center at Purchase Knob, which has about 5,000 visitors a year. It's one of 13 centers in the National Park Service devoted to education and research, including ozone levels and avian populations.

But be aware that hiking at 5,000 feet above sea level is a little more difficult for low-lying hikers.

"You can make it as relaxing or challenging as you want it," said Rob Barbier of League City, Texas, another longtime visitor to the Swag. "It's a true vacation spot."

Asheville is a day trip away, where you can visit the Biltmore Estate or the Grove Park Inn.

And although you can hike to some of the trails on the eastern side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most visited park in the country, it's a short drive to the Appalachian Trail.

"We have a mile frontage on the Great Smoky Mountain National Park and a view of 500,000 acres of wilderness. Plus, we're in close proximity to hundreds of miles of trails."

Swag guests are within walking distance of two major creeks in the park – the Cataloochee Creek and Caldwell Fork. Both have hiking trails that parallel the water.

Deener and Dan Matthews built the Swag Country Inn from scratch 26 years ago after inheriting a tidy sum of money from an uncle.

"There was nothing here; there weren't any trees; no electricity; no telephone," Deener Matthews said. "And so we wouldn't damage the beauty, we dug a 4-foot trench straight up the mountain for power and telephone lines."

Matthews said they could have found property already with infrastructure.

"But there's nothing as pretty as it is up here," she said. "It was worth the hardship."

The couple then had to name their new inn, which, by the way, is the highest inn in the Eastern United States.

"We knew the locals called this property, 'the swag,'" Matthews said. "It's a term mountain people use, and our property has a dip in it – like the curve in a curtain."

After 26 years, the Swag now offers 15 rooms or cabins, and two of the accommodations have been renovated recently.

The Woodshed, the first building erected on the property to store equipment during construction, was turned into a cottage for guests. Now, it features a wet bar, sauna and back porch shower.

The Cabin also was renovated in July, and it now has an outdoor fireplace and outdoor shower.

"We're making a number of them better, more romantic," Matthews said.

So when Bob and Elaine Wilkerson make their annual trip to the Swag, they might see some new construction, new scenery and new faces.

But that's OK.

"There are three things that keep us coming back," Bob Wilkerson said, "the Swag, the mountains and the people we meet.

"We've been to Europe to Hawaii and across the Alps into Italy. But we never want to go anywhere else now."

If you go

The Swag Country Inn is about a three-hour drive from Charlotte; nearly four hours from Atlanta; five hours from Raleigh; and about 13 hours from New York City.

Take Exit 20 off Interstate 40 and turn onto N.C. 276 heading south. Go 2.8 miles and turn right at the Swag sign onto Grindstone Road. Follow the blacktop to Hemphill Road and turn right. Follow the Swag signs approximately three miles, and turn left onto Swag Road. The inn is 21/2 miles up the mountain.

Rates range from $400 to $725 a night.

For reservations, call 800-789-7672 or go to the Web site: www.theswag.com.