The Estate
Nine bedrooms, a game room, a theater, and a speakeasy.
Twenty-one of us, three nights, one house that does most of the work. A grill and a firepit on the deck, a sauna and a hot tub off the lower level.
The Weekend
Order of events
One signature evening per night. The days stay deliberately loose — the hot tub, the firepit, and the game room don't need scheduling.
The Guest List
Twenty-one
Quarters
Room assignments
Sorted in advance so arrival isn't a land grab. Names go on the doors before the main waves land.
Fly into IAD
Dulles is 130 miles out — about 2 hours 15. DCA adds half an hour each way; BWI closer to an hour.
Land by 2:30 Saturday
The murder mystery has a hard 7:30 start and everyone needs to be there for the opening.
No Tuesday flights before 4:30
We leave the house at noon. Drive, fuel, and returning the cars puts us at the terminal near three.
Pack a real jacket
Late September in the Blue Ridge: pleasant days, nights in the forties. The firepit is where everyone ends up.