All things on earth point home in old October; sailors to sea,. Around the time he finished that work, the author stayed at the historic Welbourne estate near Middleburg, Virginia, a place that itself seems an idyllic vision of a Southern October—horses grazing in pasture, fires crackling, and bourbon flowing. Welbourne operates today as an enchanting inn and a sanctuary for retired horses, just one of the getaways in the South that invite equine-loving guests to walk, ride, rest, and stay awhile.