One more reason I love Spring Creek Ranch & Spa, in Jackson, Wyoming. Breakfast at The Granary Restaurant. Plenty of enticing choices (fabulous French toast and awesome huervos rancheros), but my favorite was grilled rainbow trout, with two eggs poached, Hollandaise sauce, ranch potatoes, and toast. Now that’s enough to fuel any skier for a morning on Jackson Hole’s slopes or a hiker or snowshoer exploring Grand Teton or Yellowstone National Parks, perhaps on a wildlife safari. Competing with the food are the views: Big glass windows with sweeping views down the “hole” or valley, backed by the Tetons. Bring binoculars, and you might just be able to pick out the new tram.
A Jackson Hole breakfast
Sugarloaf sugar shack
Here’s something that will sweeten the Sugarloaf experience next spring. Between mid March and mid April, Sugarloaf plans to operate a sugar shack on the West Mountain road.
According to VP Jim Costello: “We will tap into the maples around the area and produce maple syrup from trees on Sugarloaf Mountain. We will be giving tours, and samples at the Sugar Shack and we will also have bottled syrup for sale in our retail stores in the village (Ski Shop and Sugarloafers Shop). It will really be a experiential thing with demonstrations and folks on site to answer questions and give out samples.”
The concept is somewhat similar to the sugar shack at Quebec’s Mont Sainte-Anne, but Annie’s shack is on the slopes (and a favorite stop for families seeking to sample sugar on snow, that taffy treat made by pouring syrup on snow, then rolling it up around a Popsicle stick–yum).
To quote the late Great One: How sweet it is!
More than lights on Saturday night
Sunday River plans to begin offering finer dining at the North Peak lodge on Saturday nights this season. According to VP Jim Costello, menu details are still being worked out, but “it will more then likely be set price with several entrees to choice from.” He says it will be similar to the evening Bullwinkle’s dinners at Sugarloaf.
Diners will get to the restaurant via the chondola, which, as noted in previous post, will be operating for night skiing on Fridays, Saturdays, and selected holidays this season, along with the South Ridge Express. Both the Foggy Goggle and the cafeteria at South Ridge will be open for those not up for the North Ridge dining experience.
Friday night lights
Yup, Sunday River will have night skiing this season on Friday, Saturdays and holidays until 9 p.m., so says Jim Costello. Servicing the area will be the new chondola lift, a cross between a chairlift and gondola.
Gondy redux take 2
Nope. Not likely. Although the possibility of pairing the old Big Sky gondy cars now warehoused at the loaf with future castoffs from Loon, when it upgrades its overloaded lift, to create a new-to-you gondy on Sugarloaf’s West Mountain initially seemed like a good idea, it no longer does. So said John Diller at the annual Sugarloafer meeting during Homecoming Weekend. The numbers just don’t support it.
While any talk of new lifts is littered with maybes and possibilities and ifs, the current thinking, Diller said, has three options (in no particular order): a new lift up West Mountain, replacing the Spillway doubles with one fixed-grip quad, or, as he put it, the sexiest option, developing Burnt Mountain. All are on the table, but given the current financial morass, don’t look for anything soon.
What’s new this season is upgraded, expanded, and enhanced snowmaking that should allow the mountain to make snow earlier and hold it longer. New pumps and new fan guns are a big part of that strategy, and Tote Road has been electrified to the top of Chicken Pitch to allow use there. Eventually, that line will go to the top of the SuperQuad.
Biggest thing returnees will notice is the new Beach. It’s been expanded, covered with fancier brick and concrete, and a gas firepit has been added. There’s also an outdoor stage area, which, Diller said, will be used in the spring for outdoor bands. It really does look good.
Another thing ya can’t miss is the new SuperPipe. By digging it out, as opposed to building it with snow, the mountain estimates a $30,000 savings. Not bad. And if you go up on the mountain, you’ll see another major addition to Bullwinkle’s to add much-needed cafeteria side seating.
Midweek grooming will be somewhat cutback this season. Not every trail will be groomed every night, as was beginning to be the pattern recently. Nothing will be neglected to the point of getting icy, but some will be left in their natural state for night or two or three. That’s a move that will thrill some and piss off others.
Brunswick mourning
Economic woes have hit this college town, which is also facing the shut down of its naval air station in 2010.
Grand City, the downtown Woolworth-like department store and restaurant is slated to close by year’s end. It’s been a Maine Street institution for ages and a gathering spot for many, who enjoyed the inexpensive fare and friendly service in its restaurant.
Already gone is another long-time favorite, Bookland, which has been selling books here since 1974. Like Grand City, it, too, had a cafe, although a fancier and pricier one, and it, too, doubled as a community meeting spot. I really hate to see the loss of an independent bookstore. Maine is still blessed with many, but their not faring well in the age of Amazon and the big box retailers.
Spa escape
Listen up, girlfriends: Augusta, Maine’s capital city, isn’t a tourist destination, not by a long shot. It is, however, a great place for a spa escape. No, really!
I met a gal pal there for an overnight at The Senator Inn and Spa, a motel and conference center just off I-95, on a strip of sprawl and adjacent to one of the big box clusters. Given the location, I wasn’t expecting much of spa, but was looking forward to the escape.
What a sleeper (no pun intended)! The Senator’s had a full-service spa for 10 years, and that tenure shows both in design and services. It’s part of well-equipped health center with an indoor mineral pool, aerobics studio, and weight and exercise rooms.
Not an afterthought wedged in, the spa is thoughtfully designed and spacious. Locker rooms are on the pool level, but an elevator whisks up to the second floor, where entry is restricted to spa guests with access keys. A couch and chairs are grouped by a fireplace in the waiting lounge, and there’s a small dining ell for those who wish to order a meal. Now let me be clear: It’s not an ultra fancy spa in extra amenities or decor, but it is comfortable and nice spot for an escape (with girlfriends or with spouse).
I achieved a zen-like peace during my Zen Harmony Organic Facial, a 90-minute treatment complete with scalp, hand, and foot massage. Way different from any other facial I’ve had; this one used a Japanese massage technique that was kind of chop-chop on my face. Despite that, I drifted off to la-la land for most of it. And the results: Definitely achieved the glow, the elimination of quite a few worry lines, and a nice state of relaxation. (Honestly, if they could have just rolled me onto a gurney and wheeled me back to my room, I would have achieved total bliss).
My friend had an aromotherapy massage that left her floating. Her first comment: “I should have booked an hour-and-a-half, not just an hour, I didn’t want it to be over.”
The range of services is quite extensive, including various massages, facials, and body treatments, and for a hotel spa, prices are quite reasonable: Most one-hour services are $89, with a basic massage at $69. Longer services, such as my facial, are around $139. For a real splurge, consider the Day of Relaxation package for $325, including facial, body wrap, massage, pedicure, lunch, and a recovery drink.
Better yet, mke it an overnight. Rooms range from standard ($99-$159 d) to suites with separate living room area, fireplace in the bedroom, and Jacuzzi bath ($179-$259). The Cloud 9 restaurant is ultra casual, with a nice brick over area. I can vouch for the crab cakes (so good, I not only had them at dinner, but as as an eggs benie the next morning).
Erebus?
During my Portland whirlwind, I made a passing reference to Erebus to someone, and the result was a blank stare. Anyone else remember Portland’s original hippie-dippie head shop, source of patchouli oil, incense sticks, candles, those groovy and gauzy India bedspreads, beaded curtains, and, of course, pipes, clips and bongs? Whenever I walk by that building, I shake my head and grin. It’s so proper looking, so restored, refined, upscale. Hah.
