Saturday, February 15, 2014

My Funny Valentine

Last night my Sweetheart and I went up the mountain for Valentine's day.  Valentine's Day at Snowbasin's Needles Lodge turned out to be the most spectacular one we have ever spent together.

First of all you take a Gondola up the side of the snow-covered mountain to an elevation of about 8,000 feet!
Okay, that is some elevation for a girl who has never lived more than a few feet above sea level for most of her life.

The interior of the Needles Lodge is incredibly beautiful, with huge fireplaces and leather furniture and enormous beams made of unbelievably large logs.  It is beautiful, yet intimate, cozy and inviting.

I had enjoyed brunch at Needles before, and their Sunday Brunch is absolutely fabulous by the way, but I had never been up the mountain at night.  The slopes usually close at 4 PM, so the fact that we would be going up the mountain on a snow covered, moonlit night was intriguing to say the least.

We were offered a blanket to use going up the Gondola trip to Needles, but refused (it was a slightly regrettable decision we would decide a bit late!) and climbed aboard for our 15 minute trip to the top.  It was certainly beautiful, even if it was a bit chilly.

Upon arrival at Needles and departure from our Gondola, we entered the WARM and friendly environment of the Lodge.  The huge fireplace blazing in the entry was certainly a welcome sight, and very soon we were warmed nicely.  We actually were seated at the table in the center of this picture.  We were offered drinks to begin our meal, and I opted for a delicious concoction called Love Potion, Kevin had a Hot Toddy! Told you it was a little chilly on the way up!  

The menu presented was excellent.  I chose a wonderful Chorizo/Shrimp appetizer and Kevin chose a luscious soup.  Both exceeded our expectations, just as the rest of the meal did.  I had Venison Tenderloin served atop a banana squash puree…and it was definitely over the top delicious! Best I have ever had!  Kevin had a Bison T-bone with garlic mashed potatoes which was equally delicious.  Even my salad, and the Intermezzo (a Mango/Pineapple/Champagne sorbet) were superior.  Kudo's go out to the Chef!  Everything was perfect, right down to the amazing Chocolate/Raspberry Mouse Cake Kevin chose and the Beautiful Chocolate Dipped Strawberries which were my choice!

The romantic music playing in the background was presented at a level which allowed for quiet conversation and romantic memories.  There was not one thing I could have improved on or criticized during the whole evening.

After about 2 1/2 hours of enjoying the evening together my date and I finished the last swallow of our coffee and prepared to make the trip back down the mountain.

This time we willingly accepted our Snowbasin Blanket before climbing aboard the Gondola.  The trip down the side of the mountain was even more spectacular than the way up.  The spectacular view of the valley spread out before us with the houses lighted in the distance was beyond description.

Snowbasin really did an amazing job of making Valentine's Day one we will remember for the rest of our lives.  We will definitely be one of the first couples to sign up for Next Year!

Hoping everyone had a blessed and romantic day yesterday…We certainly did.

And by the way, Melanie, thanks for suggesting it!

PEACE, LOVE & JOY

Linda

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