Real Estate in Beautiful Utah

Utah has some of the most amazing beauty in the world. There are mountains, lakes, snow, desert, valleys and incredible views everywhere.

I recently became a brand new shiny Realtor!  Whew, at my age studying and taking that test was scary, but fortunately I passed the first time out!  Whew!

But the education doesn't end there.  Now, there are sooooo many new tech things I have to learn.  When I first began selling Real Estate back in the 80's, we were still using cumbersome printed books (which by the way in Orlando were HUGE) and they weren't updated very often.  Searching for a property and then calling only to find out that it was already sold...ugh.

Now I am a member of Better Homes and Gardens Franklin Group here in Ogden.  Better Homes and Gardens has the most amazing tools for us Realtors...really great! The MLS here is also all tech central!  For a gal who learned to type on a manual typewriter, sometimes this can be a bit intimidating! But, I have a wonderful Broker and our Office Assistant is amazing at helping with just about everything.

Real Estate here in Ogden area is really hopping! Houses are selling so fast that we can't list others fast enough!  It's a great problem though! Building is going on everywhere and property values are going up on a daily basis!  Interest rates are still low and not looking like they are going anywhere for at least a while.

This booming market is a new experience for me.  My first license was in Florida and at the time when interest rates skyrocketed! Boy, was that a rough time to be in the business of Real Estate.  Then when I moved to Georgia and got a Real Estate license, the bottom fell out of the market, the bubble burst, and foreclosures and short sales were the norm...not fun either!

So, I am looking forward to this lovely opportunity to sell Real Estate in a time and place where everything seems to be on the upswing!  Hallelujah!

Utah is a great place to live.  The cost of living is low, jobs are plentiful and people here are friendly.  The crime rate is low, there is tons of free stuff to do and it's a great place to raise kids.  So, if you are looking to relocate, look at Utah!

God Bless!

Linda

Summer Can't Be Over, Can It?

Really, is it already August 14th? Really, are the kiddos already heading back to school/college for another year? Wow!

I know now why older people have always said that as you grow older the years seem to pass even faster! This one is absolutely flying by!

It seems like just yesterday when we were snowshoeing and I shared a disastrous downhill skiing experience with Melanie!

Watching the girls ski this Winter was amazing! They both did a terrific job of downhill skiing and I was so proud of them!  They have only had two winters here and already they look like experts on the slopes! Wow!







This has been one BUSY Spring/Summer for me and perhaps that is why it has flown by so quickly.  It began with a wonderful trip to London/Paris for Mother's Day with Charles and friends!  Really sweet memories...I am totally blessed and completely spoiled.

 I will always love Paris, the City of Lights has always been a favorite of mine.

The views are incredible and the food is ALWAYS amazing.

Some of those lovely foods, escargot and Fois Gras for instance, can not be found anywhere else in the same delicious form as in France.

What a special place to spend Mother's Day!
Thanks Charles!

Then, Kevin and I were off to Maryland for my 50th High School Reunion!  OMG, can I really be THAT old? Yeppers, but I sure don't feel like it!  It really turned out to be a wonderful time of re-connecting with some that I hadn't seen in that fifty years.  I had a lot of trepidation about going, as I wasn't really one of the "popular" crowd, but I was amazed at how many people actually remembered me, and seemed pleased that I had traveled from Utah to be a part of the celebration!  It was a great time, and I sure am glad I chose to attend!



The morning after returning from Maryland, and a visit to both my sisters, I got on a plane for Georgia to visit with my oldest son and his family before leaving for Norway.

Of course part of the visit included a visit to our favorite Macon restaurant, Tropical Flava for an excovitched fish! James is an incomparable chef!

It was good to spend time with Cliff, Kristy and CJ and Eric! The one drawback about living in Utah is that they are 2,000 miles away!

We had a fun visit though and I'm hoping I can convince them all to join us for a visit in Utah!

Then, it was on to Norway.  Norway is a lovely country, but I could never stand the extremes....I mean it was strange to have 22 hours of daylight, but I can not imagine how difficult it is there in the long cold winters with mostly 22 hours of darkness! Yike!  Like I said, however, it is a beautiful country filled with history.

While I was off in Norway enjoying the company of May Britt and Buddy (May Britt is a Chef, and my girth increased by quite a bit while I enjoyed here wonderful food), Melanie and the girlies (whom I was missing tremendously) were enjoying the joys of Utah...so much natural beauty and so much to do all the time!

From the lavender fields to the gorgeous wildflowers, hiking Utah is such an interesting journey.

We just can't imagine what we would have missed had we never moved here!

 Utah has so much to offer.  There are crystal clear rivers filled with trout scattered throughout the State.  There are huge lakes where you can boat and swim in pristine, clear and uncontaminated water, or rent a boat and ski or tube or just paddle board and enjoy the amazing scenery.


I am enjoying watching the girls grow up in this beautiful, unspoiled environment.  And growing up they are!

Eric, my oldest son's oldest son...cam to spend a week here in Utah with us.  We had an amazing time sharing as much as we could of this beautiful area with him.  From Fly Fishing in the Weber River to Glamping at Bear Lake, we all had a joyous time!  We will go back to the Conestoga Ranch at Bear Lake.  Camping in style is exactly what I needed.                                                                                                      

 The kids had a great time on the lake (although you can't tell it from Liv's face! LOL)...tubing and wake boarding for a couple hours before we headed up the hillside to our comfortable Grand Tent at Conestoga Ranch.  The views from the hillside are amazing, looking out over the caribbean blue lake.  The campfire was perfect for roasting hot dogs.  Why is it that hot dogs always taste so much better roasted on a stick over an open fire?!?

After our informal dinner around the fire, we snuggled down for the night in our comfortable beds.  Wow, this is camping?

We will definitely be going back for a second round of this fun!

 And so now the Summer is nearly over.  We do look forward to Fall and Winter in this amazing part of the Country.  Soon the Aspens will become bright yellow, the Maples red and the mountainsides will be aglow with flaming color.

Along about October, the mountains will get their first snow and we will view them from the valleys as the skiers await the perfect powder for ski season.

There is always something amazing and beautiful to do in Utah.  This has been a year of fun, travel and some loss.  My little Buddy dog passed in March, and I still miss him sometimes. But, now there is a little "Rosebud" to fill the space in my heart and keep me very, very busy!

I am looking forward to snowshoeing on the mountains at Snowbasin again.  I am looking forward to sharing the coming seasons with my granddaughters as they relish the snow and ski season!

This Summer has been a time of reflection for me.  Life is really so short, and no one is promised tomorrow.  Kevin's 25-year-old nephew passed away this summer from an undetected heart defect...a life cut far too short, a terrible tragedy.  But, it is a reminder to get up each morning and thank God for another day.  It is a reminder to take time to "smell the roses."  It is a reminder to make the most of every single moment and never, never forget to tell those you love how much they mean to you every single day!

Enjoy life...live each day fully...be the best you can be! May God Bless You!

From the Rockies to the Fiords of Norway and Back!

After a month of traveling from my home in Ogden, Utah to London, England; Paris, France; Indian Head, Maryland; Macon, Georgia; and Bergen, Norway - I am finally home again! Whew, it is nice not to be living out of a suitcase!

I must say, that for a girl who has never lived more than a few hundred feet above sea level, I am definitely enjoying living in the mountains.

Ogden, Utah gets amazing reviews as a place to retire, raise children and enjoy great public transportation.  It is also located in a state where there is something to do no matter what time of year you are here!  In the summer there are beautiful lakes and rivers and you can ski, fish, swim and just enjoy the great views.

 In the winter there are snow activities and we are only 15 minutes from a great resort.     Then there is Antelope Island, right in the middle of the Great Salt Lake where Bison, Mule Deer, Antelope, Bighorn Sheep, Coyotes and so many other wild animals live wild and free in an amazing setting.

Traveling is an amazing experience, however, and frequently makes you appreciate home even more!  The scenery in Utah is breathtaking...from the valleys of northern Utah to the Red Rock Country of Arches National Park and St. George, the variety and diversity are impossible to describe!

Norway was extraordinary however. The fiords are beautiful, Bergen is full of history and the people of Norway are extraordinarily friendly!  As you can imagine, there is abundant seafood due to the location next to the Sea and all the Fiords.  Bergen is surrounded by seven mountains, and gets quite a bit of rain.  The weather did decide to cooperate while I was there, with only one day when we were rained out!

 The country of Norway is country located in Northern Europe on the western and northern part of the Scandinavian Peninsula, bordering the North Sea in southwest and the Skagerrak inlet to the south, the North Atlantic Ocean (Norwegian Sea) in the west and the Barents Sea to the northeast. Norway has a long land border with Sweden to the east, a shorter one with Finland in the northeast and a still shorter border with Russia in the far northeast.  Norway is one of the world's most northerly countries, and one of Europe's most mountainous countries with large areas dominated by the Scandinavian Mountains; average elevation is approximately 1500 feet, and 32 percent of the country is located above the tree line.  The lovely fiords were created by the movement of ice during the last ice age when Norway was covered by huge glaciers.

Downtown Bergen and old Brygen are  beautiful in spite of the fact that they are frequently overtaken by hoards of tourists who come ashore from numerous Cruise ships that dock in the huge harbor area.  Bergen received official status as a City in 1070! As an American, with a history of only a couple hundred years, that seems huge!  In about 1100 Bergen became the center for export of dried Cod.  Bergen was Norway's most important city by the year 1300. 

 In about 1343 the first Hanseatic commercial settlement was established in Bergen.  German merchants moved in and formed a colony, protected by the Hanseatic League.   This Kontor, as it was known, was located at Bryggen in Bergen.^[16] The Hanseatic merchants lived in their own separate quarter of town, where Middle Low German was spoken. They enjoyed exclusive rights to trade with the northern fishermen who each summer sailed into Bergen Harbor. During this century the Hanseatic merchants acquired monopolistic control over the trade in Bergen.  It is definitely worth your time to take a walk around the old Hanseatic area of Bergen.  Much of Bergen has been destroyed by fire on numerous occasions, but the area has been rebuilt and much of it's original charm still exists.

There are remnants of the old fort still open to the public, but much of it was destroyed, along with much of the town during World War II when Bergen was occupied on the first day of the German invasion on 9 April 1940, after a brief fight between German ships and the Norwegian coastal artillery. The German cruiser Königsberg was badly damaged by Norwegian coastal artillery at Kvarven Fort, and sunk by British bombers the following day, 10 April 1940, in the harbour. On 20 April 1944 the Dutch cargo ship Voorbode anchored off the Bergenhus Fortress, loaded with over 120 tons of explosives, blew up, killing at least 150 people and damaging historic buildings. The city was subject to some Allied bombing raids, aiming at German naval installations in the harbour. Some of these caused Norwegian civilian casualties numbering about 100.

In spite of its destruction on numerous occasions, Bergen remains a lovely city to visit! Surrounded by seven mountains and lovely fiords, this is a great Summer vacation location.  The summer nights are almost non-existent.  I found it unsettling to still have the sun on the horizon at midnight, but the people who live here seem to have adjusted to this fact!  I am not sure I could stand winter nights of the same length though!

I highly recommend the Fiord trips...whether you take the three hour tour out of the harbor, or opt for a six day trip from one end of Norway to the other, please take the time to enjoy the beautiful vistas presented along the various fiords.  From rocky hillsides covered with fir trees, to lovely little farms planted along the shorelines, to waterfalls and narrows, the fiords are an amazing journey.  The water is crystal clear and can be mirror like at times, doubling the vista views!  These farms in many cases can only be accessed by boat, and I couldn't help but wonder how they manage during the bitter winters.  We witnessed Fish farms along the way in the crystal cold waters, as well as small swimming areas (although i can't begin to imagine how anyone could swim in the COLD waters).  I was fortunate to be staying with residents of Bergen and got to experience many many of the local foods.  From fresh caught salmon and scallops, herring in cream, mustard, sour cream and tomato sauce, to lovely desserts, it was fun to experience Norway from a Non-tourist point of view!

I even got to help with a catering job with my host, May-Britt, who is a Chef for a local catering company.  It was interesting, to say the least, to see the kinds (and huge amount) of foods presented for the twenty people in attendance of the event.  Everything was gorgeous and delicious.  Foods included stone crab claws, smoked salmon, salted shrimp, deviled eggs, and a kind of baked scrambled egg cut into squares, as well as more familiar foods such as turkey and roast beef.  I love the Caramel Custard they serve for dessert.  Very reminiscent of Flan, and a little less sweet. Cream and butter are used abundantly here and the most frequently seen vegetables are of the cold weather variety such as Cabbage, Turnips, Carrots, Potatoes, etc.  The growing season is very short in Norway.  Meat staples are mostly fish, pork and lamb, and venison, all of which are prepared with the local vegetables and the dark meats with gravies which are usually cream based...yummy, but not exactly low calorie!

I enjoyed my recent trip to Norway very much, and would recommend it if you love to travel...but remember the Summer is LIGHT and the Winter is DARK! LOL

It is always nice to be able to travel, but it is also nice to return home, especially when home is my beautiful Utah!

Lace On The Mountaintop/Mud On The Hood!

Boy, it seems like Utah is definitely the land of surprises when it comes to weather --- and I thought Florida had crazy changeable weather.

Yesterday started off sunny and warm - a lovely 70 degrees.  As the afternoon arrived, however, clouds began to appear behind the mountains.  Shortly thereafter the wind picked up and before you know it, BOOM, a Dust Storm a "haboob" as it is better known here in the Southwest!

This is a crazy looking dust cloud that comes roaring over the mountains hiding everything from view! Crazy weird looking ...

As if the haboob wasn't enough, and the wind which left thousands without power for hours, when I came out of the store after work last evening, my car look like it had been "mud bombed."  I guess the haboob dropped all that dusty mess on the car and then the rain began.  I had heard people hear talk about raining mud...they were NOT kidding.  I couldn't even see out of my windshield until I washed it.  YUK

The upside of the weather change however, was the light snowfall (first of the year) in the mountains last night and this morning.  The mountain tops on the taller peaks look as if they are coated with white lace...how lovely.  The ski season here begins around Thanksgiving, and I know those skiers are about to have a fit to hit the powder!  The weather here is constantly amazing me.  I had never heard of "thunder snow" until moving here last year.  I had only seen thunderstorms in the East where it was warm and they were a part of Summer as I was growing up.  Thunder snow! Beautiful and amazing and slightly scary.  Then there are the "dog days" of Summer where temperatures frequently soar above 100 degrees.  The only redeeming feature there is that the humidity here is so LOW that when you stand in the shade it feels like 80!

Sometimes when I am snowshoeing in the Winter at about 7,500 to 8,000 feet the thermometer reads at 29, but the sun up high on the mountain feels so warm I end up wearing only a light jacket or sweater as I hike along.

Ah, Utah, land of beautiful scenery of so many varying amounts from the red rock of Moab in the South to the Wasatch here just North of Salt Lake City, and gorgeous Bear Lake (turquoise blue, incredibly deep) just South of the Idaho Border.  So much to see, so much to experience.  I am loving the West in spite of my calling to the Sea!

So as we head into our second winter here in Northwestern Utah, I expect there will be yet more surprises and beauty in our future.  Life is never dull in Utah!

PEACE, LOVE & JOY,  
Linda

Summer In Utah

I have certainly had one of the busiest Spring seasons ever!  Beginning with a trip to Florida to sell the Condo in Destin (sigh...yes, had to go since Utah is about 2,000 miles away and I couldn't find a reliable manager). I listed the condo on a Friday, flew down on Saturday had a cash offer on Wednesday and flew back the following Saturday! That certainly was a whirlwind trip.

I will miss this view, but plan to make a yearly trip down to enjoy the beach...probably in October when it is still warm and most of the tourists have left.

Just before I left for Florida, I had made an offer on a lovely three bedroom Townhome in Ogden.  As soon as I returned from selling the condo, we closed on the town home and closed on it shortly after.

But, before we could move, we made a lovely trip to Italy (see previous posts) with my son Charles.  It was fantastic.  So we were out of town from April 9-about the 16th.  We moved into the new town home on April 26th!  We are located at the mouth of Ogden Canyon with a beautiful view of the mountains, and we are within 15 minutes of great skiing and snowshoeing.  In the summer there are great activities all over Ogden and Snowbasin, so it is a great place to live.

I love sitting on the porch and looking at the mountains..The weather here is amazing and we are right next door to the Ogden Botanical Gardens and the River Walk.

The Ogden River is a lovely crystal river running over rocks and full of trout!

I am going to have to learn to fly fish soon.

The house is perfect for us with a huge master bedroom (which I kept beach themed)  a room for the girlies to spend the night, and a room for Kevin's Man Cave!

I have just enough room to plant some lovely flowers and plants out front and a nice patio out back where we can grill out with family.

After moving in the end of April, I took a flight back to Macon, Georgia to watch my Grandson Eric graduate from high school.  It is hard to believe 18 years have passed since he was born and we moved to Macon.  Time certainly does fly.  I spent five days in Macon before flying home on May 20th.

On May 28th, Melanie, Aaron and the girls and Kevin and I loaded up our cars and headed for Seattle, where we would depart for an Alaskan Cruise on the Rhapsody of the Seas.  What a lovely and exciting time we had!

We spent one night in Seattle after returning from Alaska before heading home to Utah.

I have finally been home for longer than a week now, and am enjoying my new home here.  I plan to take up painting again (mountains and trees now rather than seascapes) and connecting with people in the community.

Summer means lots and lots of fresh veggies here in Utah and RASPBERRIES galore!  Stay tuned for some great recipes.

PEACE, LOVE & JOY

Linda

The Cloud Shroud

The Mountains of the Wasatch Front continue to amaze me on a daily basis.  These huge, awesome, beautiful mountains with their rocky crags, sharp points, crevices and caves tower above everything here in the Ogden Valley.  Sometimes I forget just how tall they actually are. I forget, that is, until I start driving toward them and begin to feel like an ant!

I am amazed by their beauty, the variety of landscape and color they afford and the wildlife they support.

But, as huge and powerful as the mountains appear, they are often defeated by a soft, white fluffy float of clouds.

These clouds sometimes creep up from the back side of the mountain and crawl over the tops and then slide down the nearer side, looking so much like a giant cottony shroud.  Sometimes a snowy white peak will appear out of the top.  Sometimes they seem to disappear entirely in the cottony misty mass.

They never seem to look the same two days in a row.  I am so happy to have a home at the mouth of the Ogden Canyon, where I can sit on my porch with my coffee and look up at these powerful, beautiful mountains.  They remind me of how infinitely small I am in the scheme of things.  Their age, power and beauty are timeless.

Whether we are hiking the trails up to Timpanogos Cave, driving one of the beautiful roadways through Utah, or riding the Gondola at Snowbasin, these mountains always have something new to show me!

So this girl who will always remain an Okaloosa Girl at heart, has also found the beauty and peace, the joy and exhilaration of the mountains has room in her heart also!

Packing It Up! AGAIN!!!

Well, it is now March.  In fact, it is bearing down on the END of March.  I have sold my condo on Beautiful Okaloosa Island and have made the decision to become a full time permanent resident of Ogden, Utah.

Yep, the Okaloosagirl who thought she could/would never leave the beautiful Gulf of Mexico behind.  However, I have fallen in love with this amazing place, and besides that my beautiful daughter and granddaughters are here too!

We have actually enjoyed every single minute and new adventure here in Utah.  The people here are amazingly friendly and giving…volunteerism here is beyond belief and people are proud of their home town and work to take care of the environment.

I decided to sell the condo on Friday, February 28th and flew down on Saturday….the first day of March!  They started showing the condo immediately to the tune of two to three times a day!  Dawn and I had to keep leaving because every time we came back, they called to show it again.  By Wednesday, March 5th I had a Contract and we CLOSED on Friday, March 7th! What a whirlwind.

Just before I left to go to Florida, and immediately after calling my Realtor, Mary Ann Miller, I contacted a Realtor here in Utah, Shawna with Cornerstone Real Estate.  I went out to see the some on the Monday before I left for Florida and immediately fell in love with the very first one I saw!  Good grief…come to find out the people who were selling it had just listed it the Friday before!  All of this has been amazing.  The Riley's, family who own the town home, are being transferred to Georgia, from whence we came! What an interesting turn of events.  The home has EVERYTHING I could possibly want and more, including a lovely view of the mountains.  We are sitting right at the mouth of Ogden Canyon and one tenth of a mile from my favorite walking trail along the Ogden River!  I don't believe in coincidence, and know this was all orchestrated by an all-knowing, all loving God who has looked out for me all my life.  Amazing.

So, here we go again, packing up to move for the FOURTH time in two years!  Hysterical! I am becoming an expert at packing.  In addition to this monumental move across town, we are leaving for Italy on April 1st!  This lovely trip to Venice, Florence and Rome is a gift from my son Charles!  What a gift!  We can hardly wait to get there and see all the lovely things Italy has to offer (Kevin is anxious to eat a lot of pasta!).

So in a few weeks I will be posting a lot of pictures from Italy as we enjoy our trip.  I am also excited and somewhat melancholy to say I will be going back to Macon to watch Eric Kline graduate from High School the middle of May!  Melancholy because I can not believe how quickly the last 18 years have passed…but, so proud of the amazing young man he has become!  I will collect my hugs and cry a lot I am sure!

Then I am coming home to get ready to welcome dear friend Roberta Johstono and her sister, Barbara, to Utah and we will be driving to Seattle, Washington and boarding a Royal Caribbean ship to Alaska! More pictures will be forthcoming!  Blog, blog, blog.

I am still deciding about whether to take my lovely, expensive camera with me on these excursions, or just rely on the old reliable iPhone!  I really need to practice with the camera before I go anywhere!
As you can see, the next couple months are going to be extremely hectic ones, but exciting at the same time.  I better get a B12 shot or I won't be able to keep up with myself.

I also started teaching a nutrition and diet class this week in Layton…as if I don't have enough to do!  But, as usual I am better when I am busy!  So I hope I will have lots of pictures and adventures to share with you all in the coming weeks.  In the meantime, I wish you all

PEACE, LOVE & JOY

Linda

Sunset Comes First in The Valley

I'm really getting used to living in the Mountains of Utah, but I must say that I frequently realize little different things, and learn to appreciate them more each day.

This evening as I was driving home, I was sitting on Antelope Drive and noticed that it was still beautiful and sunny on the Mountain in front of me, but I was sitting in the shadow of sundown.

It really makes for some gorgeous sunsets out here though, for often as the sun goes down behind  the mountains on one side of this huge valley (which used to be a lake) it reflects on the clouds and bounces down on the mountains of the opposite side causing them to be an amazing shade of pink.

Lovely, aren't they?  It is also interesting to note that the sun hitting from different angles exposes new folds, creases, caves and ridges on the mountainsides.  It seems like every time you look at them, there is something different to see.

I have experienced Summer, Fall and now Winter here in Ogden, and now I am looking forward to Spring.  The crocus are already peeking out of the soil, and although I am sure we will see more snow before the Spring comes in full force, It is exciting to see the changes already taking place in our surroundings.

I love living in the valley, because for one thing MOST of the snow falls in the mountains.  I can, therefore, walk around down in the valley without having to stomp through snow, but when I do want to play in the snow, I just go up the mountain and snowshoe or ski, or tube … what wonderful choices.

There is definitely beauty in all seasons here.

But, being here in Summer, Fall and Winter has shown me something I had long ago forgotten, and that is just how beautiful the changing seasons can be!

The beautiful gardens of summer with their daisies, and roses and flora of all kinds…

The amazing colors of Autumn in the mountains are incomparable!

Rivers flow through canyons and wildlife abounds.  Buffalo on Antelope Island as well as Bighorn Sheep and Antelope.

Migrating Birds of hundreds of varieties in the thousands, flying into the area around the Great Salt Lake on their yearly travels.

So much to see, so many beautiful trails to hike, caves and amazing rock formations.

No, I never would have thought that anyone or anything could take the Okaloosagirl off of the also amazing and beautiful Gulf Coast with it's Emerald Green water, dolphins and sugar sand; but I have discovered a new love.  A new love that is just as beautiful, inspiring and amazing.  And to add to the beauty, there are two little granddaughters here (as well as a beautiful, loving daughter) that I just couldn't stand to be 2,000 miles away from.

So, as we explore Utah together, I will share pictures (which really can't do it justice) and tell you stories and share my "bucket list" adventures with you, and hope you enjoy reading and seeing it as much as I do!

PEACE, LOVE AND JOY

Linda

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