Monday, April 8, 2019

Inn-Ovations at Alta, Utah



Wearing Sport Obermeyer with a matching Helmet Hugger at the end of the town tow rope link at Alta
Another bucket list ski resort crossed off our Tahoe friends' wishlist! Steve and Kit Urbani joined us in Alta, Utah this March for a three-day foray, greeted by us but, more importantly, by masses of snow! Season’s snowfall at Alta was almost 500 inches when we got there and has now reached 547 inches - or 1389cm!! Our arrival was delayed a bit by avalanche control in the Little Cottonwood Canyon but that didn’t bother us too much as we knew it guaranteed wonderful conditions once we got to the resort (which BTW just got voted #4 in North America by Liftopia).

Alta Lodge setting - Courtesy of Alta Lodge
Our first destination was the 80-year-old Alta Lodge, Alta’s oldest hotel, dating back to 1939. With peaked gables reflecting the Wasatch Mountains, it was built by the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad as a traditional mountain lodge, with two further wings added on in the 1960s. It’s Alpine-authentic, rustic and cozily cute with a maze-like layout that keeps your internal GPS on full alert. With an entrance stairwell and parking on the Alta road, its various floors then descend down the hillside. Views over the mountainscape are sensational although, with almost 500 inches of snowfall, some of the tall-paned windows were partially obscured by the huge powder piles outside.

Alta Lodge exterior - Courtesy of Alta Lodge
Once installed there, it’s totally ski in/out with its own modified poma lift to get back to the ski locker room. From the bottom of the poma, it’s a scoot – or grab the handy two-way tow rope - to either Collins or Sunnyside Lifts.

Photo By Matt Wolfe/Courtesy of Alta 
Despite the morning’s canyon closure, we were checked in, togged out in ski gear, ticketed, and on our first lift of the day by 11:25am. Skiing through the lunchtime lull, we felt like we had clocked up a full day’s skiing by 4pm. We explored by nose, memory, and chairlift tips rather than trail map, following the powder, finding untouched stashes in the trees and, in the sight-impairing snowy conditions, not really knowing where we’d been. That’s been the theme of our season – a wonderful, whiteout winter!

Courtesy of Alta Lodge
After some hot tub heaven, the Sitzmark Club exuded the ultimate unpretentious après ski atmosphere, courtesy of well-worn wooden walls, comfy sofas, window nooks, bar stools, and little tables all crammed in for shoulder-to-shoulder socializing - especially on busy weekends. Just being there, sharing the upbeat snow vibe, having your drink poured by an enthusiastic local, and chatting with the likeminded people around you could turn you into a seasonnaire ski bum on the spot!

BTW - The Sitzmark goes from rowdy and riotous at night to mindful and mellow in the morning when it is the scene for the daily free Yoga class at 7 am. 

Room with a View at Alta Lodge - Courtesy of Alta Lodge
That night, we met up with Alta Lodge VP, Rosie O’Grady who has been there for nine years. Having recently been on a CMH heliskiing trip, she pointed out how similar Alta Lodge is to a heli lodge: “It’s that European chalet feel,” she said. “With people coming back for years and everyone sitting family-style at dinner.” And the immense amount of snow banked up outside added to that heli feel, too! Alta Lodge gets more than 70 percent repeat business, Rosie told us, with regulars notching up 50 years there in their dedicated loyalty. It’s not just the atmosphere, it’s partly to do with the high standard of friendly customer service, a continuity of core staff (including ownership which has been in the Levitt family since 1959), and also the sensational food. 

Lavish lamb entree - Courtesy of Alta Lodge
Chef Sam - Courtesy of Alta Lodge
The restaurant is not open to the public apart from at lunchtime. So it’s just hotel guests on a ‘Traditional Alta’ plan – ie bed, breakfast and four-course dinner. This is another nod to Euro chalets – although Alta Lodge food is far superior to the chalets I ate in back in Switzerland and France in the 80s and 90s! Creative cuisine includes options such as Rudi's Quick Ceviche and the wines are wide-ranging and reasonably priced – eg a $28 Spanish Rioja. Chef Sam Wolfe is always looking for menu ideas, particularly inspired by travel. "My wife Margot is an elementary school teacher and we plan a major trip for the few weeks our schedules almost coincide. Last summer we were on a small boat traveling between some islands in the Galapagos," he says. "There was a naturalist on board who gave daily updates on the flora and fauna. I pretty much skipped all these amazing discussions and hung out in the galley with the boat's cook. It was incredible what he could put together in such a limited space. His ceviche blew me away, and he was gracious enough to share his recipe and technique. To save time, instead of 'cooking' the seafood in citrus, his trick was to poach the seafood in coconut and lime broth. He then served it with a tomato citrus vinaigrette that imparted the traditional flavor." See below for recipe.
Corner Room - Courtesy of Alta Lodge
Sam's other inspiration is staff meals: "Nobody eats as well as an Alta Lodge employee. Using the same ingredients that comprise our guest meals, our cooks give free rein to their creativity and create delicious, canyon famous emp meals. Recently our 1st cook Tom Henderson used a previous night's Wild Mushroom Farro Risotto, and served it in a roasted portabella mushroom cup. He finished it under the broiler with reggiano cheese. The guests will soon enjoy that same presentation." With days filled with skiing, dinner needs to be an evening event that is hearty, soulful and satisfying, he says. "At the risk of sounding ridiculous, I would call our style classic Asian, south western comfort food. I would toss in vegetarian and vegan which are also styles we consistently feature and make up a large portion of my diet."

 In summer – and sometimes winter - Alta Lodge is highly sought as a winsome wedding venue with its fabulous photo opps and distinctive character. It’s also perfect for more intimate conferences, retreats, reunions, private parties, and special events.

Courtesy of Alta Lodge

Alta Lodge specializes in group vacations, and a ‘Breakthrough Camp’ was running when we were there. This one was mixed gender, but many of the nine seasonal camps are more specific - ie female-only, different standards, various themes. Rosie gets to ski with them all - for professional purposes of course! “It used to be all about experiences, but now it is more about transformations,” she said. “Hence the new Breakthrough Camp.” I later heard via chairlift and hot tub gossip that these camps are so popular now that you have to book a year in advance.

Alta Lodge by night - Courtesy of Alta Lodge
Deep in the wintry Wasatch Mountains, just past neighbouring Snowbird (which you can buy a dual pass to), Alta is right at the end of Little Cottonwood Canyon at 8,600 ft elevation. Despite the isolated feeling, it is actually only 45 mins drive from Salt Lake City, and there are buses and airport transportation regularly shuttling back and forth.

Skiing started in Utah in 1939 with Alta’s first single-seater chairlift - just after Sun Valley which has dibs on being America’s first ski resort. When Alta Lodge opened, famous figures like Errol Flynn, columnist William F. Buckley Jr, and economist Milton Friedman were drawn to the former  19th century silver mining area. Now encompassing over 2200 skiable acres, the skiable territory adjoins Snowbird which adds a further 2500-acres piste and powder playground. By road the distance is just a mile (easy for nightlife variety) and skiers can exit and enter each resort via Sugarloaf Pass and Baldy Shoulder with a dual ticket.

Alta Addiction - Courtesy of Alta 
View from Snowpine Lodge with the Snow Pine Chairlift
Day Two we were skiing all day, of course, but also moving over to the nearby Snowpine Lodge in order to experience Alta’s newest, trendiest accommodation. And this is where the Alta Lodge personal service really comes in to play – the check-out staff asked us if we would like our bags to be taken to the new venue while we skied so that we could just ski off that morning from Alta Lodge and then at day’s end ski into Snowpine! Of course we said yes – and it was a real Wow Factor for us. It’s all part of the Alta ambiance, which is friendly and cooperative rather than competitive. When asked over dinner the previous night at Alta Lodge what she felt about the new rival, Rosie said: “I think Snowpine is good for Alta; it will make us all raise our game even more.”

The snow sometimes stops long enough to groom at Alta - Courtesy of Alta 
BTW - Alta, now part of the new Ikon Pass, is also on the Mountain Collective Pass which gives two ski days in 16 resorts. I didn’t have an Ikon Pass this year but I was able to use two free days on my MC. If you buy one of these, you are also able to get half-price on any subsequent ski days you want at any of the member resorts. This is a great deal and very flexible for those who know they will do quite a bit of skiing at a variety of resorts over the season but don’t know in advance which hills on which days. Perfect for storm-chasers, too!

Alta Java at Alta - Courtesy of Alta 
That second ski day was more of the same, snowing most of the day, all day pow wows, and exciting explorations of the terrain. With quads quaking from four days of consecutive powder skiing, we took a couple of breaks – the first at the Alta Java coffee stop at the Albion Base and the second a late lunch on-mountain at Alf’s which meant that once again we could ski unencumbered by any liftlines during the 11:30-1:30 lull.

View from Snowpine hot tub - Courtesy of Snowpine Lodge
By four we were ready for the hot tub again, so took the cute little chairlift up to Snowpine Lodge. It’s a beginner slope as well as being the ski in access into the locker room area of Alta’s newest hotel. Our first experience of Snowpine was the ski locker lounge which is utterly deluxe, setting the tone for the whole stay. You walk into a comfortable sitting room with free hot chocolate and cookies. In separate alcoves off the corridor, there are softly upholstered benches to put on and take off ski boots, heaters for the boots, a choice of lockers or communal ski racks, and, just down the hallway, a ski shop for forgotten or craved-for items.

Ski Shop at Snowpine - Courtesy of Snowpine Lodge

Reception Area at Snowpine - Courtesy of Snowpine Lodge


After checking in, our first port of call was the luxurious hot tub area – two stone-trimmed tubs either side of a dramatic fireplace with sofa settings backed by the pool. Languishing there you feel part of the panoramic view, everything is so close you can almost touch it.

Gulch Bar at Snowpine - Courtesy of Snowpine Lodge
 Later, we chatted with Hannah Dorff, Marketing Manager, over charcuterie and champers in the Gulch Pub. “We’ve been working round the clock for the opening this first season. Some construction is still not finished but we’re getting there,” she said. Still to come is an oxygen bar, kids' zone and a 'The Nest' games room. Opening the restaurant, bar, fitness centre and spa to the public is helping attract locals as well as guests from other lodges and condos around both Alta and Snowbird. The success of this was particularly noticeable at the weekend when both the bar and restaurant were rocking. We ate bar food the first night – really good burgers – and, our last night, splurged in swanky Swen’s (which is named for the great grandfather of the owner who was a silver miner in Cottonwood Canyon).


Swen's cuisine at Snowpine - Courtesy of Snowpine Lodge

Reunion with Tahoe friends at Swen's Snowpine Lodge

Unlike the other lodges in Alta, ‘outsiders’ can eat dinner at Snowpine. And guests can choose different packages: just lodging, B&B, or B&B plus dinner. The only other restaurant open to the public in Alta, just a few steps away from Alta Lodge, is Shallow Shaft (haven’t tried it but heard good things about it during hot tub chats). But you also have the array of options at Snowbird to choose from, just one mile away.



View from my suite at Snowpine
The original building on the Snowpine site was the General Store and Post Office serving the mining community, and it later morphed into a shelter. It then became a rudimentary lodge in the early 1940s but it wasn’t until this February that it was reborn with a majestic mountain-modern mojo. Think grey palate accented with original local stone, reclaimed wood features, ancient brown leather chesterfields, hide throws, a few animal heads and modern artwork, lots of marble – a kind of modern-rural fusion. Courtney Pena, daughter of owner Brent Pratt, came up with the motif based on what kind of mountain home she would like to live in and she built welcoming seating areas on every floor. We were on Birch – where the Stillwell Spa is – so we also had a Zen-style waterfall wall feature by our elevators. All this novelty is already attracting attention. “We’ve had a corporate retreat here in our first month where they bought out the whole hotel,” said Hannah. “We’ve got a great conference room with pop up bar right by pool with the best views over the slopes, so it’s ideal for meetings or weddings.” Hannah has been selling the lodge for the past year, getting the website up, formulating group marketing tactics, and doing the rounds of ski trade shows.

Birch level and entrance to Stillwell Spa at Snowpine - Courtesy of Snowpine Lodge
 There’s a lot of inquisitive buzz among locals and Alta loyalist – we met one who had spent a couple of nights at Snowpine before moving to her usual room at Alta Lodge (doing it the opposite way round to us). “Although it wasn’t open last season, Alta skiers could see the work going on and that led to a lot of curiosity,” said Hannah.

Bedroom at Snowpine - Courtesy of Snowpine Lodge

Bathroom at Snowpine - Courtesy of Snowpine Lodge
The Snowpine bedrooms are glamorously gorgeous with beautiful views bursting through the immense windows bringing the ski slopes and mountains right into the room. We had a huge suite with lofty ceilings, a lovely view over swimming pool, hot tubs and slopes, and, bonus: the incredible sunsets to the west. The dazzling décor inside is almost as photogenic as outdoors, embracing the modern concept of combining materials like an episode of Fixer Upper. Everything had that intoxicating new smell, there were L’Occitane toiletries, free water bottles, and little notes left on the bed at turndown. These are going to gradually tell the stories that make up Snowpine’s history.

The top floor is at ground level with valet carparking outside and bar and restaurant extending away from reception. The other floors descend down the slope like at Alta Lodge, ending up at the  ski locker area. Each floor is named for trees – we were on B for Birch, A is Aspen, C is Cedar etc.

Bright coloured artwork at Collins Grill Alta 
Day 3 - Our last day of skiing consisted of an amazing sunny morning when the entire vista of Alta was finally revealed to us. Although we had loved all the powder, a beautiful bluebird day felt like a reward somehow. We met Alta PR Manager Andria Huskinson for a posh Collins Grill lunch on the third floor of Watson Shelter. Tablecloths, diligent service, the first daffodils of spring in a vase, fun locally-loyal staff, and an ice cold Whispering Angel dry French rosé all went very well with the 'tarte' of the day. We also discovered another coffee bar there called Baldy Brews, great for lattes and cappuccinos. The afternoon was a whirlwind tour of Alta’s best off-piste with our host, who you might have heard of from the pro freeskier circuit. Now in her 24th season skiing and working at Alta, she is a fount of fascinating info about the hill, the town and its inhabitants.

Alta's Andria Huskinson (left)
Originally from Grand Targhee, Andria came to Utah for college and stayed. This has been one of Alta’s busiest seasons ever in her experience. “The Ikon Pass has led to around a 10 percent increase in visitors to Alta but also season pass purchases are up 25 percent so, although locals are complaining about Ikon leading to more traffic, liftlines, and parking congestion, it is less tourists and more local skiers themselves causing the problems,” Andria explained. As in any small town, Alta locals are somewhat  conservative and protectionist about the pristine paradise they call home. But when a ski resort is in its 81st season, with an average snowfall of 545 inches, it should come as no surprise that other people are discovering it and changes have to be made.

Courtesy of Alta 

SPRING SKIING

With all this snow, a stellar spring is ensured and Alta will remain open daily through April 21 with a bonus weekend April 26-28.

-Test out the 2019-20 skis at Alta's Annual Spring Ski DemoDay on April 6th. Ski the newest technology and it's free to all, with on-site registration required.

Powder skis de rigueur - By Will Saunders/Courtesy of Alta 
-Celebrate Earth Day with the Alta Environmental Center on April 20th, sustaining and maintaining the lands we love to play on. This marks Alta's 10th annual Earth Day celebration. Participate in a Bird Survey, a Naturalist Snowshoe tour, Tour with a Ranger and much more.

Don’t know if you’ve seen, but Alta’s Digital Marketing Manager is SO much fun on Facebook. Adam Fehr posts the best photos and videos, making you feel you are there and leaving you with the desire to book a trip right away! His hashtag #ImOnlyHereForTheMarketing is cheekily ironic and could be translated to mean #IveGotTheBestJobInTheWorld. Check out his “work” at:
https://www.facebook.com/ajfehr and https://www.instagram.com/adambagelboy/?hl=en  and https://www.alta.com/blog. 

Courtesy of Alta 
SPRING EVENTS

SATURDAY, APRIL 6TH, 2019
Alta in April Demo Day
8:30-2:30pm
Location: Wildcat Base
Registration starts at 8:30 am. 
Facebook Event Page
Read More
MONDAY, APRIL 8TH, 2019
Birding on Skis
9:00-12:00pm
Join Tracy Aviary’s expert birders this winter in search of our feathered friends that call Alta home. Surveys are 9:00 am - 12:00 pm the second Monday of each month. Read More
TUESDAY, APRIL 16TH, 2019
Giant Slalom Finale
9:15-3:00pm Read More

Snowshoeing at Alta - Courtesy of  Alta 
SATURDAY, APRIL 20TH, 2019
Alta Earth Day
Join Alta for its 10th annual community Alta Earth Day on Saturday, April 20, 2019. We aim to encourage environmental stewardship, responsible recreation and awareness of the relationship between climate change and the future of the ski industry in Little Cottonwood Canyon and beyond. The day will feature: Eco-Friendly Vendors, Naturalist Tours, Birding in Alta, Après Earth Day & Film. Read More
SUNDAY, APRIL 21ST, 2019
Closing Day (7 day/week operations)
9:15-4:30pm
 Alta closes its 7 days/week operations after skiing on Sunday, April 21, 2019.
Alta will reopen for a bonus weekend Friday-Sunday, April 26 - 28, 2019. Read More
Courtesy of Alta 
ALTA CONTACTS
Website: www.alta.com
General email: info@alta.com
Ski School: skischool@alta.com
Retail Sales: skishop@alta.com

Photo by Photo John/Courtesy of Alta 
ALTA LODGE CONTACTS

Snowpine Lodge entrance - Courtesy of Snowpine Lodge

SNOWPINE LODGE CONTACTS




Rudi's Quick Ceviche
Courtesy of Alta Lodge
Rudi's Quick Ceviche Recipe - courtesy of Chef Sam Wolfe, Alta Lodge

Ingredients:
Scallops, Rock Shrimp, Mussels
Chopped Onion, Garlic, Chopped Tomato, Cilantro, Red Pepper Flakes

Poaching liquid: Clam Juice, Lime Juice, Coconut milk

Instructions: Saute onions, garlic in a neutral oil. When translucent add the seafood and continue cooking for several minutes. Add the Lime, Coconut, Clam broth and cook at low simmer until the shrimp is cooked, it won't take very long.

Vinaigrette Ingredients: Juices of 4 Limes, 3 Lemons and 3 Oranges, the liquid from 3 cans of pear tomatoes, chopped cilantro, red pepper flakes.
Combine and season with salt and pepper.

Drain the seafood, reserving 1 C of the poaching liquid. Tasting as you go (personal mantra), stir the poaching liquid into the vinaigrette. Mix the vinaigrette with the seafood, add chopped tomatoes, red pepper flakes, garnish with cilantro.
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