The next day we decided to start our morning at The Mountain View Bakery and Deli again with a "Brian Berry" Danish. A Brian Berry isn't a real berry we figured out later, but it is a Barbara concoction that is quite good.
After yesterday's educational and exciting snowboarding /falling lesson, we were in slight pain, so we decided to take it easy and go snow tubing. This was so much fun! I felt like I was twelve years old again, and it is great to be a kid for a few hours. I screamed. I laughed. I slid down that hill like I was racing for the gold! The best part of snow tubing at Brian Head is when your tube gets dragged up the mountain with you in it. No hiking involved! For someone like me whose legs felt like rubber from the day before - this was heaven!
We grabbed a snack of pizza at our home away from home, The Mountain View, and headed to ski. I took a ski lesson, and Julie went skiing with some new friends, Kara and Tom. My instructor took someone who was afraid to even put her feet in the boots and transformed her into a ski lover. I really enjoyed it. He had me on the lift and down the mountain in no time. I can't wait to go skiing again. Okay, so maybe I am not ready for the Olympics anytime soon, but compared to having never seen a foot of snow before... I felt like a pro!
Julie liked that there was no lines for anything, rentals, ski lifts, etc. She also marveled at this snow which was truly powder, while back in the East we only have icy, wet snow. We kept saying Brian Head felt like this hidden secret, and we were so lucky to have found it. In fact, on our way back to the Cedar Breaks Lodge to shower and change for dinner, we discussed how much we both would love to come back. That's the true sign of a great trip. You start to plan your next trip while you are still there!
We had dinner at the Double Black Diamond Restaurant. This is in The Cedar Breaks Lodge. It was nice to have a variety of restaurants right in the area. This place is a little nicer than the other quick bites we had been having. We had the House and Caesar salads, and we tried all the appetizers. Everything was delicious. The House salad is unique with maple-glazed pistachios and honey poppy seed vinaigrette. I had the grilled porterhouse steak, and Julie had the chicken saltimbocca. My steak not only looked beautiful, but it tasted just as good. It was enormous, and I couldn't finish it myself. The stuffed chicken was an interesting blend of prosciutto, parmesan cheese, and sage. I never tasted anything like it before, but would like to again. I would come back to this restaurant just for that dish. The atmosphere was calming and quiet as we sat by the fireplace, and it was a nice end to the day.
We started our last morning like we did every morning so far, by stopping at The Mountain View Bakery for something yummy. This time it was cinnamon rolls.
The biggest treat of the trip was going on a snowmobile ride with Doug and Chip (our guides). This was a cross between a tour of the mountains and nearby Cedar Breaks Park, and a taste of every motorcycle fantasy I had ever had. Doug let me drive, and I was amazed he trusted me with his snowmobile. This is how nice the people are here. They go out of their way to make sure you are having a good time. I couldn't thank him enough. We spent about three hours touring, and I was just speechless. It seemed like the scenery was too beautiful, like at any second the director was going to yell "cut" and the movie was going to be over. Only a backdrop painted by a great artist could top this. I looked out at the mountainside and cried. I felt so na?ve, thinking there was so much more of this country I had not seen. I wanted to take pictures, but somehow my camera would never do justice to the memories now forever etched in my mind. We were having such a good time, and I couldn't be happier with how this trip ended. It was amazing and did leave me sad we had to go.
We had a small dinner, and then spent some time in the Jacuzzi and pool to rest and relax our sore muscles. It was a nice contradiction to our busy day to just sit and relax. We packed up and got ready for our trip in the morning. We couldn't leave with out a goodbye to our new friends from Brain Head, Utah, and another breakfast with Barb at The Mountain View.
To end this trip how we began it, we had a ride to the airport with Ron. Once again, he found little excursions along the way, like really cool dinosaur tracks and local shopping. His stories cannot be topped, and he takes the time to answer questions. I was sad when I started to see the Vegas strip in the distance because I knew our trip was coming to a close. There was so much more to do, and not enough time to do it all.
This was an amazing experience. I don't just hope I am coming back, I know I will. I have already started to plan my trip back to Brian Head in the summer to mountain biking and hiking.
Hope to see you there. You won't regret it.
Love,
Christine
Read part 1
