High Mountain Lodge
PO Box 1888
Winter Park, CO 80482
425 County Road 5001
Winter Park, CO 80482
How far is it from
the
High Mountain Lodge to ski areas?
From the door of the High Mountain Lodge to the entrance to Winter Park Ski area is just under ten miles. Mary Jane is another mile up the road. Depending on weather and traffic, it takes less than fifteen minutes to drive to the area.
What is the elevation of the High Mountain Lodge?
According to Google maps, the High Mountain Lodge's elevation is 8700 feet (actually, 2646 meters). To give you a reference, Denver is a mile high, at 5280 feet. As a rule of thumb, we're about 15-20 degrees cooler than Denver at any given time. So if the high in Denver is 90, it will be about 75 here.
Do I need a four-wheel drive car to get to your lodge?
Yes and No. In the wintertime when you drive down our road, a 4x4 or all-wheel drive car is helpful. Our neighborhood association is pretty good about scattering sand on the steep parts of our road, but sometimes they aren't as proactive as we would like.
We have pushed a number of guests up our road, and just recently, Julie towed a 2-wheel drive SUV up the road using our Subaru.
Bottom line: in the wintertime, if you're from Denver, visit us in your snow car. If you're flying in, rent an all-wheel drive car at the airport. If you're taking the train, get off in Granby and rent a Subaru from Avalanche Car Rentals.
Does the High Mountain Lodge provide transportation to the ski areas?
Sorry, no. You really need a car when staying with us--unless you want to take a taxi into town or to Winter Park Ski area.
Are there telephones and televisions in the rooms? Is cellular service available?
There are no telephones in the rooms at the High Mountain Lodge. Guests are welcome to use the telephone in the office for occasional local and long distance calls at no charge. Guests are welcome to make international calls using a calling card.
We are happy to send and receive local and long-distance faxes at no charge.
Verizon Wireless and Sprint are the only cell phone providers with reliable service at the Lodge (Sprint roams on the Verizon network up here. Depending on your contract, there may be an extra charge for this for Sprint customers.) Other companies have reception closer to Fraser and Winter Park.
Guests with AT&T I-phones or similar smart phone devices can take advantage of one of the VOIP apps to make calls through our high-speed internet network.
There are no televisions in the rooms at the High Mountain Lodge. The television in the game room off the Atrium receives over 300 channels of satellite TV (including the proliferating HBO channels) and can play VHS tapes and DVDs. The TV in the game room is also equipped with an S-video port, so people with laptop computers equipped with S-video can plug them in and take advantage of the high-speed wireless Internet at the Lodge to watch video off the Web.
There is also a smaller television available at the office for guests to borrow to view videos in their rooms. The High Mountain Lodge has an extensive library of VHS video tapes and DVDs. Families needing to entertain smaller children find this a welcome amenity.
We have friends in the area who are not staying at the Lodge. Can we invite them to have a meal with us? How much does that cost?
Because we are a Bed & Breakfast / Country Inn, we operate under different laws than restaurants do. Consequently, our breakfasts and, in the winter time, our simple suppers are included in the price of the room. So we can't charge for additional people.
That being said, we welcome your friends to have a complimentary meal with us a t no charge.
Similarly, because we operate under a B&B liquor license that allows us to serve complimentary wine and beer for four hours every evening to our guests staying at the lodge, we can't serve anyone not registered at the lodge. But we're happy to chill your BYOB wine and beer.
I'd like to give a gift of a stay at the High Mountain Lodge. What's the best way to do that?
There are two ways:
1. If you are making a reservation for friends or family for a specific time period, you can either make the reservation on-line or through our office and give your own credit card information.
2. If you are giving a gift of a stay at the Lodge for some time in the future, you can purchase a gift certificate for any amount through our office. We will send the gift certificate to the person you specify, and they can redeem it at any time up to five years from the date of purchase. If they make a reservation on-line, the just need to note that they will be using a gift certificate as full or partial payment. Similarly, if they make the reservation over the phone, they need to tell us at the time of the booking that they will be redeeming a certificate.
Note: if the amount of the certificate is less than the cost of the room, we will also collect credit card information at the time of the booking to cover the balance.
If the amount of the certificate is more than the cost of the room, we will carry a credit for the balance for up to five years from the original date of the gift certificate. Sorry, we can't refund the balance if this occurs.
Similarly, gift certificates are non-refundable and non-transferrable.
In addition, the High Mountain Lodge enforces its cancellation policy at the time of the booking (not at the time of the purchase of the certificate).
How "high speed" is your Internet connection?
It's as good as we can get this far out. The High Mountain Lodge has a 1.5 mpbs DSL line we lease from the phone company. We offer both 801.11G and 801.11N secure channels on our wireless network (ask in the office for the password). Depending on how many guests are logging on at any particular time, you should be able to check e-mail and surf the Web without a noticeble lag. Streaming video may be jumpy. If you're a day trader hoping to get some work done on vacation, you *will* be disappointed.
What's the weather like? How should I pack?
Bring your swimsuit and perhaps some comfortable slip on "lodge shoes" to pad around in after a day of wearing boots, waders, cycling cleats, or rafting shoes. "Dressing for dinner" in the Fraser valley usually means doning a comfortable pair of jeans and your favorite wool socks. If you have a really great Norwegian sweater, bring that for dressing up in.
In the summer, daytime highs are usually in the 70s or low 80s, with overnight temperatures dropping to 45 or 50°, making for perfect sleeping weather and crisp mornings. It often rains in the afternoon, so bring a rain jacket or shell. However, mornings even in high summer can mean frost, and guests may discover the multi-tiered deck at the High Mountain Lodge coated in treacherous ice in the morning before burning off in an 80-degree afternoon.
Summer is a time of extremes. The sun is really, really hot, but when it clouds over, the chill can be really, really chilly. We can't overemphasize--at any season--the need for robust sunscreen, moisturizers, eye protection, and flexible clothing.
Fall is our favorite time of year, with cool air, warm sun, infrequent precipitation, and golden aspens decorating the valleys and mountainsides. Daytime highs average in the 60s and lows are usually in the 30s.
Winters are for playing, as the good people of Denver discovered a long time ago when they created a park in the mountains that is still owned by the City of Denver: Winter Park Ski Resort. It isn't unusual for the overnight temperature to plunge below zero, while the daytime high soars into the 20s or 30s with crystal blue skies and bright sunshine warming the air.
Regardless of the season or time of year, wise travelers always plan to layer their clothing. Even in the summer time, it can be very chilly in the mornings and evenings, while the mid-day sun can be hot. Begin with light layers, then cover them with sweaters or fleeces that you can easily remove as the temperature increases.
At all times of the year, the sun is much more intense at 8,700´ than most folks are used to. Plan to wear protective clothing and high SPF sunscreen at all times. Hats and sunglasses are essential, and avoid cotton under-layers, as they don't dry out once they get wet.
You call yourself a "Bed and Breakfast Country Inn." What does that mean?
First and foremost, it means that we're not an impersonal hotel or motel. We welcome our guests personally, and we do everything in our power to ensure your stay with us is comfortable and relaxing.
We're a "Bed and Breakfast" because, year round, we delight in serving up creative and freshly-prepared breakfasts for our guests, the cost of which is included in the room price.
We're a "Country Inn" because we're in the country and far enough away from restaurants so that, during ski season, we also serve our guests an evening meal--a simple supper that is part of the cost of the room. We have found that, after a day of skiing, people come back to the Lodge and relax in the pool, hot tub, and sauna. The last thing they want to do is then dry their hair, get dressed, and drive back into town in the dark in the cold to find a restaurant.
Consequently, in the winter, we offer guests the option of eating a simple meal with us. It's not cordon bleu cuisine. It usually consists of one or more homemade soups, homemade bread, and a salad. If we know ahead of time, we will endeavor to accommodate dietary restrictions. We don't charge extra for it, but we also don't give discounts if guests choose not to take advantage of it.
Does the High Mountain Lodge do weddings?
Sorry, the High Mountain Lodge does not have the facilities to accommodate weddings. There are a number of splendid wedding venues near by, and we're happy to refer couples planning their big day to any number of them.
Any venue you choose for your Colorado mountain wedding should be able to provide an alternative indoor place for your ceremony, since the weather is so changeable. Since we don't have the space to accommodate that sort of change of plans--and God doesn't always get the memo when we petition for good weather--we opted not to host weddings.
How big are the closets at the High Mountain Lodge?
OK, this isn't a "frequently asked question," but we thought we should tell you before you show up that closet space is limited or non-existant at the High Mountain Lodge. If you look closely at a lot of the room pictures, you will see hooks on the walls with coat hangers on them. In a lot of instances, this is all you will have for hanging clothes. For people who need to hang clothes, we recommend either the Valley View Suite or the Atrium View suite: both have "closet-like" alcoves in both their bedrooms and off the sitting rooms. Room Two has a hanging clothes bar, and Room Seven has an alcove-closet with a bar similar to those in the suites. The enormous art-deco armoire in Room Thirteen has space for hanging a few things.
If you need extra coat hangers, don't hesitate to ask. And, along the same line, although we don't provide irons and ironing boards in our rooms, if you need to iron something, we're happy to provide the tools.
All of our rooms have dressers with drawer space, if you are staying for several days and want to unpack to avoid the clutter.
What's with all the dead trees?
Grand County, along with much of Colorado, is suffering from an epidemic of pine beetles, which bore into and kill pine trees. The blight is the result of years of drought, which stress pine trees and make them more vulnerable to infestation. Grand County is particularly susceptible, because of the predominance of lodgepole pines in the county's forests.
Because Grand County's forests are primarily lodgepole pines, the blight seems worse here than in many places in the state. But Grand County was one of the earliest places impacted by the pine beetle infestation. If you look carefully, you will see a wide variety of trees flourishing under the canopy of dead lodgepoles. The pine beetle infestation is a natural event. It's nobody's fault. It makes the mountainsides look like hell, but the eventual result will be a more healthy, more diverse forest.
I see that you accept dogs. Members of my family are allergic to dogs. Do you have rooms that are hypo-allergenic?
In a word, no.
Each of our rooms is thoroughly cleaned after every guest's stay. Depending on how sensitive the allergy is, this may or may not be adequate to assure your comfort.
That being said, our lodgedog, Murphy, has the run of the dining lodge--with the exception of food preparation areas. We clean regularly, but if you are very sensitive, this may not be enough to mitigate your allergies.
We welcome people traveling with dogs to our lodge. We are "dog people." Dogs (other than Murphy) are not allowed in the dining lodge.
Depending on the degree of sensitivy, our lodge may or may not be the best place for you.
Dogs are the only pet we allow guests to bring to the High Mountain Lodge. We charge $15 a night for each dog. Each dog gets a welcome basket with a toy, a variety of treats, and "pick up sacks" (which the dog won't care about, but its owners will need to be aware of).
Do you have facilities to accommodate RVs?
No. We're not a campground, but guests staying at the High Mountain Lodge may park their empty RV on our grounds--like any other vehicle--while staying with us.
Does the High Mountain Lodge have air conditioning?
Each room has a celling fan and an individual thermostat to adjust heat. At 8,700 feet elevation, even at the height of the summer, you won't need air conditioning in your rooms. Even in July and August, guests find the wood-burning fireplaces in their rooms a welcome amenity. Watch your step on the decks in the morning in August when you come over to the dining lodge for breakfast. We'd hate to have you slip on the frost on the deck.
- How far is it to the ski areas?
- What is the elevation of the High Mountain Lodge?
- Do I need four-wheel drive to get to the Lodge?
- Does the High Mountain Lodge provide transportation to the ski areas?
- Are there telephones and televisions in the rooms? Is cellular service available?
- We have friends in the area who are not staying at the Lodge. Can we invite them to have a meal with us? How much does that cost?
- I'd like to give a gift of a stay at the High Mountain Lodge. What's the best way to do that?
- How "high speed" is your Internet connection?
- What's the weather like? How should I pack?
- You call yourself a "Bed and Breakfast Country Inn." What does that mean?
- Does the High Mountain Lodge do weddings?
- How big are the closets at the High Mountain Lodge?
- What's with all the dead trees?
- I see that you accept dogs. Members of my family are allergic to dogs. Do you have rooms that are hypo-allergenic?
- What about other animals?
- Do you have facilities to accommodate RVs?
- Does the High Mountain Lodge have air conditioning?