snow Archives - Dr. Majestic

I knew I wanted to take Chris somewhere special for his birthday, and Park City seemed to be a natural choice, because this California boy loves the snow! I had been there for my bachelorette party (you can find details on that HERE), but I had never been to ski, and I am SO glad we went.

It was all a surprise for Chris, and he didn’t know until we arrived at Long Beach airport and I gave him his boarding pass. So much fun keeping a level of suspense for your loved one’s birthday!

We stayed at the Marriott Summit Watch and I used Vacation Candy Rentals to book. Park City is NOT cheap in the winter season and I wanted him to have the full Main St experience for his first time visiting. This hotel is half vacation rentals, half hotel, and the location does not disappoint. It’s right on Main St and we were able to walk to all of the cute shops and restaurants.

Our very first stop when we arrived was High West Saloon. Get the burger, you will leave satisfied and happy! We also had the chicken wings and pretzel and they were mouth watering. We ended the night at Alpine Pie Bar, with a large slice of pie and a glass of champagne. It’s this cute little speak easy beneath a restaurant with romantic vibes; highly recommend!

Chris and I are not advanced skiers, so I spent a ton of time researching the best place to ski and came upon Deer Valley. The prices are high but the snow is great and it’s a ski-only mountain that limits the number of lift tickets they sell in a day. I purchased ahead of time and reserved rentals out of Deer Valley Resort. Don’t get me wrong, the skiing was excellent, but the main attraction for me over here was the epic Veuve Cliquot yurt at Montage Deer Valley. This is a pop-up that will only be there until April sadly, and in my opinion is a DO NOT MISS if you’re going to Park City. You can ski in/out for lunch, as it’s only open from 12-4pm daily. Even for novice skiers like ourselves, it was easy to find and there were green runs available to get there.

If you watched my stories, you’ll know that I had a little goggle snafu that I realized only once I got to the Veuve yurt where I was super excited to take photos. I bought a brand new pair of Smith goggles and after only 3 hours of skiing, they left a huge imprint into my forehead. “This happens to everyone”, you’re thinking. Nope… these had the brand name written on the inside. I had the word Smith imprinted into my forehead for HOURS. I even had the goggles on the loosest setting with my helmet. If you zoom in you can see it, I left this photo unedited for your viewing pleasure!

I had to suck it up, it’s not like I’ll ever get back to this yurt! So we drank champagne and ate charcuterie and the most delicious mini sandwiches, while everyone probably questioned my choice in goggles. SO worth it.

I was able to find a new pair of goggles at Deer Valley Resort and they even took my other pair back, which was very validating! In fact, the lady working there bluntly said, “I am mortified for you”! I knew I wasn’t overreacting! In the mean time I found a headband to cover my Smith forehead branding and we headed to the St. Regis for a little après ski action. This property is special because you have to take a funicular from the slopes to get up to the main part of the hotel. They have a tradition everyday at 530pm where they saber a bottle of champagne on the beautiful terrace overlooking Deer Valley and hand out free champagne to their guests. We stayed for dinner at Brasserie 7452 and ended the evening with s’mores cheesecake and hot cocoa. Don’t worry, I found a headband to cover up my Smith goggle branding.

On Chris’ birthday we had an epic morning dog sledding at North Forty Escapes. What we didn’t realize was how far the ranch was from Park City! We didn’t rent a car on this trip, so we used Uber or Lyft which was super easy, except for when you have no cell service and are in the middle of no where! We were thankfully able to arrange for our Uber driver who took us out there, to meet us when we were done and bring us back, but definitely something to think about if you ever plan for an activity like this.

The dog sledding experience was SO cool. The Utah countryside is so beautiful and serene and the dogs were super friendly. The tour was about an hour and there was plenty of time for petting the pups and taking photos.

After our breathtaking morning with nature I wanted to surprise Chris with a little luxury so we hit the Montage Deer Valley spa for a massage. I’ve been to other spas in Park City and this one was by far my favorite. There’s a giant indoor heated pool and hot tub, in addition to the separate locker room jacuzzi, steam room, and saunas. I splurged on a 90 min couples’ massage and we both agreed it was one of, if not the best, massages we’ve ever had.

We sipped aperol spritzes and listened to the live music in the great room after the spa, and Montage has the cutest s’mores bar out on the terrace everyday at 430pm, complete with hot chocolate!

We had to make a quick stop on our way home before dinner, at Windy Ridge Bakery, for Chris’ birthday cake. If you know us, you know that Chris LOVES sweets, and every year I order him a cake with a personalized message on it. Usually it’s a phrase that he overuses and makes me laugh… this year I chose “38… What is happening?”. When I went to pick up the cake the owner broke the news to me, that the pastry chefs were both out sick and they couldn’t write on the cake. I asked if she could just do it real quick, because honestly I didn’t care what it looked like! She said no… but asked if I wanted to do it. So there I was, with zero baking experience, writing on my own husband’s cake! It was quite the memory, and of course he didn’t care, he ate the whole thing anyways! The cake was german chocolate and YOU GUYS, it was amazing.

We ate at 350 Main for dinner which was such a cute environment and offered delicious food. Our original plan was to eat at Tupelo for his birthday dinner but they called us literally <24 hours before our reservation, cancelled for no reason, and were very inappropriate in dealing with the situation. Have to admit, they are 100% on my shit list at this point!

I had a TON of recommendations from you all about a breakfast spot called Five5eeds, so we headed there for brunch on Saturday. It’s a health conscious spot that I could totally see here in Orange County. We worked off our brunch with some walking and shopping on Main Street (Cake boutique was one of my faves), and we had the pleasure of taking photos with Amelia Blaire in the afternoon. Amelia is SO fun and captured our Park City memories perfectly. I always like when a photographer can get me to loosen up and have fun, while directing me towards what looks cute. Let’s be honest… I am not a model! I need direction!

If you’re an Italian fan, go to Grappa for a cute, romantic environment and some BOMB Italian food. We also spent a few minutes at The Cabin for drinks after a recommendation and they were craft cocktails like no other.

We chose a late flight out of Park City on Sunday and had to check out of our hotel early, so we spent the entire day at Stein Eriksen where we stayed cozy in the lodge and ate THE BEST all-you-can-eat brunch. I’m telling you, it’s amazing. Plus the views are that of the best Deer Valley ski runs so we had fun recapping our day on the mountain.

Chris and I left Park City talking about how much we can’t wait to go back. We only skied one day, because we had so many other plans, so next time we will definitely be spending more time on the mountain. There’s just something to be said for a vacation in the snow, bundled up and trekking through the snow during the day, all cozied up by the fire at night, hot toddies, delicious warm comfort food, and your best friend!

Have you been to Park City? Share your favorite places with me!

Photos by Amelia Blaire

The beauty of living in Southern California, is that you can hit the beach and the mountains, all in the same day if you wanted!

I’ve always hear people say that, but never really participated in snow sports after I hurt myself trying to learn to snowboard many years ago. Never in my mind did I think I would get back up on a mountain. But once I took a ski lesson a few years back, I was sold! Something I could do, but not fail at miserably. Thank you snow gods!

Chris and I trekked to Mammoth a few years back for the annual Emergency Medicine Conference, but he just had surgery on his writ so you can imagine we didn’t do anything adventurous! He had been wanting to go back since then, so we finally made it happen for his birthday. Lucky for us, our good friends Taylor and Mike, from Taylor Made Cuisine, were up for the trip and we made it a couples’ week!

Chris was always an avid snowboarder growing up, but there was no way I’d ever get to his level, and since then he’s had a wrist injury, so he agreed to take a ski lesson with me. What a good husband!

We headed up to Mammoth mid day and got there by dinner time. Although the Westin is super nice up there, I wanted a cozy cabin rental for us, and ended up using Airbnb. Piece of advice: avoid going during ski week unless you have kids and that’s when you have to go. There weren’t many options for accommodations and prices were high but we got super lucky and ended up within walking distance from Canyon Lodge, which is my favorite location to ski. The condo was super modern, complete with heated bathroom floors (adding that to my list for my next house, thank you!).

Our first night, at the recommendation of a friend, we tried Mammoth Tavern for dinner. It did not disappoint. The cocktails were divine and the food was amazing. Think, fondue appetizers with hearty comfort entrees. Downside is, they don’t take reservations, but we were able to get in within 45 minutes.

We were super anxious to hit the mountain, so we signed up for a ski lesson the next morning. They made it uber easy- lift tickets, rentals, ad the lesson were a package deal. They provide helmets also, but we brought our own. Honestly the weather was gnarly. The fresh powder was amazing, but the wind was brutal. It was SO cold and the lift rides accentuated the bite from the wind. Not to mention we ended up on a lift that was FAR beyond our skill level and I lost my cool a bit on the way down (picture frozen tears, curse words, and fear that I would die before I reached the bottom). I guess the warm up from the hot toddy once we got back to the lodge made up for it. Après ski is always the best part of a ski trip anyways, am I right?

We stayed in that night and Taylor made us some BOMB beef stew that I am still dreaming about. I think we all know that the best part about a cold weather trip is the comfy cozy cabin life after a long day in the snow! We improvised without a real fireplace and made smores in the oven that did not disappoint.

On our second day in Mammoth, which happened to be Chris’ birthday, we set out on an epic snowmobiling adventure. Seriously… if you have the chance to plan this, DO IT. You can rent a single or double, which we ended up choosing. We did the 1.5 hour tour, but they also offer 3 hour sessions. We went on a gorgeous trail and had a chance to go fast and play around.

There was a point that Chris got a little adventurous and went out into some fresh snow, which ended in us flipping the snowmobile. If I wasn’t cursing and yelling at him with frozen fingers that were incapable of grabbing my phone from my pocket, I would’ve documented the process.

I really enjoyed spending a few days in the snow, but I’ll be honest, part of the reason is because snow gear options these days are on point! It was really nice to wear layers, cozy boots, and go back to my cold weather roots. Although I could’ve gone for slightly warmer snow weather (it was as cold as -10 with wind chill!). I did my best to link what’s available out of my snow gear below. I love to buy snow gear now, because it’s almost spring so there are sales on many of these pieces linked!

We spent the rest of our snowy day at Mammoth Brewing Company and Kitchen 53, with some apps and beverages for the birthday boy. These are both close or located within the Village, which has shops and restaurants, and the gondola that will take you up. Kitchen 53 has the best pretzel bread with cheese and/or mustard sauces. I’ll take five of those, please.

After a little relaxing at the cabin, we trekked out onto the snowy streets again for Chris’ birthday dinner at Morrison’s. I love a small, quiet place for an intimate celebration, like a birthday. This location did not disappoint. It was hard to choose from their jam-packed menu, so we all ordered something a little different and shared.

Salmon and shrimp pasta, Beef stroganoff

We ended the night with a cake (you know the way to my husband’s heart by now, if you’ve been following me for a while) from Dessert’d– celebration flavor with buttercream frosting; one of his favorites. Every year I personalize Chris’ cake with an inside joke or phrase that he uses regularly. This year it was complete with sparkler candles that I was too scared to light. Luckily we have a fireman in the house!

We were all so full from dinner that only Chris had the cake (he ALWAYS has room for cake), and then… we accidentally left it in the fridge when we left town the next morning. Just my luck!

On our way out of town we had a country style breakfast in a small, local spot and hit up Schat’s Bakery (it’s a tradition) to score some delicious pastries and sandwiches for the road.

I think Chris and I both realized this trip how much we enjoy the snow, and skiing. For me growing up, I was never a fan of the snow because it seemed as if the winters were never ending. But now that I live in southern California, I’m craving winter weather regularly. We’re already planning our next trip in the snow!

Have you been to Mammoth? Where are your favorite snowy locations to visit?

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