Fall Colors on the Way

I was hiking up at Blue Lake off of Washington Pass this weekend and the fall colors were starting to come out. The western larches were just starting to turn lime green, the stage before their bright yellow fall color. The ground blueberries were a bright red, making for some beautiful mountain scenes. Down closer to the Lodge, the smaller cottonwood trees along Patterson Lake are already starting to turn yellow. The aspens should be next.

Wine Press Northwest Wine List Awards

Wine Press Northwest Magazine has just released its annual "Herbie" Awards (named for the renown Herb Farm Restaurant in Woodinville) for outstanding Northwest wine lists. Once again Sun Mountain Lodge claimed a spot as one of the winners in the Northwest Wine List category. The Lodge's wine cellar features over 600 different labels, with over 300 of those from Washington state. Cellarmaster Don Elsing is especially proud of his collection of wines from Washington's newest AVA, Lake Chelan. So come up and enjoy some of your favorite Northwest wines at Sun Mountain.

Chateau Faire Le Pont Wine Dinner

Your erstwhile scribe has been on vacation, touring Idaho. Stops in Sandpoint, Sun Valley and Stanley. Another very beautiful state. This Saturday the Lodge is featuring Chateau Faire Le Pont wines with a special three course menu in the Dining Room. Starts with veal cheek with goat cheese angioletti and the 2006 pinot noir. The entree is ras el honout rubbed loin of Ellensburg lamb and the 2005 Elderling Vineyard cabernet sauvignon. Dessert features a peach sorbet and bruleed peaches with the 2006 viognier. Cost is $65 per person plus tax and gratuity. Come up and enjoy.

Wine Award Winner

The Sun Mountain Lodge wine program just received the 2009 Sante Magazine Wine Hospitality Award for the western region for fine dining hotels and resorts. This award honors restaurants and professionals that exhibit outstanding achievement in wine service and hospitality. Sante is the leading magazine for restaurant professionals. Their Awards program is the only peer-judged restaurant and hospitality competition in North America.

Pot Bust

On my way to work last Tuesday, I passed several large trucks, about 20 men dressed in camouflage, and two black helicopters parked in the overflow parking lot above the Beaver Pond. We later were told that a large marijuana growing operation up above Little Wolf Creek was in the process of being busted. Activities closed all of our hiking trails in the area as the helicopters airlifted tons of marijuana plants from the scene. The raid was staged by the North Central Washington Narcotics Task Force. In a report in yesterday's Seattle Times, it was related that over 50,000 pot plants worth 21 million dollars were captured in Okanogan County during raids last week.

Oden Road Fire calms down

Last Friday a lighting caused wildfire started on the east side of Loup Loup Pass off of Highway 20. Our reservations manager, Verla McVey, lost her home in the fire. In addition, the fire burned into the only power lines serving the Methow Valley. About 5,100 customers, including Sun Mountain Lodge, lost power for approximately 19 hours. To date the fire has burned more than 8,500 acres. Prevailing northwest winds have kept most of the smoke on the other side of the Loup. Reports on Monday indicate that the fire activity has slowed considerably. Over 550 firefighters and support personnel have been working to bring the fire under control.

Watchable Wildlife

Enjoy watching a doe with her twin fawns frolicking right outside your window! Listen to chipmunks chattering in the trees, watch squirrels stashing snacks for the winter, and see two different types of grouse strolling about on the lawns. The serenity of the Sun Mountain Lodge grounds offers a safe haven to many types of watchable wildlife!