Relax and enjoy paradise!

Relax and enjoy paradise!
Hot tubing!

Peace to the World and enjoy our Mountain Paradise

We enjoy vacationing and writing about Summit Peaks and Riverside Lodges because there is a certain peace and tranquility that you will discover in these surrounding mountains like I have found in no other place!

Monday, March 1, 2010

Free Summit Stage service from our front doors!

Yes it is true you can travel from the front door of any of our four lodges and FREE shuttle and take a bus ride through out Summit County! That includes door to door service for Copper, Keystone, Breckenridge, and A-Basin resorts. It is so convenient if members of your group want to ski or hike a different mountain than others, no problem take the stage threre. I have heard more than once that the Stage made there Apres ski experience that much better and safer! The stage runs 6AM to 1AM 365 days a year. In the winter you can load your skies or board and in the summer you can load your Bike. One fun thing to do is load your bike and bus it to an up hill destination and then enjoy the ride back to the Lodge. Another is take your bike to one of the summer resort festivals (one every weekend of summer) and ride back after a day of fun and sun! The stage stops at our lodges about every 20 minutes and full schedule can be found at:www.summitstage.com Our tourist tax revenues provides this service so don't be afraid to get out and hp a ride!

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Are there BEARS in those hills??

There are bears in them hills! Lot's of guest think we are joking when we say do not leave any food or trash outside the Lodges. Well I think it was the summer of 2007 when I received a panicked all while golfing. The guest on the other end was screaming that there was a huge brown bear below the porch of Summit Peaks North. I calmly asked if they remembered to use the dumpster for the trash and then there was a very long pause on the line... As it turns out the 300 Pounder was just hunting for scraps. That summer happened to be unusually dry so the crop of high mountain berries was sparse. You can see a photo of this omnivore on our web site. Actually In 20 years of Ownership, we have not had a wildlife injury to date. (thank God)

The closest to a real problem actually occurred just last summer at our family reunion. It just so happened that 30 family members converged on the North and South in mid June to make some memories. My wife and I were sharing the South Lodge Master bedroom when I got up for my morning run about 6am just be fore sunrise. Half asleep I stumbled down stairs. Only second after I opened the door a small animal run bye me into the house. My heart was racing as turned to identify the creature. To my surprise there was a football size baby raccoon trying to climb our wall as if it were a tree! The little rascal seemed disoriented and lonely. I grabbed thick fleece and gently wrapped around the little fur ball. I walked him about 100 yards back into the safety of the National Forest. It was reliving to see him scurry off to fine his parents! This is only incident of it’s like that I can recall! I believe the little guy was in fear for his life because this type of activity is not normal for wild animals.

History or Riverside Lodges East and West to present

We Purchased the Riverside East and west lodges in the spring of 2007. It was irresistible because it's PERFECT location in the heart of Silverthone Colorado, winter paradise! Previously know as the Alpenhutte Lodge established in 1984 as a European bed and breakfast/ hostel. We thought the over 7000 sq. Ft 3 store lodge had an excellent location and renovation potential. So $200,000 and 3 months later our dream was transformed into reality! The cool thing is the over 200 foot of private Gold Metal Blue River run through our back yard!! It was fun to also invent an entirely new main level . We converted the dated space into 2 separated floors, each with their own gourmet kitchen and home theater rooms. The new Riverside now has the flexibility to sleep up to 36 in the West and 38 in the East for a combined total of 74 for the BIG groups. Both are loaded with a video library of 500 movies, free Internet and fireplace to warm you up! Guests get an exclusive discount at the 62K square foot rec center 100 yards from the lodge! In the mid west we would call this kind of place a water park, but out here all the tourist tax revenue buy some incredible facilities. Riverside most recently received the honor of International World Cup Ski Team accreditation. This mean you need to keep your eyes pealed when visiting, many famous skiers have frequented these parts!

Monday, January 18, 2010

What a spot!!!!

We've made alot of trips to Summit Peaks Lodges. Why? Many, many reasons:
We can be fly fishing in minutes in Gold Medal waters. AND tons of other picturesque streams are just short drives in every direction. The fish are plentiful, feisty, and healthy! Many thrilling days on the streams.
We love Colorado hiking and all levels of trails abound. Last summer we left from our Lodge front door with the whole family (mountain climbers, sub teens, and over 70-ers) and went on a 1-2 hour trek to an amazing tumbling waterfall. We'd packed a picnic and enjoyed a break while listening to the creek flowing over the boulders.
Golf courses are everywhere at that elevation, the ball really travels; we love that!!
In winter we have skied many of the world famous nearby mountains in Summit County. We especially love A-Basin (Arapahoe) in the Fall and Spring, before the other slopes open/close. Copper Mountain is another of our favorites for all levels of skiing, and of course for the apres skiing, too!
After these and a myriad of other outdoor activities, we can't wait to return to the Lodge to relax in the hot tub and sit, either on the porch (lots of wildlife is aways there), or around the "wood" stove in the pool table room, and plan the next day's activities. Yes, we are an active family!
I was born and raised in Colorado, and Summit Peaks Lodges is one of the best spots in the state. Come on up....

Friday, January 15, 2010

Summit Peaks South and North Lodges

My name is Nichole Foreman, I am currently a tenth grader in Iowa but my whole life I’ve been going on trips to Colorado. My dad has owned property and lodges located in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, Summit County, since 1990. Since we have between ten and twenty thousand guests a year, we thought we’d share our favorite Rocky Mountain adventures. My dad got the lodges so we could vacation in this paradise many times a year. We go to Colorado about two to four times each year, visiting more frequently. One of the best parts about going to Colorado is that we discover new places and new things to do every time. Even after fifteen years of traveling to the mountains, there is always more to see and experience.

Lodge History:

Summit Peaks South was our first lodge. It was built in 1984 but we bought it in 1990, four years before I was born. In 1998, the lodge burnt down in an accident but we took advantage of it and my dad spent the next four years building it to perfection. Two hundred and fifty thousand pounds of Douglas Fur were hand picked from the forests of Northern Oregon to use for the lodge. Steve Wilson, one of the most detailed craftsmen and builders at the time, finished the project in 2002. Some logs spanning over 80 feet and over 20 inches in diameter, create an atmosphere that’s one of a kind. The South Lodge address is 231 North Side Circle at the end of a horseshoe shaped road where the lodge’s back yard is the National Forest. It sits on the side of Buffalo Mountain in the Wilderness Subdivision. It’s hard to believe your only 1.3 miles from I70 exit 204 when you’re nestled into this mountain. The six bedrooms and 3,900 square feet make the lodge feel very spacious. My favorite feature of the South Lodge is the heated floors, which keeps things toasty in the winter and doesn’t pass germs like a forced air heating system does. I also love the potbelly stove on the main level because it heats the entire house. Sometimes my dad puts a kettle of water on top of it to humidify the extremely dry air, which is probably why we never get sore throats. Just remember to not put your skit boots too close to it or they will melt just like my sisters did! The covered porch provides a very good BBQ all four seasons. We’ve had our whole family of ten out there watching the wildlife as our burgers cook. The atmosphere is just spectacular. As this being the first lodge, it is also my favorite to stay in when we visit.

Summit Peaks North was our second lodge. Even thought you can’t walk between them, it is located on the backside of the same property as the South Lodge and it has the best views of the National Forest behind our property. After the success of the South Lodge, we acquired the North Lodge so we could double the occupancy to satisfy the needs of the larger groups. The first upgrade was the private breakfast deck off of the upper level. When we have our morning coffee up there, we spot a lot of big game and wild life. It was built by the same builder and with the same meticulous eye for detail as the South. The warmth of the log construction provides a perfect environment for entertaining and a beautiful gas fireplace heats the wide-open main level. The North Lodge is better suited for couples because it has more queen and king size beds. The two covered decks on the front and back of the lodge provide even more area to enjoy the outdoors.