Sunday River Winter Wonderland
Note: This post was meant to go live back in February but things got very busy and I wasn’t able to get it published. Well, here it is!
Two weeks ago I spent a wonderful wintery weekend up at Sunday River Ski Resort. In case haven’t already heard, Sunday River is New England’s Premier Ski Resort with 133 trails that span across eight peaks. Yes, you heard correctly. EIGHT peaks!
Get this, the average annual snowfall up at Sunday River comes in at a whopping 167 inches. That’s a lot of snow! In short, not many mountains in the Northeast that can compete with Sunday River’s overall size, average snowfall, snow making ability, and the wide array of activities available to families that want to bring their children along for the ride.
Sunday River or Bust!
Prior to my recent weekend up at Sunday River, I had only been up there once and it was back when I was still in high school. Sunday River definitely is not the closest mountain to my home. As a matter of fact it’s one of the furthest mountains from me at just under four and a half hours drive.
I woke up on Sunday morning knowing I had a long, and lonely drive ahead of me. I rushed out of the house without having eaten breakfast in hopes to make it up to Sunday River for a previously reserved 1PM Winter Zipline Tour. Turns out, I misjudged the timing of the drive and ended up having to call it off.
Although I knew I had missed out on the Winter Zipline Tour I was still on a mission to get up there as soon as possible so I didn’t make any pit stops along the way. Thankfully, I brought a few SOYJOY bars with me in the car otherwise I would have had to stop off and consume something that I would likely regret later on.
Jordan Grand Resort Hotel
I arrived at the Jordan Grand Resort Hotel just after 2PM. Check-in time was 4PM but I figured it couldn’t hurt to ask if my room was ready. Fortunately, it was! Once I was all checked in, I made my way up to the second floor of the resort with all of my clothes and camera gear in tow. I remember the hotel porter asking me if I needed a hand on multiple occasions but I kept refusing his help. It’s a guy thing, OK?
Looking back on it, I probably should have accepted the porters help considering by the time I arrived to my room I was dripping sweat. As soon as I pushed the door to my room open, I instantly felt at home. Two giant, fluffy, queen-sized beds. All for me!
Once settled in, I took a short walk around the hotel in order to get my bearings. I immediately fell in love with the atmosphere and decor of the main lobby in the Jordan Grand Resort as it reminded me of an old warm and toasty ski lodge.
NETWN Dinner Meet & Greet
Before I knew it, it was just about time to head back up to the room and get dressed for dinner and drinks at Jordan’s on-site restaurant called Sliders.
Tonight, I would meet up with a group of people from the New England Travel Writers Network for the first time. I’ve been a member of the group for just about a year now but since I travel quite often, I always seem to miss out on these little NETWN get togethers.
The dinner at Sliders Restaurant was hosted by Darcy Morse, the Director of Communications and Nick Lambert, VP of Sales and Marketing for Sunday River. The food was set up in a buffet fashion and I found it to be pretty spectacular to say the least.
I may or may not have had a slice of this flourless chocolate cake before heading back to my room.
Outdoor jacuzzi, anyone?
Once I arrived back at my room, I was extremely full and ready to relax. What better way to relax other than to head down to the outdoor jacuzzi?
When I reached the door leading outside I suddenly remembered that the temperature was in the teens tonight. To make a long story short, I couldn’t have stripped down any faster before hopping into the scorching hot jacuzzi.
Myself, and a few of my fellow NETWN members finished up the night by sharing some travel stories over the bubbling hot water while the wind and the scattered snow flakes whipped around our heads.
