Winter Vacation in Squaw Valley + PlumpJack Inn

A little less than 8 years ago, Brandon surprised me with two round-trip tickets to Lake Tahoe, California so that he could take me to see snow for the very first time. (I’m a true Florida girl, what can I say?)

We ended-up going the week before Christmas which was a really bad time to travel a nice time of year for snow. Our flight had 2 layovers and they managed to lose our luggage and not get it back to us for 2 days. Good times. Thankfully, this time around we did not have to fly there!

Our first trip there was to South Lake Tahoe near Heavenly Mountain but we decided to change it up the second time around and check out the north side of the lake. The city we ended up visiting was Olympic Valley which is based around Squaw Valley, home of the 1960 Winter Olympics.

We rented a small SUV which had Texas plates (pretty funny since we just moved here from Texas!).

Put the pups in the back…

And headed out on a 3 hour drive towards snow!

We stayed at PlumpJack Inn which is not only right next to the little downtown Village in Squaw Valley but is also steps away from the ski lifts.

The rooms were really cozy and had a rustic feel.

There isn’t a closet in the room, but they do give you a little rack to hang your clothes.

They even had a Keurig coffee maker and free K-cups which I would thoroughly enjoy if I drank coffee.

The bathroom was also cute and very clean.

And they provide fluffy PlumpJack robes with hoods for you to use during your stay.

There were icicles hanging from the window of our room…brrrr.

Right outside the room, there is a full view of Squaw mountain.

The best part about this place is that they allow you to bring your hairy, smelly children with you.

They even provide beds, bowls and treats for them. It didn’t take too long for them to get settled in…

Gigi likes to sleep with her head under the bed.

Check in wasn’t until 4pm, so we had enough time to unpack and get the dog’s situated before getting ready for our 7pm dinner reservation at the restaurant that is located right inside PlumpJacks.

We tried to take pictures inconspicuously without the flash so please pardon the dim lighting!

Cheers!

Can you tell how much he loves this?

For dinner, we both ordered salads to start and the only vegetarian option.

Baby Winter Vegetable Pot Pie

This was a very non-traditional version of a pot pie since the filling was exposed and the pastry was placed on top. See it there under the sliced apple? The vegetables consisted of beets, celeriac, and parsnips. It was very good and sooo filling!

But not too filling to not have dessert…

Chocolate Mousse “S’more”

I enjoyed dessert with chamomile tea and Brandon had an espresso.

After being stuffed to oblivion full from dinner we called it an early night (it was freezing outside!) and got plenty of sleep in preparation for a full day on the slopes.

I’m going to try and get some sleep now as I am on call and working this weekend to make up for my vacation.

But I will be back with more details of our fun in the snow. See you soon!