If you have ever seen the movie, The Bucket List, you might have found it to be a sad story. On the other hand, it has a very good point... you only live once, so why not have a list of things to accomplish before kicking the bucket?
Four of our close friends from college (Tony, Kristen, Amanda & Michael) started such a Bucket List with Matt and me. One of the items, was to have an annual cabin snow trip. Our first trip was in 2009. We spent two nights in Big Bear, along with another couple. 2010, we found ourselves flying to a family friend's cabin in Tahoe, located at the Northstar Resort, for the Superbowl weekend. Needless to say, it was an amazing trip, and the six of us decided to make Tahoe our main cabin trip location!
This past weekend was our 3rd annual trip, and it was by far, the most spoiling cabin vacation yet! Kristen and Tony found round-trip plane tickets to Tahoe that were only $275 for two people! Tony's brother lent us a free parking pass at LAX (which would have been $60 for 3 nights). Amanda was able to get a coupon for a free weekend stay at Northstar, as well as free ski lift tickets!
The perks were endless on this trip. Aside from our cabin and lift tickets being free, there was a snowboard demo happening that weekend, so the boys got free board rentals! The girls and I also managed to get free snowmobile rides, and gondola tickets to ride up to the ski resort. It was all too good to be true, and we were certain something was going to go wrong with all the good luck... well, we missed a free 30 minute concert by James Blunt. haha. Ridiculous!!!
The cabin itself was absolutely amazing. It was a 2-story, 2 bedroom, 1 bath, cabin condo, with a spectacular view! The weather was gorgeous, and the snow was great. Our first night there we stocked up on groceries, and unpacked in the cabin.  |
| (the ski resort makes the best Bloody Mary's!). |
The second day (Saturday), the boys woke up early to hit the slopes. The girls and I relaxed in the cabin for a while before hitching a gondola ride up to the ski resort. We got a table inside, overlooking the slopes, where we were able to watch for the guys, and enjoy some hot drinks.
After a full day, the six of us decided to have a progressive dinner of sorts. Our first stop was at Oliver's for wine, fondue and cheese. Stop #2 was TC's Pub for a beer, hot wings and mozzarella sticks, and our final destination was The Chocolate Bar for dessert fondue, truffles, and chocolate martini's. We ended the night lounging by one of the resort fire pits, before heading back to the cabin to watch a movie in our PJ's.
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| Amanda, Kristen and me on the gondola |
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| Beautiful pink sunset over Oliver's |
The third day (Sunday), the boys were up early on the mountain again. The girls and I checked out a few of the surrounding areas, and were able to take a gondola straight up to the top of the mountain!
By 2pm we headed back and got food ready for the Superbowl. After the game (which we were all happy the Packers won!), we headed down to the resort village to have smores and hot coco by one of the fire pits. We wrapped up the night having steaks and watching a movie back at the cabin.
Our final day (Monday), the boys hit the slopes one last time while the girls and I browsed the village. We all met up later for gelato - despite how cold it was - and then headed to the airport for our flight home.
Overall, it was the best cabin trip yet! While I usually love getting a day of snowboarding in, it was incredibly relaxing to hang with the girls and let the boys use the free lift tickets. Definitely my favorite Bucket List item so far! We all see this trip continuing, even something we can enjoy with kids later!
