Peter Grubb Ski Hut

One of four unique, back-country huts operated by the Clair Tappan Lodge in the Lake Tahoe area, The Ski House of the Day, the Peter Grubb Ski Hut, "may be difficult to locate in heavy snow years:"

But an intrepid group of skilled back-country skiers found it, enjoyed it, and recently shared their experience with me!  (These photos were taken during a January 2016 visit).  The hut is located about 3 miles (hike or ski)  from Route 80.  The remote hut is maintained by volunteer groups organized by the Sierra Club (during the summer and fall)  who then get priority in the lottery to reserve the hut for winter stays.

In addition to the abundant snow, visitors are welcomed to the hut by the small signs posted on the front door...first a welcome sign:

...and then, particularly noteworthy, an earthquake warning sign:

The hut was built in 1938 in memory of avid skier and outdoorsman, Peter Grubb whose untimely death occurred at age 19 in Europe.  In a letter to his grandfather, shortly before his death, teenage Peter wrote:   

"I just got back from my second trip to Norden at the Sierra Club Ski Lodge. We had a grand time skiing. As you probably have heard from Mama, on the first day I broke my skis which I used over New Years, the ones which I made at school, luckily though they broke exactly in the center so I sawed them off to about 3 feet each and used those successfully the rest of the trip, the only disadvantage being that they sank further then ordinary skis in the soft powder snow.....I am including a diagram of the lodge which is just about completed. I do not know if you have heard yet about the group of small ski huts which they plan to start this year, thus making a John Muir trail of the winter...near Tahoe...."

Blanketed in that soft powder snow, this is one of those huts that Peter wrote about, and is named after that young skier.

The Peter Grubb Hut has a "back-door" off the upper level of the hut...offering accessibility when the front door becomes totally covered by snow.  A solar panel powers the lights.

There are two rooms inside the Peter Grubb Hut:  a main room which includes a cooking area (with counter space, cabinets, pots and pans, etc.) a wood-stove, a few picnic tables, benches...and happy campers:

Off to the side is a welcome sight...a small room full of dry wood...

 ...which comes in handy to build a beautiful, warm fire in the wood stove:

It's pretty cozy with logs for stools, and a clothesline for drying skins or other wet gear:

The ladder leads to the second room, an upstairs sleeping loft...

...basic and comfy for a few people...

...or warm and cozy for a lot of people...

Apres-ski in the Peter Grubb Ski Hut:

And how about this split-level out-house...the upper level will remain more accessible after the lower level door becomes obstructed with snow:

A nice collection of skis ready to go...

A captivating smile emerging from the hut through the snow-tunnel:

And they're off:

...for some spectacular skiing:

...until it's time to watch the sunset over the mountains...

 Special thanks to Tim and Teresa for sharing their experience at the Peter Grubb Hut!
Check out their other amazing ski adventures on the Mexican Blankett .

The Peter Grubb Hut may be "difficult to locate in heavy snow years" but that's exactly what makes it a back-country skiers dream house!

College Ski Cabin On the Road Less Traveled

It's early in the school year...that time when schools and colleges renew their efforts to educate, to inspire, and to encourage independent thinking.  Today's Ski House of the Day is one that exists because of some inspired college alums...it's the ski cabin owned by the Dartmouth Outing Club of Northern California.

This unique cabin, is owned, manged and enjoyed by alumni of Dartmouth College.  As they put it, it's a magical little piece of New Hampshire transplanted to California.  And as I see it, it's a magical little place...right along the road less traveled.

This ski house is a cute, compact, cozy cabin, with rustic logs (sporting the requisite Dartmouth "green" on its upper exterior), nestled in the snow among the pine trees in Donner Pass.  In winter it's only accessible over the snow (skis / snowshoes).

The common areas on the first floor include a kitchen plus a cozy, comfortable living room...

 ...and two (college dorm-style) bunk rooms on the upper floor:

It looks really great, and I bet those alums love being there;  but there's a story behind this ski cabin. The history of this place can be traced (at least in part) to 1934 when Johnny Ellis graduated from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.  Johnny Ellis, like poet Robert Frost (who also attended Dartmouth some 35 years earlier), took the road less traveled after he graduated from Dartmouth, when he made his way to the mountains of California.

According to the Donner Summit Historical Society, Johnny Ellis wasn't ready to go to traditional work after graduation (even though it was the Depression) so he left New Hampshire and headed out west to carve out his own future.  He found work helping to construct the Sierra Club's Clair Tappan Lodge and it must have suited him, because he stayed on as self-appointed "major domo and floor cleaner" performing the jobs of fireman, cook, plumber, doctor, ski-instructor, snow-shoveler, washroom-scrubber, cashier, etc.  (...the original "ski-bum"?).  "It was a grand job."  But Johnny had a few other big ideas, and soon took steps to put them into motion. One was the formation of the western version of the popular Dartmouth Outing Club (which he did, along with other alums), and the other was his grand vision of creating a ski resort at Donner Summit.

The first step was to acquire some land, which he did (for $3.50 an acre), on which he built a warming hut, and constructed the first tow-rope in the west in 1937.   Johnny's entrepreneurial spirit continued as he constructed two additional tows, and started land development of ski lodge lots.  He had specific plans for an innovative first-class ski resort development in 1941, but it was not to be. WW II broke out that year, and the ski tow, although successful, unfortunately was dismantled due to the war. Johnny headed back East, working in engineering, all the while gathering ideas for improving lift operations in the Sierra. After the war, Johnny did not return to the Sierra, but rather he moved on to "plastics" thus once again taking the road less traveled toward that new, innovative material, even before The Graduate.  So, his visionary ski resort was an idea that was left to others to pursue.  Whether ultimately successful or not, it seems to me that those with new ideas who break new ground and who travel their own path, create new opportunities for the rest of us, and leave inspiration in their wake.

After the war (1946), club members began constructing the ski cabin using discarded railroad timbers from Southern Pacific's snow sheds that were being rebuilt.  Two years later, electricity and a toilet were added. The 1950's brought an addition, running water, and dedication of a memorial fireplace (which even includes New Hampshire granite!):

According to the Donner Summit Historical Society, Johnny later said,  "Perhaps I left a mark or two on Donner Pass...it is nice to know that some of the things I cared about are still growing."

I think this ski house is a testament to those, like Johnny Ellis, who see possibilities, dare to dream, and who dare to take the road less traveled.

Remnants of that original tow remain on the site of this ski cabin...invisible to some, but for the independent-minded adventurers who see the possibilities they can be found... they're right along the road less traveled.

Chocolate Moose Cabin

Today is International Chocolate Day...so here's a sweet ski house for this sweet day.....the Ski House of the Day is the Chocolate Moose Cabin, in Big Bear Lake, California.  The Chocolate Moose Cabin, as you can see, gets a pretty sweet coating of snow:

The cabin has a cozy living room with wood paneled walls, a warming fireplace...and lots of interesting decor...like the moose on the mantle, moose pillows, and the pieces that I absolutely love -- those wall lamps made of vintage wooden skis flanking the fireplace - fabulous for a ski cabin!

There are three bedrooms, including this really cute one which has a gorgeous log bed with moose headboard, moose blanket, decorative  snowshoe, and other great log furnishings:

How about some chocolate mousse in the Chocolate Moose kitchen on Chocolate Day?

(By the way...the east coast has its own version of a chocolate moose).

And while you're dreaming of enjoying that sweet chocolate, check out the view - of Bear Mountain's Geronimo ski run:

The trails are just an easy walk through the woods...just enough time to finish up that chocolate before you hit the trails!

Chocolate Moose or chocolate mousse...both sound pretty sweet to me.  

Happy Chocolate Day!

Olympic Skier's Tahoe House

Olympians make us proud -- no matter what the sport, no matter what the season, no matter what.  Each of them inspires hope and possibility by being at the Games in a sincere spirit of international sports competition.  So, with the 2012 Summer Olympics opening today, I thought it would be a good time to check out the ski house of one former Olympian...an Olympic skier, of course!

The skier is Bob Ormsby, who competed in the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary (Slalom and Giant Slalom), and was a member of the US National Ski Team for eight years:

...and the Ski House of the Day is Bob Ormsby's secluded Lake Tahoe house.

Bob, a life-long resident of the Tahoe area, purchased the house a few years after the '88 Olympics.  His house is situated in a peaceful setting among the towering pine trees of Lake Tahoe, and backs up to forest service property:

...so the house ski-in / ski-out for cross country skiers, with a network of trails right out the door.  And for alpine skiers it's close to Squaw Valley (site of the 1960 Olympics) and Alpine Meadows Ski Resorts.  

Today, Bob applies the competitive spirit from his days as an Olympic ski racer to his own real estate business;  and, fortunately for us regular skiers, he offers his cozy Lake Tahoe house to renters.  I find this ski house to be inspirational because of the Olympic ski history of its owner.  (Hey, I wonder if I could absorb some skiing skills just by being there?).  The house seems like a great place to relax and enjoy nature - summer or winter.  I like the comfy-looking, wide open living area, and the warm alpine feel of all that wood:

The house has three bedrooms (and two bathrooms);  and I love the private upper deck off of this bedroom:

In the rental listing it says that "there are many outdoor games at the house"...but for me, the games that I'd connect to this ski house are the 1988 Winter Olympic Games.  

Let the Games begin!

Squaw Valley Ski House

The Ski House of the Day is this large and beautiful home (that's for sale) in Squaw Valley, California.  It's a 7-bedroom 7-bathroom beauty with views of the valley and slopes - right from the gorgeous outdoor hot tub surrounded by snow:


The rooms looks really comfortable and inviting; here's a peek:




Check out the snow piled up against the kitchen window:




But here's what I think is really unique about this house; there's a bar that looks like you're in stepping right into the fifties (the early days of Squaw).  What a fun place this bar and fireplace would be for apres-ski:




Nice!

Architect's Own Ski House in Mammoth Lakes

Here's a beautiful house, designed by skiing architect, Richard Landry, specifically for his own family ski getaways...and it shows!  Perfectly situated on a snowy slope in Mammoth Lakes California, taking full advantage of the views, with lots of glass to let that view shine in, a bunk-room for eight, and many more details that skiers can appreciate, this lavish house (described in the NY Times) is a place that any skier would love to return to after a few runs.


I love the wrap-around deck and its clear railings which allow for unobstructed enjoyment of the view;  in fact the railing seems virtually invisible. And speaking of the deck, I would absolutely love to put my tired feet up on that stone fire-pit on the deck for apres-ski enjoyment!





With all its skier-designed features, fantastic mountain views and soaring windows to let those views in, the Ski House of the Day is this architect's own Mammoth Lakes ski home.