WINTER IS OPEN
At Mountain Village Resort By Lori Williams
If holiday withdrawals have set in or big city life south of Galena has you woundup, then head for the winter-white quiet of the Sawtooth Valley for a refresh of the spirit. Winter fun is up and running at the Mountain Village Resort. At the entrance to Stanley, the resort has long been a welcoming outpost for high-altitude comfort and charm, and owners Russell and Mandy Clark are passionate about service in this place they call home. Mountain Village Resort is the perfect haven and basecamp for all winter adventures, with a 61-room lodge, suite-style log cabins, a mercantile, gas and service station, RV park, restaurant, events, and music. And, of course, the hot springs. If ripping into 2022 with and all the bold, cold activities you can wrangle sounds good, then paradise waits for you too. There’s plenty of adventure to be had—Nordic skiing, snowmobiling, hot springs soaking, snowshoeing, ice skating, pond hockey, backcountry skiing. Stanley doesn’t close down for the winter. Though often the coldest locale in the nation in the winter, the hearts of this hardy, close-knit community 122
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are warm and welcoming for your visit to their neck of the woods. You’ll find miles of untouched snowfields and crisp, sunny days, with all levels of riding terrain for sled heads— rentals available through Sawtooth Traxx. And the groomed cross-country ski and snowshoe trails are some of the most epic in the country. Mountain Village Resort offers a variety of accommodations for your getaway stay. Lodge rooms are cozy and comfortable, 11 of which are newly remodeled, including the Nip n’ Tuck Suite, two kitchenettes, and eight two-queen deluxe rooms, beautifully finished with classic mountain charm. Along the banks of Valley Creek and an easy walk from the main lodge is the Stanley Outpost, the classic comfort of a rustic, suitestyle log cabins for groups of varying sizes. A five-minute walk from the lodge brings you to a small log building, where the resort’s hot springs pool sits, beckoning you for a sweet soak as you gaze through the open barn-style doors framing the mighty Sawtooths.
TOP PHOTO BY MOUNTAIN VILLAGE RESORT; TOP RIGHT PHOTO BY CHAD CASE; BOTTOM RIGHT PHOTO BY MOUNTAIN VILLAGE RESORT