A SUEPUR DESTINATION:
Mirror Lake Inn Resort & Spa, The Sequel
Who ever said you can't go home again has never visited Mirror Lake Inn Resort & Spa in Lake Placid. Having had such a wonderful experience on our first visit in April, my sister Linda and I decided to return. This time we drove from our homes on Long Island instead of taking the Amtrak train, so we could go antiquing on our way home. It was a six hour trip — same as the train ride — and once we passed the city traffic, it was clear sailing.
Chatting the way we do together, we soon were in Keene, New York where we stopped to have lunch at Monty's Elm Tree Inn, owned by Ron Purdy — just a coincidence that we had the same last name although we discussed genealogy and thought the families may have been connected many years back. The sandwiches here were Carnegie Deli thick and delicious without the New York City prices.
We finally reached Lake Placid, the Lake Woebegone of New York State, where all the shops are quaint, all the people friendly, and all the sports of the outdoors type. Soon our car was turning into the drive by the white sign signaling that once again we had arrived at the Mirror Lake Inn Resort & Spa.
This visit we stayed in the Mountain View wing, renovated in 1998 and with a lovely view of the lake as well as the mountains. On our last visit we managed to get ourselves lost in the rabbit's warren maze of rooms and floors. Now, we were smug old pros, until we found ourselves inserting our room card in the wrong room. Okay, time to figure out just where we were located.
After unpacking, we headed to the spa where Irv Dunham was scheduled to give us a massage. I don't know if you recall reading about Irv in my last column about the Mirror Lake Resort & Spa, but he is an amazing massage therapist. Once a wrestler, he looks like Mr. Clean with his shaven head and big shoulders but his massages are deep tissue yet gentle, getting out all the kinks in my "mouse arm" and "computer neck." Linda and I had scheduled two days of massages with Irv and they certainly worked their magic on our sore muscles. I told Linda I had so much mobility in my neck, I felt like Linda Blair.
I also experienced a wonderful facial with Marybeth Whitman who told me I had great skin but a few broken capillaries. Well, I am a woman of a certain age, and age does leave some residue, in this case some tiny red life tracks on each side of my nose. Marybeth also gave me a Hydra Quench Body Glow. Wow! I was exfoliated from neck to toes, then a slick remineralizing liquid mask was applied to my body, coating it like a clear egg wash. I was then wrapped in a watertight cocoon and submerged into a warm bath where I seemed to float for fifteen minutes. I was sooo relaxed. When this was over, I took a warm shower, standing in a jet stream that seemed to have more shower heads than the White House lawn's sprinkler system. Then a rich cream was applied to my willing and waiting skin, again from neck to toes, leaving me feeling like one of those rocks placed in a tumbler that comes out looking all shinny and new. If I didn't look 15 years younger, I sure felt it.
Linda and I stopped to see the very capable Janis at the Activities Desk. We wanted some morning fun and she suggested a Lake Placid Boat Tour that left at 10:30 a.m. from the Lake Placid Marina just a five minute walk from the resort. Another reason we love this resort is that it seems to be a five minute walk to most places, including town. The ride was terrific, with a young man jokingly called "Crash" at the helm and Jason at the mike giving a running commentary about Lake Placid. We learned this is the 10th cleanest lake in the lower 48 and that it has a natural limestone base so it is not affected by acid rain. The homes are called 'camps' and each camp is named by its owner. You can no longer build on the lake but you can buy an existing home and renovate to your heart's content as long as you adhere to building codes. And a delightful fact that after a 25 year absence, bald eagles are once again swooping over the lake, their magnificent wing span reflected in the clear, clean waters below.
All that fresh air on Lake Placid made us hungry and we ate in town, as lunch is not part of the meal package at the resort. But the abundant breakfasts, including a feast of a weekend breakfast buffet, as well as the excellent gourmet menu of dinner entrees including porterhouse steak, fresh fish and daily specials are part of the $55.00 per person daily rate charged here. Well worth it if you have an educated palate and an appetite.
Our Friday to Monday sojourn was over too quickly and as we packed the car to leave, we decided Mirror Lake Inn Resort would be the place for our family reunion next year. With tennis, and both an indoor and outdoor pool, the fabulous spa, all the fun activities on the lake along with the excellent fishing and golf in the area makes this the ideal summer vacation for our gang.
We'll be there in July. Hope to see you there too.
Information: www.mirrorlakeinn.com
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
||||||
