A wintry, welcome retreat at The Sundance Mountain Lodge

Letter to the Editor: The Colorado Springs Gazette

It took four hours of stop-and-go traffic through Colorado Springs to Monument on Sunday, November 30, before we considered pulling off I-25. The Mustang spinning in the lane to the left, the depleting bars on the fuel gauge and impending darkness urged our taking of County Line Road exit. Blowing snow made it difficult to find the access road that led back to the red "Hotel Now Open" banner that I had seen out of the passenger's window.

My husband dropped my sister and me off at the front door. The light, warmth of the fireplace, and the sight of a man busy with his computer at the front desk gave me hope. A young man from Santa Fe, standing with his wife and small daughter in front of me, told the story. "We're on a kind of waiting list," he said. "They just opened this hotel four days ago, and there aren't enough rooms. They've got a team trying to open as many as possible."

I looked around. There was a quiet sense of relief in the room among the bundled travelers. Dave (the man's name at the desk) multi-tasked between the computer, the people leaning over the counter and the phone. All this he did with an affable smile. "Initiation by fire," he exclaimed. My husband took our spot in line, and my sister and I checked out the bar and restaurant area. The Broncos were trouncing the Jets on television, but the same sense of peace reigned in this room where a lone waitress was filling orders from a limited menu of soup, sandwiches and drinks.

When my husband joined us, we were visiting with a couple who had offered to take a room with no bedding since they had sleeping bags in the car. "We have a room," he reported. "But there's only one king-sized bed!" The woman across from us laughed and told us of the time in Mongolia when she slept in a common bed with eleven others.

Before retiring to our room, Gary, one of the owner's, spoke with us in the lobby. He was dressed in work clothes, having been point-man for the team that had been opening rooms. "There will be some sleeping on the floor in there tonight," he said, pointing to the restaurant area. Like Dave, Gary was charged-up with the honest task of serving those who truly needed a safe night's rest.

In the morning, with the same good humor that marked our entire experience, we were served a continental breakfast. Sun poured in the big windows as travelers checked out. The young son of a couple from Aurora was chided by his mother for opening the front door, the cold air sneaking into the lobby. "I want to see the snow," he said, regretfully letting it close. I smiled, remembering the night before when it was a wide and welcome open door.