Stories Published in Arizona Foothills

Covered in Cool: Colorado in Summer

Arizona Foothills, July 2015

Colorado may be cool in the winter, but the Centennial State is hot in the summer, too, with many activities for everyone in the family. World-famous resorts and areas such as Winter Park, Powderhorn Mountain Resort, Purgatory Resort, Aspen Snowmass and Telluride offer top-quality accommodations, diverse restaurants and proximity to cities, towns and airports. Mountain biking is big, as is wine. Enjoy the mountains, lakes, National Parks, golf, shopping, ballooning and paragliding, tennis, rafting, and music and other cultural festivals. In addition, there’s ziplining, bungee trampolines, climbing walls and miniature golf, river sports, camping, horseback riding and destination excursions such as the historic train ride from Durango to Silverton along the raging Animas River. The locals say, ‘They came for the winter and stayed for the summer.’”

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Del Mar: It’s Off to the Races!

Arizona Foothills, September 2014

Welcoming those who love horse racing at the historic Del Mar Race Track are the California seaside town’s fine hotels, such as the L’Auberge Del Mar and Hotel Indigo Del Mar, and upscale restaurants and shops. Opened in 1937, the track was a partnership of Bing Crosby, Pat O’Brien, Gary Cooper, Joe E. Brown, Oliver Hardy and businessman Charles S. Howard. A year later, one of the great match races took place, Aug. 12, 1938, when the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club hosted a $25,000 winner-take-all match race between Howard’s immortal Seabiscuit and the Binglin Stable’s colt, Ligaroti, with Seabiscuit taking honors. History, luxury, great food and shopping until you drop down in peace on the beach: Del Mar is a gallop or a trot away. Saddle up, head on over!

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Red Rock Bliss

Arizona Foothills, February 2014

L’Auberge de Sedona celebrates its 32nd anniversary this year beneath the world famous red rocks and amidst Sedona’s much-discussed spiritual, or energy, vortexes. The 11-acre resort on Oak Creek Canyon recently added Vista Cottages, 100 feet or so above the creek floor and the central campus. These offer guests stunning views of landmarks such as Thumb Butte & The Bench, Camel Head and everyone’s favorite, Snoopy Rock, featuring Charles Schultz’ supine canine, legs up and Woodstock propped playfully on his chin. A heated salt-water pool maintained at 84 degrees and adjacent spa have also been added. The 5,000 square-foot Spa at L’Auberge has been redesigned, and the resort’s superb Executive Chef Rochelle Daniel bases her seasonally changing meals on as many locally grown ingredients as she can find. Check it out here, and check in.

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The Tequila Goddess at Valentine’s Day

Arizona Foothills, February 2014

Abeer Besharieh (“blessing”), the Tequila Goddess at the Fairmont Princess in Scottsdale, knows an Anejo from a Super Anejo. Because of this, she oversees her domain at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess with meticulous care, wisdom and joy for the increasingly popular drink from Mexico. Also at the festive destination resort, Forest Hamrick, chef de cuisine at La Hacienda, its exceptional Mexican restaurant, has paired five premium sips and dishes, starters to dessert. “The more I sip, the more I learn about tequila, and the more I visit the motherland of tequila, the more I fall in love with this elegant spirit,” Besharieh says. “I love tequila because it’s more than just another spirit; it has its own culture, art and traditions.”

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Guardians of the Gate

Arizona Foothills, Fall 2013

Next visit to San Francisco, consider The Inn at the Presidio or Cavallo Point. Each is a former Army fort that protected, respectively, the San Francisco and Marin County sides of the Golden Gate, now the site of the great bridge. Formerly Pershing Hall, opened in 1903, the Inn at the Presidio debuted in April 2012. Magnificently renovated, the Classic Revival-style Inn includes 22 rooms and the recently renovated Greek Revival Funston House, a historic four-bedroom home dating from 1889. Opened in summer 2008, Cavallo Point Lodge is the former Fort Baker, built between 1901 and 1915. Today, its 68 historic rooms and suites, once officers’ quarters, have been beautifully restored, and 74 contemporary accommodations, on the hillside above the parade grounds, offer spectacular views of the Golden Gate Bridge.

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