A Silver Star in the lining

In my last blog entry, I discussed our road trip destination of Crestone, Colo., and its surroundings.  I did not say much about accommodations in Crestone, however. 

Truthfully, if you plan on staying in or near Crestone, you don’t have many options.  Christine, the fake wife, certainly found this out when booking lodging for our first night in the area.  There is a small hotel in town, a youth hostel, and the White Eagle Lodge outside of town which I briefly mentioned in relation to the site of the Crestone Music Festival.  And then there are the bed and breakfasts in the “New Age” neighborhood.  That’s where Christine discovered the Silver Star Bed and Breakfast … and Retreat Center.

Let me give you an idea of where the Silver Star is located in relation to the rest of the town.  As you approach the town, you’ll run into a T intersection.  Instead of turning left to go into the town, you take a right onto Camino Baca Grande, the main street in the hippie subdivision, then look for one of the gravel roads called Panorama Way that will take you up the mountainside to the left.  After you've missed your turn a couple of times because you can’t read the cutesy wooden street signs, you drive up Panorama Way until you've basically reached the end of subdivision.  How high are you going up the hillside?  Well, if the town of Crestone’s elevation is around 8,000 feet, the Silver Star is probably around 9,000 feet. 

The best part of the place, as you can imagine, is the view.  From the back deck, you feel like you can see the entire expanse of the San Luis Valley, all the way over to the San Juan mountain range to the west. 

View of the valley from the back deck of the Silver Star Bed and Breakfast and Retreat.  That sliver in the middle is the road to Crestone from Moffat, Colo.

Here’s the back deck in the morning …

Here are me and Ken looking up at the deck in amazement (or maybe confusion) at our new-found surroundings. 

"I can't see a damn thing because of the sun.  Can you?  Wait, did Christine just take our picture?" 

The view from the front entrance isn't too shabby, either.  In fact, you can catch a couple of hiking trails right outside the door.      

View from the front entrance of the Silver Star B&B and Retreat Center.

And because I can never resist getting my CR-V to photo-bomb a picture, here’s a good look at the driveway and the Silver Star’s location on the mountain. 

The bed and breakfast itself actually looks kind of like your ordinary run-of-the-mill two-level home, except that it is perched on the side of a mountain and includes a meditation room.  You feel a little like you've come to your cousin or good friend’s house to crash for the night. 

Silver Star has five bedrooms and three bathrooms, two of which are shared, which was not a problem at all.  The place also has a large open living room area on the top level, as well as a large common-use kitchen and dining area. 

One of the draws to the Silver Star was that one of the bedrooms had three individual beds, which was perfect for me, Christine and Ken.  Another draw was the price.  The place is really quite affordable.  That’s one of the advantages, I suppose, of doing business with people locally who are genuinely caring and vested in the future of not only their business but the community as well.

Sue, the hostess, is very welcoming, helpful and friendly.  She and her husband purchased the property in 2011, and as you’ll notice on the Silver Star’s website, they consider themselves stewards of the property and the land that surrounds it.  It all leads to just a very congenial atmosphere overall.     

One highlight for me was watching the hummingbirds gather while we enjoyed breakfast.  I learned that in addition to her hostess duties, Sue cooks a pretty darn good egg scramble full of fresh, local ingredients.  I pitched in with morning coffee duties – I like to help out where I can. 

Of course, I can’t blog about Silver Star without focusing a little on the “retreat” portion, and the meditation room in particular.  While we were staying there, in fact, a couple of guests were there for a quiet retreat.  No talking.  To Anyone.  Just solitude.  This, surely, is where having a mediation room comes in handy. 

Looks like as good of a spot as any for a nice nap.  

I tried to fit in, but I just don’t think I get it.

Thank, Ken, for taking that picture as evidence that I am a blasphemer of some religion somewhere.  I have no doubt the gods are enacting their revenge even as I write this.  Oh, well. 

For what it’s worth, as sooner as we took this picture, we were discovered by one of the “quiet” guests.  He just smiled politely, and we sulked down the hallway.  I like to think he got a good laugh on the inside at our expense.