Of course, when Heaven is involved, often Hell is as well. In this case you have to drive a road known as "Hell's Backbone" to get to this bit of paradise. SO worth the drive!
After many consecutive days on the road, rounding the corner, seeing the beautiful green lawns and brilliant colorful flowers everywhere was such a blessing. One can stay in teepees, tents, or in the lodge with a private or shared bath. We opted for the private bath. This turned out to be right off the 24/7 "great room" so I had a bit of concern. NO worries! Although our room was small, it was quiet and delightful in all ways. If anyone was partying in the great room, we couldn't hear them. Slept amazingly well.
Heard the food was wonderful and unique. Saw the chef out in the gardens often selecting ingredients which was fun. Did not make dinner reservations as we're economy travelers and the price for dessert alone was $9. Enjoyed the included "continental" breakfast which had a wonderful assortment of fruit and also an egg free banana bread which was a treat for this vegetarian traveler.
Loved sitting out of the deck overlooking the valley as sunset came in. Just sat in the wooden "throne" they provided.... best part? The chair was elevated so I, as a 5'2" person, could actually see over the railing and into the beautiful valley. Talk about feeling like a Queen! From my raised perch I read my book as evening descended. Enjoyed watching many colorful birds flitting about, bunnies coming out for an evening meal, bats flying by snatching insects, a stunning sunset, and amazing stars. Since we could not get the public telescope to work, we opted to walk up the road a little to get away from the building lights, then enjoyed brilliant constellations and the Milky Way in the sky. Beautiful. So serene.
All the staff we interacted with were friendly and warm. Loved that they were able to have their animals at "work" so this pet-missing traveler got to enjoy petting a cat, dogs, and one adorable young pig! And the other quests were quiet and introspective for the most part, too, during our stay so the peace of our trip was uninterrupted. We did chat with one couple on their honeymoon from France. They mentioned enjoying the teepee they stayed in.
When we arrived we were offered a tour of the place which we enjoyed. They mentioned a small hike behind the lodge toward the staff facilities which we partook in because it was relatively short and easy. There as another path in front of the property to see a revived stream with beaver dams... we did not complete that walk but enjoyed seeing and hearing the stream even during the short portion we explored.
The Blue Mountain Guest Ranch was an oasis of peace for this road-weary traveler who enjoys places allowing easy communing with nature. Not sure there was a lot to do at Blue Mountain Guest Ranch, but we weren't looking for activity, just natural beauty, so we enjoyed what we found. And are so glad we arrived early in the afternoon so we could revel in the natural beauty.