the house on the hill
Submitted: December 30, 2012
Stayed: December 2012
owner just had a cancellation, so we scooped it up. South Lake had just received about 60" of snow, so we were in for epic (early) conditions at Heavenly. show up at the house in the afternoon; 3 story stairwell and garage is buried. no snow shovel (locked in the basement!?), and the snow blower is chained to the garage (no key!). after 6 hrs in car, this small issue was now larger than life. a group of young 20somethings help save the day with their shovel - i like to think i did a fairly good job with the fireplace spatula. anyways, the house is large and the heat works (warmer in the bedrooms). nice sauna, too. very close to Heavenly Ski Run Blvd and Stateline, which is a big win.
the real problem with this place is the location on the hill. it is almost exactly in the middle of the gradient, which means you can't expect a non-4x4 to work (we had AWD Mazda CX-9) and the garage is designed for an early 80s era subaru, and has two levels. which means that you have to somehow get your vehicle perpendicular to the grade and then beeline it in through the eye of a needle to park overnight (no parking on the street in Tahoe, kids). no easy task in the winter, and i grew up in New England, where ice+snow rule your life for 6 mo out of the year.
Recommended for:
Adventure Seekers,
Tourists without a Car
Owner's Response: We are sorry that the shovels were locked for the first big snow storm, and will attempt to keep one available. This storm dropped up to 5ft of snow in just over a day. We offered to re-inburst if they purchased a shovel from Raley's a few blocks away. We also want renters to know, and inform them that chains may be needed to get to the cabin, even though snow removal equipment pass by regularly. This renter was informed of the above and stated he shouldn't have a problem with the snow conditions. We also appreciate his comments in regards to the cabin itself, and it's location to Heavenly.
Did you find this review helpful?
Yes
No
