Republican Presidential candidate Jon Huntsman visited Mountain View Grand on Sunday, first to be interviewed live in the morning from the hotel’s Eisenhower Library for Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace. He later met with the public at an early afternoon session in the Dodge Parlor.
The former Governor of Utah and President Obama’s ex-ambassador to China made a bit of news in the Fox interview when he told Wallace that though some political watchers have suggested that he could run as a third party candidate, he would not run as an independent and that he would defintely support the Republican nominee.

Mountain View proudly hosted the North Country Fruit & Vegetable Seminar and Trade Show sponsored by University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension on Oct. 26.  The hotel is committed to the concept of farm-to-table foods and had the opportunity to meet with many local farmers who provide foods and beverages to our kitchens. These included representatives from Peaslee’s Potatoes, North Country Orchard and Crooked Tree Cider, Creampoke Sally’s garlic, and Meadowstone Farm along with a wide range of trade show participants.

In photo from left. Sally Zankowski and Peter Perkins of Creampoke Sally's, Mountain View Executive Chef Brian Aspell, Second Row: Steve Turaj of U.N.H. Cooperative Extension (Coos County), Zach Magione of Medowstone Farm, Craig Putnam of Echo Hill Farm, Roger Maykut of North Country Orchard, Heather Bryant of Grafton County Extension, Matt Smith and Barbar Peaslee of Peaslee's Potatoes.

 

Take a day trip to North Conway NH, do some Christmas shopping  and hitch a ride on the Holiday Express at the North Conway Scenic Railroad.

Santa's Holiday Express gets underway on Friday of Thanksgiving weekend and will continue through Sunday, December 18th.

Trains run on weekends only with an 11:30 a.m. departure to Bartlett (1-3/4 hours roundtrip) and a 1:30 departure to Conway (55 minutes roundtrip). Santa will be on board with a small gift in his bag for each child, and his elves will have hot chocolate and cookies for everyone! They'll take your picture, too, if you ask nicely, so be sure to bring your camera!
Children under 4 are free in Coach. Regular Valley Train fares apply for all departures.

For more information about the Conway Scenic Railroad go to conwayscenic.com
For North Conway Outlets go to settlersgreen.com

Holiday Concert Blending Foot-tapping Celtic, Scottish and Bluesgrass! Grammy-nominated Cape Breton fiddler Natalie MacMaster has performed on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and with artists as varied as Alison Krauss, Carlos Santana, the Chieftains, Paul Simon, Pavarotti, and Yo-Yo Ma. Fuller Hall - St. Johnsbury Academy, Monday, December 19th 7:00 PM
$42 Regular tickets, $20, students
 
Take a right out the the parking lot, follow Mountain View Road to the end, take a left onto Rte 2, towards Littleton, NH. Once in the town of Littleton, pass through the two intersections, at the third intersection, turn left onto Cottage St, follow Cottage St. (up a long hill) until you reach the 93 North onramp. Follow Route I-93 North until it connects with Interstate I-91 North. (about 12 miles)
Continue on Route I-91 North and take the first exit (Exit 20) for St. Johnsbury.  At the end of the exit ramp, turn right.  Take the next left up the hill. Follow this road, up the hill and when the road levels, you will be on the St. Johnsbury Academy campus (Main Street). The campus building Fuller Hall is  pillared building located on the right.

 

Even before playing host to their stranded guests on that fateful rainy night in 1865 when our history began, Mountain View’s founders, William and Maryjane Dodge, ran a productive working farm on the property, sustaining their family and neighbors with an abundance of heirloom produce, dairy products and timber. In our efforts to revitalize this farm’s heritage, Mountain View has begun to reclaim our vintage pasturelands and garden spaces, enabling our culinary staff to create menus truly grounded in our farm-to-table commitment to fresh foods.

 

In addition to our own on-site gardens and egg-producing chickens, we have established strong relationships with many local and regional farmers and food producers, allowing us to create the freshest regionally inspired dishes we possibly can. 

 

One of the major tenets of today’s environmental sustainability efforts is the local food movement, a commitment that Mountain View has embraced. We use as many local food and beverage suppliers as we can, one of the newest being the Robie Farm, who supply us with their amazing Piermont cheese, a delicate yet tangy semi-soft variety aged for two to three months, as well as Toma, a traditional Italian Alpine-style table cheese with a gentle nutty flavor, which is aged three to five months. 

 

Robie Farm is a small family-run dairy farm located on the banks of the Connecticut River in Piermont, N.H.  Their 150-acre spread is classic, fertile bottom land. Six generations of Robies have farmed this property since 1870. They run a small retail store, which sells eggs, ice cream, raw milk yogurt, breakfast sausage, baked goods, beef and pork, and, of course, their delicious cheese. 

Truly a family farm, Lee and Betty Sue Robie run the dairy operation. Lee’s brother, Todd, is the barn man while their oldest son, Freeman, is the field man and the youngest son, Mark, is the artisan cheese maker. Sons Tim and Neil help out, too.The Robies are members of the New Hampshire Cheesemakers Guild and the Holstein Association US..A.. 

 

“We find that the balanced flavor of Robie Farm cheese lends itself to many menu applications,” says Mountain View Executive Chef Brian Aspell.. “It can be enjoyed by itself or as a finishing item on our grilled pheasant breast or on many of our other locally sourced selections.”

 

 

Come visit Mountain View Grand’s exhibit booth on Thursday, Oct. 20, at the Southern New Hampshire Business Expo. Over 220 businesses and 3000 consumers are expected at this annual event held in the Hampshire Dome in Milford, New Hampshire.

The exhibit floor will be open from 2-7:30 p.m., with cuisine (including our own Pastry Chef Cedric Beguin’s famous biscotti) available from 3 p.m.

Mountain View sales managers Rachel Manners and Susannah Powell will be on hand as showgoers will be able to stroll the Farmers' Market, "Take a Swing" for CHaD (Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth) in the batting cage with Red Sox Hall of Fame players, attend a wine festival sampling, and watch a robotics competition, among many other attractions.

Drop by and say hello! We’ll see you there!

Mountain View played host on Oct. 4 to five media teams from across the United States spending a week in New England test-driving the new Chevrolet Volt, an award-winning extended-range electric vehicle new from General Motors. After landing in Burlington, Vt. to begin the journey, the five drivers headed to Stowe, Vt., stayed at Topnotch Resort and Spa, then charged their batteries before turning east to Mountain View Grand, where they charged up again and spent the night. Garry Sowerby, Lisa Calvi and Peter Schlay represented Odyssey International in organizing the event on behalf of Chevrolet’s Director of Communications Rob Peterson. 
They all joined journalists from Dvice, Electronista, Left Lane, Women’s Adventure Magazine, and TechnoBuffalo in driving their Volts to their final stop at the Bar Harbor Inn on the coast of Maine. 

All were equipped with complimentary Olympus cameras to record the trip.The Chevy Volt operates as an electric car for its first 40 miles after a full charge, then uses regular gasoline to extend its range. It burns no gasoline during the first 40 miles after a charge, drawing energy from a lithium ion battery pack. When the battery is depleted, a 1.4-liter engine kicks in to power a generator that sustains the battery charge enough to give the car another 260 miles of range.In recommending the Volt, Consumer Reports noted the vehicle’s “quick and quiet acceleration, very low running costs and the equivalent of 99 miles per gallon overall.” 

Dubbed by the media as the “Indiana Jones of adventure driving,” Garry Sowerby has made a career out of personal challenge and high adventure by embarking on the longest drives on the face
of the planet and completing them in incredible record-breaking times, earning him four Guinness Book records. His popular “Road Less Traveled” weekly feature is carried in many American and Canadian newspapers.
The Environmental Protection Agency termed the Volt the most fuel-efficient compact car sold.

Below, the Chevrolet Volt test-drive team gets ready to head out to the Mount Washington Auto Road.  From left, Peter Schlay and Lisa Calvi of Odyssey Intl., Shawn McGraff and Rebecca Heaton of Women's Adventure Magazine, Rob Peterson, GM Director of Communications, and Gary Sowerby, of Odyssey Intl.

Returning guests who approach Mountain View Grand from Route 3 will likely notice our new sign, actually north- andsouth-facing versions installed just a few days ago at the corner of Mountain View Road. This new sign is based on our distinctive green logo, which is seen onmost of our advertising and printed products. The sign was created by NorthWoods Manufacturing in nearby Lancaster, utilizing theirstate-of-the-art CNC (computer numerical control) router. The use of a CNC router allows NorthWoods to maintain very tight tolerances in machining signs and other items they produce.

To begin the process, Mountain View provided an electronic copy of their artwork to NorthWoods, who then brought the file into a special piece of software, which allowed them to manipulate the artwork and create the information necessary to control the CNC router. Once this process was complete, NorthWoods machined a full-size sample in an MDF computer file and provided it to Mountain View for approval. Then the actual signs were cut into pre-painted, one-inch sign foam, a lightweight, waterproof, high-density polyurethane board designed specifically for exterior applications. Once the signs were delivered to the hotel, our own in-house construction and maintenance department applied the gold leaf detailing, which helps to bring the sign to life. The maintenance crew was also responsible for building the frame around the sign and installing it at the roadside.

To learn more about NorthWoods Manufacturing please visit their website at www.northwoodsmanufacturing.com

 

It was Viper Time at Mountain View this past weekend when a wave of high-performance factory race car enthusiasts gathered at the resort. Built by the Dodge division of Chrysler, the Viper is one of the first V10-powered cars in the world. The distinctively sleek and speedy Viper first appeared in 1992, and has made many appearances in TV shows, video games, movies, and music videos over the years. Drivers from the Viper Club of America’s New England Region ventured out for their first group overnight stay in four years and we’re proud to say they chose Mountain View for their very impressive gathering.

Mountain View received word on September 9, that the hotel was honored as one of AAA’s 10 Top Places to Enjoy Fall Colors in North America. The winners spanned the U.S. and Canada (one each in Quebec and British Columbia0 from coast to coast with only two New England properties selected by AAA’s and CAA’s team of professional lodging and restaurant inspectors.

The announcement was highlighted on AAA’s TravelViews blog post and on their AAA NewsRoom press service with the introduction: “From September to October each year, trees across many areas of the U.S. and Canada put on a brilliant show of color, from dazzling reds to brilliant oranges and vibrant yellows. To help travelers plan where to stay, AAA polled its professional inspectors for ideas on notable hotels that enhance the experience..”

Mountain View is noted as a AAA Four Diamond Classic Historic Hotel with the following description “This historic resort sits on a hill in the center of the White Mountains, providing panoramic views of the surrounding mountains and foliage. The expanded verandah is a very popular spot to relax and take in the amazing view. One of the main attractions is the spa that features a private tower with an infinity soaking tub offering 360-degree views of the mountains. This is a huge WOW factor that would be amazing during the fall.” Mountain View is New Hampshire’s only hotel or resort to be rated Four Diamonds in both Lodging and Dining categories from 2008 to 2012.