Now, at thirty, I'd found all I needed in the sweet, real world of Cedar Valley, where I lived-the mountain peaks forming a torn-edged horizon, like a castle's crenellated walls, protecting me within a bowl of neatly laid out streets lined with well-established homes and mature trees.

NPR: Excerpt: 'Between the Tides'

Overall, the resort is a clever update of the grand mountain lodge tradition, with comfortable interiors of slate and cedar that offer floor-to-ceiling views of thousands of Jeffrey and ponderosa pines scattered across the valley.

FORBES: Family Ski Vacation: The Ritz-Carlton, Lake Tahoe