April 6, 2023 • 38 mins
Michelle visits the Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz, NY and speaks to those most involved in making it the wellness, family friendly haven it is.
Formerly Vice President and General Manager, Eric Gullickson was promoted to President of Mohonk Mountain House in 2018. Involved with Mohonk Mountain House in various capacities since his teenage years, Gullickson first joined the managerial team at Mohonk in 2010 as Director of Hotel Operations. Gullickson has also served as part of Mohonk’s Board of Directors and previously held careers in journalism and public relations for over 10 years. Gullickson is a graduate of SUNY New Paltz and holds graduate certificates from New York University and the Cornell School of Hospitality Administration.
Nina Smiley, Director of Mindfulness Programming graduated from Vassar College and earned a doctoral degree in psychology from Princeton University. She is co-author of The Three Minute Meditator (translated into 7 languages), Mindfulness in Nature, and MetaPhysical Fitness. Nina taught psychology at the University of Maryland and directed public relations at the American Psychological Association. She has studied mindfulness with Jack Kornfield (founder of Spirit Rock Meditation Center), Sharon Salzberg (co-founder of Insight Meditation Society), and others. Nina is on the advisory board of the Breath-Body-Mind Foundation. Nina delights in sharing insights about meditation and wellness. Nina’s work has been featured in O, The Oprah Magazine; Real Simple; Shape; Self; Huffington Post; InStyle; Organic Spa; Spafinder; Family Circle; Prevention; and The New York Times.
Margaret Lora, Spa Director at Mohonk Mountain House, oversees operations for the newly refreshed Spa at Mohonk Mountain House, focusing on current and upcoming wellness trends. With over 15 years of experience managing spas across the country, Margaret aims to create one-of-a-kind experiences for guests, utilizing the resort’s beautiful natural setting and incorporating environmentally-friendly practices and green initiatives. Prior to joining Mohonk, Margaret was National Director of Operations and Sales at the acclaimed spa brand Exhale, where she helped the brand earn over 75 awards during her nine-year tenure.
Formerly Vice President and General Manager, Eric Gullickson was promoted to President of Mohonk Mountain House in 2018. Involved with Mohonk Mountain House in various capacities since his teenage years, Gullickson first joined the managerial team at Mohonk in 2010 as Director of Hotel Operations. Gullickson has also served as part of Mohonk’s Board of Directors and previously held careers in journalism and public relations for over 10 years. Gullickson is a graduate of SUNY New Paltz and holds graduate certificates from New York University and the Cornell School of Hospitality Administration.
Nina Smiley, Director of Mindfulness Programming graduated from Vassar College and earned a doctoral degree in psychology from Princeton University. She is co-author of The Three Minute Meditator (translated into 7 languages), Mindfulness in Nature, and MetaPhysical Fitness. Nina taught psychology at the University of Maryland and directed public relations at the American Psychological Association. She has studied mindfulness with Jack Kornfield (founder of Spirit Rock Meditation Center), Sharon Salzberg (co-founder of Insight Meditation Society), and others. Nina is on the advisory board of the Breath-Body-Mind Foundation. Nina delights in sharing insights about meditation and wellness. Nina’s work has been featured in O, The Oprah Magazine; Real Simple; Shape; Self; Huffington Post; InStyle; Organic Spa; Spafinder; Family Circle; Prevention; and The New York Times.
Margaret Lora, Spa Director at Mohonk Mountain House, oversees operations for the newly refreshed Spa at Mohonk Mountain House, focusing on current and upcoming wellness trends. With over 15 years of experience managing spas across the country, Margaret aims to create one-of-a-kind experiences for guests, utilizing the resort’s beautiful natural setting and incorporating environmentally-friendly practices and green initiatives. Prior to joining Mohonk, Margaret was National Director of Operations and Sales at the acclaimed spa brand Exhale, where she helped the brand earn over 75 awards during her nine-year tenure.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:01):
Welcome to Passport Mommy. I'm yourhost, Michelle Jerson. This show is
for anyone raising little humans. Wefeature experts with tips and advice to enrich
the lives of our children. Momand dad. Entrepreneurs tell us they're inspiring
stories, learn about products that couldmake both you and your child's life easier
and more fun, and of course, fellow parents discuss and laugh about what's
(00:23):
happening in their child's world. Motherhoodis a journey. Thanks for joining me
on mine. Welcome to Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson. And I had
such a wonderful visit the other weekto the Mohunk Mountain House in New York,
and I'm so happy to have someof the most important people from the
Mohunk Mountain House on the show withme today because hopefully they will bring to
(00:46):
light what I experienced and the wonderfulplace that it is for both individuals to
go and to focus on wellness andmindfulness and a great family getaway as well.
And first up, I have withme Nina Smiley, Nna, thank
you so much for joining me.Michelle. I'm delighted to be here.
(01:07):
It's such a pleasure to talk withyou and be able to share Mohak Mountain
House. Thank you. So talkto me about when you became part of
Mohunk Mountain House. I became partof Mohawk Mountain House where I'm married into
the family many years ago, andat some point, at one point,
my husband and I came back torun his family business, which was Mohawk
(01:32):
Mountain House, and it was avery exciting time. We came back and
we had the opportunity to continue thetraditions of Mohunk. Mohunk has always been
about wellness. Wellness has been inthe fabric of life at Mohawk Mountain House
since eighteen sixty nine when it wasfounded. That's one hundred and fifty four
years ago. So Burton Mine cameback and his role as fourth generation president
(01:56):
CEO of Mohawk, and at thatpoint was director of my getting and we
were in the wonderful position of bringingthe traditions into the current day. So
one of the things that's always beenimportant about Mohawk, the essence of Mohawk
is a nature. We are surroundedby forty thousand acres of woodland and we
(02:21):
have five miles of hiking on ourdoorstep. So when Burton had got here,
we have the understanding that the essenceof Mohawk have to stay the same
because people rely on it. Manyof our guests come back year after year.
Generations come to mak and it's atouchstone for people. They will come
(02:43):
and as they enter the property thereare signs. It's a two and a
half mile drive through the woods toget to the doorstep, and the signs
say slowly and quietly, please,And it's an invitation to know that you're
some less different, you're some lessspecial. And as you try and warner,
there's a Victorian castle that greets youm and really staying in the castle,
(03:08):
there's so many different places within todiscover, as well as, like
you said, the gorgeous hiking trailsand the environment. One can go off
and walk for ten minutes and justsit in one of the many gazebos and
look at the beautiful lake and takein the nature and listen to the birds.
And so I just I love whatis offered, and I know that
(03:30):
you've also just enhanced the wellness offeringsso much over the last few years.
Tell me about what are some ofthe wellness treatments that you offer well.
As you're noting, hiking is atthe heart of Mohane and we have not
one hundred and twenty fun little structures. We call them summer houses where guests
(03:52):
are invited to sit and take amoment to reflect and renew. And actually
we have to continue to work withthe opportunities here at Mohawk. One opportunity
is connecting to oneself. As weknow in this day and age, they're
so much going on and we getso busy. So when people come to
(04:15):
Mohawk, we invite them to takea moment to breathe. And the wellness
that I've brought in specifically is mindfulness. I've been practicing mindfulness for decades.
I've been sharing it with others formany many years, and mindfulness meditation is
all about being present right here,right now, in this moment. It's
(04:38):
the opportunity to refresh, relax,renew, to clear the mind and calm
the body. And Mohak is theperfect place for this. So as I've
working with programming at Mohunk, We'vebegun to bring more and more wellness and
mindfulness specifically into the opportunities. Oneof the things that we're doing now that's
(05:01):
new is wellness weakness. We've donethem for many years, but now what
we're doing is only at moments ofchoice, and for busy people in a
busy world, to learn how totake a moment of choice and choose wellness
is a really important concept. Sowe're hoping that our guests come here and
(05:25):
they begin to learn about options towellness. I like to say that moment
is all about options. When you'rehere, you can be as busy or
relaxed as you want to be.You can go hiking, you can do
horseback riding, you can think ofgold, you can do archery, you
can do tomahawk throwing. You canwalk through the gardens, and we have
over six hundred rocking chairs. Youcan sit on a beautiful porch and rock
(05:49):
and be peaceful. And I thinkoptions are so important. Yes, I
agree, and I love your bookwhen you talk about just taking a moment
for mindfulness. We all need tohear that and we all need to be
reminded of it. And you wrotea book about it called The Three Minute
(06:11):
Meditator. Tell me about that.Thank you, Michelle. We wrote the
book. I wrote it with mytwin brother to let people know with the
very title of the book. Itdoes not have to take a lot of
time to meditate. Sometimes people think, oh, it has to be a
certain amount of time and a quietspot, and I have to carve out
the time, and then unfortunately sometimesyou don't do it because it seems like
(06:34):
it's too difficult. So the threeminute meditator says, everyone has three minutes.
If you don't have three minutes,you have two minutes. If you
don't have two minutes, you havethirty seconds. You don't have to close
your eyes to meditate. You don'thave to sit still to meditate. What's
needed is an understanding that it's abouta certain way of breathing full gentle breath
(06:57):
in, full gentle breath out,and find your own rhythm and find your
own pace. And as you breathegently and fully, you're doing something very
important for your well being. Thesimple way of breathing full, gentle in
and out activates the paris of atheticnervous system, which is the opposite of
(07:17):
fight or fife stress. So Iencourage people to begin to breathe in this
way and then begin to observe themind mine still stories. Once we can
be present in the moment without judgment, which is what mindfulness is, moment
to moment awareness right here, rightnow, without judging ourselves what's going on.
(07:43):
There's a certain spaciousness that comes withit. So when I teach meditation
mindfulness here at mohunk, we dosmall chunks of mindfulness, and these chunks
are cumulative. As you do asmall chunk and then another, you begin
to find your way into you're presentin the moment, and there's a spaciousness
that comes with them, a senseof relaxation. And once you begin to
(08:07):
work with it, you can bringthat anywhere everywhere, simply if I remember
them to breathe. So that's thetreatment of meditator in a nutshell, the
most important takeaway is take a breath, Remember to breathe, to clear the
mind, harm to body, onemoment at a time. Yeah, And
(08:28):
I think a lot of us needto hear that, especially moms who are
always running a mile a minute,who might be in conflict with their spouses,
stress at school, who knows whaton a given day. And I
think it's so important for us totake that deep breath, And like you
said, even if it's thirty seconds, because I don't know about other moms,
(08:50):
but I know I will say Ihave no time, and then once
I commit to finally sitting down,even if I just tell myself it'll be
for two minutes, it usually turnsinto more than two minutes, and so
at least it motivates you to start. That's so true. The starting is
that moment of choice. And Ilike the concept of moments of choice because
(09:11):
when I noticed that each moment isa choice, give me it's again and
again I can choose. It's notthat I've made a mistake and I have
to keep going down that line.Maybe I have made a mistake, but
the next moment, I can dosomething different. And there's so much compassion
for oneself in that recognition. Mossare busy all the time. They're making
(09:33):
choices each moment, and to choosea moment of self care can be a
momentary break, which can be profoundlyimportant. Yes, it's so true.
Well, Nina Smiley, I amso happy to have had you on the
show today. I was very fortunatethat I got to have a one on
one session with you when I wason property, and that is something that
(09:56):
people can book when they go toMohunk outIn house. Tell me more about
how they can book a session withyou, and also where they could find
your book. They can book asession through the Fitness level or through the
spot at Mohawk Mountain House. Isa number that they can call is on
the website Mohawk dot com. Andanother thing that we do is forest bathing.
(10:20):
I go outdoors with people and weopen all of our senses to being
in nature and again spaciousness that comeswith it. The book is available for
sale right here at the Mountain Housein our gift shop. And most of
all, once you've been to Mohawk, you take it home with you.
You have a sense that there's avery special place. Take a picture of
(10:43):
Mohawk and use it as a screensaver, And every time you look at
your screen as you start something elseon your computer, take a breath and
Mohawk is good for you. Yes, I love that. Well. Thank
you so much, Nina Smiley forjoining me on Passport Mommy. Coming up
next, we are going to speakwith Eric Gullikson. He is the president
(11:03):
of Mohunk Mountain House, and we'regoing to talk about the long history family
history. It's so impressive and whenyou stay there, you just know you
are staying somewhere really special. I'mMichelle Jerson, the Passport Mommy. More
coming up in a few you're listeningto Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson.
And it was just so great speakingwith Nina Smiley. She's so wonderful and
(11:26):
she's so calming just to even speakto. And that's basically what you feel
when you're at Mohunk Mountain House.It really is whatever you want to make
of it. It is a gorgeousplace, to say, but in addition
to it being so beautiful, ithas such a rich history. And so
I'm really happy to have with metoday the president of the Mohunk Mountain House,
(11:48):
Eric Gulliksen. He's formerly vice presidentand general manager. He's promoted to
president in twenty eighteen, and hehas just been involved with Mohunk Mountain House
in various capacities since his teenage years. Thank you so much for joining me,
Eric, great to be here inChell. Thank you sure so.
Tell me a little bit about howyou've been involved with ma Hunk Mountain House
(12:09):
all of these years. Well,I have my father's last name, but
I am the Smiley, so I'ma fifth generation member of the Smiley family.
So I've been involved with this businessfor my whole life, I guess
you could say, even working herebefore even before I was even legally able
(12:33):
to work here. I grew upon the mountain. My grandparents had me
working in the bar museum. Wehad a bar museum here that has all
the artifacts through the years of allthe things that took place on the carriageways
and and the like. But Iworked there for a season even when I
was fifteen and fourteen years old.But so I've been here the majority of
(12:58):
my life in different perhaps I andas you just indicated, I'm now currently
the president of the Mohawk Mountain House. Terrific And so talk to me a
little bit about what you witnessed whenyou were younger, and even just the
history that precede you by I mean, just there's just so much history.
(13:18):
Tell me how the family first startedthe Mohawk Mountain House. Sure. Well,
so my ancestors, the first generationwere Albert and Alfred Smiley. They
were the school instructors. They workedactually in higher education. They were at
(13:39):
Haverford College in Philadelphia. They it'sa Quaker institution. They were a Quaker
in faith, and they had wellgone to school there, and then they
stayed on as faculty and taught therefor quite a few years. And then
subsequent to that they went on tothe school administrators and moved to Rhode Island
(14:00):
and worked at a friends school there, which was also a paper institution.
And I think, much like manypeople today, back then, they had
been working in higher education for manyyears, and much like people today in
any job in the metropolitan New YorkCity and or other areas around here,
(14:22):
they look for places to go tofind relief because they were very much you
know, in school administrators. Theywere working in intense jobs and Albert and
Alfred. Alfred had a property inPoughkeepsie that he had been looking for sort
of a second home, a placeto have more space for his family to
(14:46):
grow up. And Alfred became known. He got to know the area of
the Hudson Valley area, and helearned about this area where we're sitting today,
which is today as Mohunk, butit was known then as False Point,
well known location, and he lethis brother Albert know, who was
(15:09):
back at in Rhode Island, thatthere was this location that might serve as
a good place for a retreat,which they had been looking for. He
had been looking for a place forhis family to go and have a home.
And so that's really the genesis ofit. It was really, you
know, Alfred who had found ahome in Poughkeepsie. Albert back in Rhode
(15:31):
Island, looking for a place,much like his brother, to have a
rest at a place with space outsideof the busy, normal day to day
life, convinced him to come,and they took a pilgrimage, a trip
to Pulse Point. And when theyarrived here they saw what is today very
(15:52):
much unchanged. Back then this beautifullandscape, glacier lake, glacial rock formation,
really just intriguing natural landscape. Andand then there was a tavern right
on the edge of the lake.And so when they arrived here by carriage,
then of course it took a longtime to get here. They had
(16:15):
to take a ferry across the river, the Hudson River, and then get
on a carriage and come up windingroads to get here. So once they
arrived that Albert really fell in lovewith it immediately. It's like what happens
today, I think for most peoplewhen you see this little property and you
come up the road, not unlikethe people in our guests experience even now,
(16:40):
you just have this feeling of arrival, of uniqueness of the natural landscape.
And they originally, again they weren'tintending to make a hospitality or a
hotel resort. It was really goingto be a private retreat for in a
sandily, and that's really how itall began. Ind and lucky for us
because now it's been open for howmany years we are in our hundred and
(17:06):
fifty fourth year. Wow, AndI know you've had a lot of dignitaries,
a lot of people stay there andhold conferences there. We only have
about thirty seconds left in this segment, but I want to hear all about
that coming up. Just what there'sthese beautiful pictures all over the property,
and you can spend days just lookingat all of them and reading them to
(17:26):
really truly get a sense of thehistory. So I definitely want to talk
to you about that coming up next, and also just what you're offering in
all seasons for families, this timeof year and all around. We're speaking
with Eric Gulliksen, president of MohunkMountain House, more coming up in a
few you're listening to Passport Mommy.I'm Michelle Jerson and we're speaking with Eric
(17:48):
Gullikson. He is the president ofthe Mohunk Mountain House. And my family
had the pleasure of visiting and wehad the most amazing time. As a
mom, I always need a richtreat, and so the second new step
foot on property, you really feellike you're treated to something incredibly special.
And then when you get into itand you learn just more about the history
(18:11):
and you see the wellness offerings andthe family offerings, there's just so much
for everyone. And Eric, peoplecome from all over, not just around
the New York area. Is thatcract? Yeah, it's correct. So,
yeah, there's because it's such aunique property and it's such a destination.
It's not just for the region.People come traditionally from all over the
(18:32):
country, in the Northeast in particular. And as we were talking earlier,
you know, my ancestors were verywell connected because they had been in higher
education for so many years and hada lot of connections throughout the you know,
the Northeast. That's really how thisvisitation began. They started the property
(18:52):
and they started hosting the dignitaries anddifferent people for conferences because they wanted to
extend the type of learning that theyhad come to, you know, become
a part of through you know,Hatterford and at the Friends School. They
wanted to kind of extend that hereat their own home. So they started
inviting many people for different conferences.They were and because of their Quaker faith
(19:15):
and because they were very much peaceand consensus building uh that their intent was
to continue to teach that and toshare that with anybody that came here to
the property. They started hosting conferences, and those conferences often focused on things
that during the time that were ofof you know, debate and social challenges
(19:41):
like Native American issues, slavery,and ultimately international arbitration, which they ended
up having conference here conferences here atMall on international arbitration, which focused on
you know, issues in and aroundum trying to maintained world peace leading up
until the World Wars, and thatwas really I think the basis for a
(20:07):
lot of the dignitaries that you knowultimately started coming here. That Andrew Carnegie
was here and a friend of myancestors. We've had different presidents stay here
through the years. More recently wehad the Clintons came, so we've you
know, we've had we've had prominentfolks here. But I would I would
(20:32):
underline what you had started with,which is the importance of this maintaining this
place as a retreat for people,right, you know, that was really
and continues to be the most importantaspect of what we want people to feel
when they come through the gatehouse andapproach hbacrity, which is the sense of
arrival and retreat and wellness and connecting, connecting to nature and continuing to provide
(20:56):
that. And that's what we throughthe years now, you know, even
for those dignitaries and for even ultimatelyin the beginning the genesis, my ancestors,
dignitaries, guests and and mommies todayand that's the principal intention is to
provide a place for people to comeand feel removed from you know, what's
(21:22):
what we're all feeling even more today, which is overwhelmed with the business,
the act of the things in lifethat you know, really are the stressors.
And we and we've we've through theyears provided that and and so today
there you know, as a asa really a destination resort. We offer
(21:44):
programming. We're not hosting international arbitrationconferences that we once did, but now
we're you know, we're we're aresort and we you know, more traditionally,
through the generations of the family umIn leadership have sort of continued to
utilize those principles and begun developing programsand amenities that continue to focus on those
(22:12):
aspects of life that we believe areessential and timeless. And so that's why
we you know, we continue tomaintain the access to nature programming that is
related to wellness and hiking and theoutdoors. We built a beautiful spa that
(22:36):
is associated with wellness, and wehave a lot of spat programming. Our
culinary programs and our culinary arts hasbecome a really big part of the experience
here. We have an inclusive pricinghere at Malak, so when you come
here, the majority of what yourupfront costs is includes most is not everything
(23:00):
that you want to experience, andso that makes it easy. You know,
we want much like you know,one hundred and fifty four years ago
when a guests arrived, we wantyou to feel like you're arriving here and
then you don't have to worry anymore. Once you're here, you can experience
the things that you committed to andwithout any concern. We feel with that
(23:21):
that is an important aspect, Iguess yes, And it is great because
when you're coming with the family towant to have that all inclusive experience not
to have to worry. And youmentioned on you touched on culinary I have
to ask you because you serve somany people in a day. Your dining
room is very large and beautiful andoverlooks gorgeous scenery, and you would sometimes
(23:45):
expect that when you're serving so manypeople in a day that the food is
you know, average, but yourfood is not. It's really high quality,
good stuff that guests would want toeat at a high end resort.
Had you manage that. Yeah,thank you. UM, it's we're we
are very dedicated to the culinary arts. We have our chefs or professionally trained
(24:11):
chefs our front of the house,our captains in our dining room are all
trained and continue continually focused on trainingand service. UM. And so that's
that's first and foremost and fundamental ourfamily and our Mohawk community. You know,
we recognize when people arrive here thatthey're they want to stay here and
(24:34):
the expectations that they're not going anywhereelse. Of course, there are places
that we're in a beautiful environment areafor other experiences, but when you arrive
or we want people to be contentand have a variety of the culinary experiences.
So we offer a whole wide rangeof culinary experiences from our main dining
room as you mentioned, um toa granary in the summertime and after our
(24:57):
cookout. We have a new restaurantcalled Founders, which is based on our
our founders, Albert and some oftheir their aesthetic and what they like.
But your question about the volume andmaintaining quality it we invest a great deal
(25:17):
in that. We invest a greatdeal in our culinary programs. We have
a lot of staff that are thatare committed. We we we understand that
our customers, that our guests whocome here have a very high end the
discerning um, taste and expectation,and we don't take that for granted.
(25:40):
We we we want to deliver andthen some um and we allow our chefs
and our culinary team the latitude toto really be creative and we harness because
we are on the Hudson Valley,which is a very rich agricultural area.
We harness a lot of local andhyper products from proteins to cheeses to produce
(26:04):
and we rotate them through our menus. We have a very dynamic beverage program,
and there are once again a lotof hyperlocal and local Hudson Valley distilleries
and breweries. We integrate those intoour into our culinary profile, and we
do a lot of programming in andaround it, which which really keeps the
(26:27):
focus on the culinary arts, andthat really keeps it and helps to enhance
it. And so we we takegreat pride in maintaining the quality and the
delivery of that and making it evenmore than just routine. You know.
We want to make it a showas much as possible, and people feel
(26:48):
special when they're here because they're atour house, you know, And that's
really the the intent in the muchlike one hundred and forty plus years ago.
Excuse me a hundred what I say, yeah, yeah, and you
really and you say show, andI just it's a good transition into your
entertainment that you offer also at night. So it's really I mean, your
(27:11):
day can be as jam packed asyou'd like it. You can wake up,
you can go to a meditation class, you can go to any of
the spa classes that are offered,the fitness, the wellness classes. You
can go listen um, you know, go on a bird hike and go
spot birds and listen to all thebeautiful sounds on property. There's just so
much to do in a day.We were there over the wintertime and we
(27:33):
took advantage of the new slide thatyou have, the snow tubing and um,
the ice skating which is beautiful.Um. So there is so much
to do, and then at nightwe can unwind and you have different entertainment
each night exactly. Yeah, wehave, and that's incurated through the years
again with the focus on creating programmingand entertainment to get people together other Often
(28:02):
many of our our guest rooms don'thave televisions, and that's intentional. We
want our guests to get together atnight and experience our evening entertainment, which
ranges from you know, programming lecturesall the way through to music and dancing.
And you mentioned it, you know, much of our programming, wellness
weekend, Hiker's Holiday. We havea Toolip Festival of this spring, we
(28:23):
have public shop, We're doing anew program Latin American Celebration that all those
many of those programs we weave inour culinary arts, music and crafts that
are related to the themes birding inspring, Nature comes up in May.
So there's a lot of things thatwe continue to do to really try and
(28:44):
harness what, you know, whatour ancestors were intentions were, and provide
what we think our lasting, lastingexperiences that people really continue to want and
need. These are fundamental principles thatsustain us and we them available for people
through this unique program. Yeah,and when you talk about connecting and getting
out of the rooms, even yourbig room that you have all types of
(29:07):
games and the cozy fireplaces, mykids love nothing more than to sit around
and play chess for as long asthey could. I mean, it's just
so welcoming. And your cookies andyour hot apple cider and everything that you
offer in the afternoon. It justreally is a sense of gathering and because
of the space within the resort,it never feels crowded no matter how many
(29:29):
people are staying there. Yeah,that's intentional, you know, the way
that the building was created with lotsof nooks, and you know, when
you're here and you really feel it, you're because they're wandering through this large
sort of Victorian castle that provides spotsfor discovery and sitting areas for as you
mentioned, playing chess, of playingcards, or just sitting and reading a
(29:52):
book by a fireplace. And thatis really sort of the echoing what we
and the ancestors were pulling from theoutside, which is of creating you know,
Victorian gardens right nearby, m steppingoutside to the lake and following carriageways
in and around these unique landscapes.Um, it's really to provide that those
opportunities for connection to nature and intofamily and friends and even you know,
(30:18):
meet new people exactly, which wedid, which was so nice, and
so I think you're doing an amazingjob of it. Where can we go
for more information on what's coming upin the spring, in the summer,
how can we book our stay?Yeah, well, but certainly the first
place to go is to the mohawkwebsite mohawk dot com. There are as
(30:41):
I noted and touched on before.There are many spring programs that are coming
up. There's a there's an eventsection. Um, we have you know,
you can reserve your reserve your bookingsyour online you can and call our
call center which we have reservations.It's very easy. UM. And you
will find when you go to thewebsite is there's a lot of very interesting
(31:03):
and dynamic programming that will appeal tomany different people. UM. Certainly you
know we talk about mommies and kids. There's so much there's so many different
things to do here. And asyou experience, we have a kids program
that's open on most weekends and thenin the summertime every day and that's for
four of the twelve year olds.That program is built much like in the
(31:26):
model that was just was just expressingit's in and around the nature to the
nature that we have here. Somany of our kids program leaders take kids
out into nature. They have ajunior Naturalist program which have become several times
is with kids that can become certifiedamong certified as a junior naturalist. We
have a naturalist on our staff whomyou know provides that kind of programming and
(31:51):
easy integration into nature for education natureeducation. They you know, the kids
are often sharing their you know,they're new, you know, what they've
learned earned about the property, andour intent and our hope is is that
you know you're making a strong connection, you know, you fall in love
with this place, and they buildsome level of ownership themselves, right,
and then you could come back yearafter year and make it a family tradition.
(32:14):
Absolutely, Eric, thank you somuch for joining me today. I
really appreciate it. I look forwardto coming back to Mohank Mountain House soon.
Next up, we're going to speakwith Margaret Laura. She is the
SPA director, so you can hearall about their different spot offerings. I'm
Michelle Jerson. More coming up ata few you're listening to Passport Mommy.
(32:36):
I'm Michelle Jerson and I'm excited tohave on the show Margaret Laura. She
is the SPA director at Mohunk MountainHouse and we've been just talking about what
an incredible place it is to visitfor the entire family. Margaret, thank
you so much for joining me.Hey you, Jelle, glad to be
here yours. So if of course, had an amazing time at the SPA
when I was there, and Iknow that it wasn't until the last what
(32:58):
ten twenty years you expanded your spa. Yeah, exactly, prior to two
thousand and five, that's when theSPA was actually built. We did offer
SPA services in a dedicated wing ofthe house. Two thousand and five.
The SPA was built really to bringthat SPA experience to life and to create
(33:19):
a more cohesive experience for our guest. Yes, and you really do.
It offers so much. In additionto the variety of treatments which I would
love to hear more about, youoffered just the facilities within the spot itself.
You can spend a half a dayin or more. I'm so glad
you enjoyed it. We actually justwent through a renovation in twenty twenty two,
(33:43):
about a year ago. The renovationreally tapped into the natural palette of
our surroundings, so bringing in allthose beautiful deep green forest tones and natural
wood and stone and rocks from wherewe actually excavated and build the saw,
the fabulous lily pad carpet which isproprietary to Mohawk and the SPA, all
(34:06):
of that. We wanted to sortof bring that into our four walls and
create a space that was super relaxingand super nurturing to our SPA gas and
then of course those great amenities.So you have your outdoor mineral pool and
your steam and your sauna and allthe beautiful areas such as are verandas and
silarium to relax and curl up nextto a fire in between your spat treatments.
(34:30):
Yes, and tell me about theoutdoor mineral pool. One of my
favorites. I love anything heat.I think heat for saw treatment is so
good. It is one hundred toone hundred and one degree is outdoors.
Were surrounded by this Christine forest andit also has dead mineral salt, dead
sea mineral salts in it, soreally good for inflammation and for your skin
(34:53):
and your skin health overall. Yeah, that's great. So as far as
the treatments that are offered, let'shighlight some of them. Yes, absolutely,
So. We wanted to focus ourmenu on our founding mission statement over
one hundred and fifty years ago.The mission statement was to have Mohawk,
(35:13):
Molta and House seek to provide opportunitiesfor recreation and renewal of mind, body
and spirit in a beautiful natural setting. And we created treatments that really embrace
the outdoors using botanicals, essential oils. We don't use any equipment. We
really tap into the luxury of touchand recovery. And one of those treatments
(35:34):
you experienced, I believes the contrasttherapy massage that is sort of embracing that
hot to cold, starting out ina personalized steam room, going into a
cold plunge shower, and then sortof getting those muscles relaxed into a warm
massage bed to enjoy a full bodypersonalized massage. Our lake View Massage experience,
(35:55):
and that's something we do late springwhen it starts to warm up into
early fall, and it is thefirst SPA summerhouse that was ever built,
right in the forest on our cliffsoverlooking the lake, and that is our
star treatment. Right now. Weperform massages out there, we do meditation
(36:15):
in yoga, and it really issimplistic by design because the true relaxation is
coming from the environment and nature thatis just embracing you. I'm really just
nurturing you throughout the whole therapy.Yes, And so how far in advance
when someone is coming to stay,should they book their treatments? Great question.
(36:37):
So weekends, of course, likeevery SPA, are our busiest time.
I would probably recommend about thirty toforty five days prior for a weekend
days, I would I would goa few weeks out, maybe two or
three weeks out to get your idealtime. Great, and is it open
to locals as well as those stayingon property. Absolutely, and the local
(37:00):
experience is really what makes us sospecial. To go to a spa and
spend a day at a spa,you know people can do that anywhere,
but to go to a spat MohawkMountain House and spend a day and then
go out and enjoy the hiking inthe outdoors and what nature truly brings to
that SPA experience. I always saynature, It's truly what nurtures us.
(37:23):
Is such an enjoyment for our dayspa guests, Yes, one hundred percent.
So where can we go to bookour spat experience, whether it's a
day spot or an overnight. Yeah. So we actually personalize every spot the
spa visit through our call center.So you can go to the Mohunk website
mohunk dot com and we have ourdirect line there. You can call into
(37:45):
our call center seven days a weekand we have real experts you can guide
you through the perfect spot experience forwhat you're looking for and what you're looking
to achieve amazing. Thank you somuch, Margaret Laura, I really appreciate
you joining me today. I'm PassportMommy. I hope to see you again
soon. Thank you my pleasure.I'm Michelle Jerrison, the Passport Mommy.
(38:06):
Thank you so much for tuning inthis week, and I'll talk to you next week
Welcome to Passport Mommy. I'm yourhost, Michelle Jerson. This show is
for anyone raising little humans. Wefeature experts with tips and advice to enrich
the lives of our children. Momand dad. Entrepreneurs tell us they're inspiring
stories, learn about products that couldmake both you and your child's life easier
and more fun, and of course, fellow parents discuss and laugh about what's
(00:23):
happening in their child's world. Motherhoodis a journey. Thanks for joining me
on mine. Welcome to Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson. And I had
such a wonderful visit the other weekto the Mohunk Mountain House in New York,
and I'm so happy to have someof the most important people from the
Mohunk Mountain House on the show withme today because hopefully they will bring to
(00:46):
light what I experienced and the wonderfulplace that it is for both individuals to
go and to focus on wellness andmindfulness and a great family getaway as well.
And first up, I have withme Nina Smiley, Nna, thank
you so much for joining me.Michelle. I'm delighted to be here.
(01:07):
It's such a pleasure to talk withyou and be able to share Mohak Mountain
House. Thank you. So talkto me about when you became part of
Mohunk Mountain House. I became partof Mohawk Mountain House where I'm married into
the family many years ago, andat some point, at one point,
my husband and I came back torun his family business, which was Mohawk
(01:32):
Mountain House, and it was avery exciting time. We came back and
we had the opportunity to continue thetraditions of Mohunk. Mohunk has always been
about wellness. Wellness has been inthe fabric of life at Mohawk Mountain House
since eighteen sixty nine when it wasfounded. That's one hundred and fifty four
years ago. So Burton Mine cameback and his role as fourth generation president
(01:56):
CEO of Mohawk, and at thatpoint was director of my getting and we
were in the wonderful position of bringingthe traditions into the current day. So
one of the things that's always beenimportant about Mohawk, the essence of Mohawk
is a nature. We are surroundedby forty thousand acres of woodland and we
(02:21):
have five miles of hiking on ourdoorstep. So when Burton had got here,
we have the understanding that the essenceof Mohawk have to stay the same
because people rely on it. Manyof our guests come back year after year.
Generations come to mak and it's atouchstone for people. They will come
(02:43):
and as they enter the property thereare signs. It's a two and a
half mile drive through the woods toget to the doorstep, and the signs
say slowly and quietly, please,And it's an invitation to know that you're
some less different, you're some lessspecial. And as you try and warner,
there's a Victorian castle that greets youm and really staying in the castle,
(03:08):
there's so many different places within todiscover, as well as, like
you said, the gorgeous hiking trailsand the environment. One can go off
and walk for ten minutes and justsit in one of the many gazebos and
look at the beautiful lake and takein the nature and listen to the birds.
And so I just I love whatis offered, and I know that
(03:30):
you've also just enhanced the wellness offeringsso much over the last few years.
Tell me about what are some ofthe wellness treatments that you offer well.
As you're noting, hiking is atthe heart of Mohane and we have not
one hundred and twenty fun little structures. We call them summer houses where guests
(03:52):
are invited to sit and take amoment to reflect and renew. And actually
we have to continue to work withthe opportunities here at Mohawk. One opportunity
is connecting to oneself. As weknow in this day and age, they're
so much going on and we getso busy. So when people come to
(04:15):
Mohawk, we invite them to takea moment to breathe. And the wellness
that I've brought in specifically is mindfulness. I've been practicing mindfulness for decades.
I've been sharing it with others formany many years, and mindfulness meditation is
all about being present right here,right now, in this moment. It's
(04:38):
the opportunity to refresh, relax,renew, to clear the mind and calm
the body. And Mohak is theperfect place for this. So as I've
working with programming at Mohunk, We'vebegun to bring more and more wellness and
mindfulness specifically into the opportunities. Oneof the things that we're doing now that's
(05:01):
new is wellness weakness. We've donethem for many years, but now what
we're doing is only at moments ofchoice, and for busy people in a
busy world, to learn how totake a moment of choice and choose wellness
is a really important concept. Sowe're hoping that our guests come here and
(05:25):
they begin to learn about options towellness. I like to say that moment
is all about options. When you'rehere, you can be as busy or
relaxed as you want to be.You can go hiking, you can do
horseback riding, you can think ofgold, you can do archery, you
can do tomahawk throwing. You canwalk through the gardens, and we have
over six hundred rocking chairs. Youcan sit on a beautiful porch and rock
(05:49):
and be peaceful. And I thinkoptions are so important. Yes, I
agree, and I love your bookwhen you talk about just taking a moment
for mindfulness. We all need tohear that and we all need to be
reminded of it. And you wrotea book about it called The Three Minute
(06:11):
Meditator. Tell me about that.Thank you, Michelle. We wrote the
book. I wrote it with mytwin brother to let people know with the
very title of the book. Itdoes not have to take a lot of
time to meditate. Sometimes people think, oh, it has to be a
certain amount of time and a quietspot, and I have to carve out
the time, and then unfortunately sometimesyou don't do it because it seems like
(06:34):
it's too difficult. So the threeminute meditator says, everyone has three minutes.
If you don't have three minutes,you have two minutes. If you
don't have two minutes, you havethirty seconds. You don't have to close
your eyes to meditate. You don'thave to sit still to meditate. What's
needed is an understanding that it's abouta certain way of breathing full gentle breath
(06:57):
in, full gentle breath out,and find your own rhythm and find your
own pace. And as you breathegently and fully, you're doing something very
important for your well being. Thesimple way of breathing full, gentle in
and out activates the paris of atheticnervous system, which is the opposite of
(07:17):
fight or fife stress. So Iencourage people to begin to breathe in this
way and then begin to observe themind mine still stories. Once we can
be present in the moment without judgment, which is what mindfulness is, moment
to moment awareness right here, rightnow, without judging ourselves what's going on.
(07:43):
There's a certain spaciousness that comes withit. So when I teach meditation
mindfulness here at mohunk, we dosmall chunks of mindfulness, and these chunks
are cumulative. As you do asmall chunk and then another, you begin
to find your way into you're presentin the moment, and there's a spaciousness
that comes with them, a senseof relaxation. And once you begin to
(08:07):
work with it, you can bringthat anywhere everywhere, simply if I remember
them to breathe. So that's thetreatment of meditator in a nutshell, the
most important takeaway is take a breath, Remember to breathe, to clear the
mind, harm to body, onemoment at a time. Yeah, And
(08:28):
I think a lot of us needto hear that, especially moms who are
always running a mile a minute,who might be in conflict with their spouses,
stress at school, who knows whaton a given day. And I
think it's so important for us totake that deep breath, And like you
said, even if it's thirty seconds, because I don't know about other moms,
(08:50):
but I know I will say Ihave no time, and then once
I commit to finally sitting down,even if I just tell myself it'll be
for two minutes, it usually turnsinto more than two minutes, and so
at least it motivates you to start. That's so true. The starting is
that moment of choice. And Ilike the concept of moments of choice because
(09:11):
when I noticed that each moment isa choice, give me it's again and
again I can choose. It's notthat I've made a mistake and I have
to keep going down that line.Maybe I have made a mistake, but
the next moment, I can dosomething different. And there's so much compassion
for oneself in that recognition. Mossare busy all the time. They're making
(09:33):
choices each moment, and to choosea moment of self care can be a
momentary break, which can be profoundlyimportant. Yes, it's so true.
Well, Nina Smiley, I amso happy to have had you on the
show today. I was very fortunatethat I got to have a one on
one session with you when I wason property, and that is something that
(09:56):
people can book when they go toMohunk outIn house. Tell me more about
how they can book a session withyou, and also where they could find
your book. They can book asession through the Fitness level or through the
spot at Mohawk Mountain House. Isa number that they can call is on
the website Mohawk dot com. Andanother thing that we do is forest bathing.
(10:20):
I go outdoors with people and weopen all of our senses to being
in nature and again spaciousness that comeswith it. The book is available for
sale right here at the Mountain Housein our gift shop. And most of
all, once you've been to Mohawk, you take it home with you.
You have a sense that there's avery special place. Take a picture of
(10:43):
Mohawk and use it as a screensaver, And every time you look at
your screen as you start something elseon your computer, take a breath and
Mohawk is good for you. Yes, I love that. Well. Thank
you so much, Nina Smiley forjoining me on Passport Mommy. Coming up
next, we are going to speakwith Eric Gullikson. He is the president
(11:03):
of Mohunk Mountain House, and we'regoing to talk about the long history family
history. It's so impressive and whenyou stay there, you just know you
are staying somewhere really special. I'mMichelle Jerson, the Passport Mommy. More
coming up in a few you're listeningto Passport Mommy. I'm Michelle Jerson.
And it was just so great speakingwith Nina Smiley. She's so wonderful and
(11:26):
she's so calming just to even speakto. And that's basically what you feel
when you're at Mohunk Mountain House.It really is whatever you want to make
of it. It is a gorgeousplace, to say, but in addition
to it being so beautiful, ithas such a rich history. And so
I'm really happy to have with metoday the president of the Mohunk Mountain House,
(11:48):
Eric Gulliksen. He's formerly vice presidentand general manager. He's promoted to
president in twenty eighteen, and hehas just been involved with Mohunk Mountain House
in various capacities since his teenage years. Thank you so much for joining me,
Eric, great to be here inChell. Thank you sure so.
Tell me a little bit about howyou've been involved with ma Hunk Mountain House
(12:09):
all of these years. Well,I have my father's last name, but
I am the Smiley, so I'ma fifth generation member of the Smiley family.
So I've been involved with this businessfor my whole life, I guess
you could say, even working herebefore even before I was even legally able
(12:33):
to work here. I grew upon the mountain. My grandparents had me
working in the bar museum. Wehad a bar museum here that has all
the artifacts through the years of allthe things that took place on the carriageways
and and the like. But Iworked there for a season even when I
was fifteen and fourteen years old.But so I've been here the majority of
(12:58):
my life in different perhaps I andas you just indicated, I'm now currently
the president of the Mohawk Mountain House. Terrific And so talk to me a
little bit about what you witnessed whenyou were younger, and even just the
history that precede you by I mean, just there's just so much history.
(13:18):
Tell me how the family first startedthe Mohawk Mountain House. Sure. Well,
so my ancestors, the first generationwere Albert and Alfred Smiley. They
were the school instructors. They workedactually in higher education. They were at
(13:39):
Haverford College in Philadelphia. They it'sa Quaker institution. They were a Quaker
in faith, and they had wellgone to school there, and then they
stayed on as faculty and taught therefor quite a few years. And then
subsequent to that they went on tothe school administrators and moved to Rhode Island
(14:00):
and worked at a friends school there, which was also a paper institution.
And I think, much like manypeople today, back then, they had
been working in higher education for manyyears, and much like people today in
any job in the metropolitan New YorkCity and or other areas around here,
(14:22):
they look for places to go tofind relief because they were very much you
know, in school administrators. Theywere working in intense jobs and Albert and
Alfred. Alfred had a property inPoughkeepsie that he had been looking for sort
of a second home, a placeto have more space for his family to
(14:46):
grow up. And Alfred became known. He got to know the area of
the Hudson Valley area, and helearned about this area where we're sitting today,
which is today as Mohunk, butit was known then as False Point,
well known location, and he lethis brother Albert know, who was
(15:09):
back at in Rhode Island, thatthere was this location that might serve as
a good place for a retreat,which they had been looking for. He
had been looking for a place forhis family to go and have a home.
And so that's really the genesis ofit. It was really, you
know, Alfred who had found ahome in Poughkeepsie. Albert back in Rhode
(15:31):
Island, looking for a place,much like his brother, to have a
rest at a place with space outsideof the busy, normal day to day
life, convinced him to come,and they took a pilgrimage, a trip
to Pulse Point. And when theyarrived here they saw what is today very
(15:52):
much unchanged. Back then this beautifullandscape, glacier lake, glacial rock formation,
really just intriguing natural landscape. Andand then there was a tavern right
on the edge of the lake.And so when they arrived here by carriage,
then of course it took a longtime to get here. They had
(16:15):
to take a ferry across the river, the Hudson River, and then get
on a carriage and come up windingroads to get here. So once they
arrived that Albert really fell in lovewith it immediately. It's like what happens
today, I think for most peoplewhen you see this little property and you
come up the road, not unlikethe people in our guests experience even now,
(16:40):
you just have this feeling of arrival, of uniqueness of the natural landscape.
And they originally, again they weren'tintending to make a hospitality or a
hotel resort. It was really goingto be a private retreat for in a
sandily, and that's really how itall began. Ind and lucky for us
because now it's been open for howmany years we are in our hundred and
(17:06):
fifty fourth year. Wow, AndI know you've had a lot of dignitaries,
a lot of people stay there andhold conferences there. We only have
about thirty seconds left in this segment, but I want to hear all about
that coming up. Just what there'sthese beautiful pictures all over the property,
and you can spend days just lookingat all of them and reading them to
(17:26):
really truly get a sense of thehistory. So I definitely want to talk
to you about that coming up next, and also just what you're offering in
all seasons for families, this timeof year and all around. We're speaking
with Eric Gulliksen, president of MohunkMountain House, more coming up in a
few you're listening to Passport Mommy.I'm Michelle Jerson and we're speaking with Eric
(17:48):
Gullikson. He is the president ofthe Mohunk Mountain House. And my family
had the pleasure of visiting and wehad the most amazing time. As a
mom, I always need a richtreat, and so the second new step
foot on property, you really feellike you're treated to something incredibly special.
And then when you get into itand you learn just more about the history
(18:11):
and you see the wellness offerings andthe family offerings, there's just so much
for everyone. And Eric, peoplecome from all over, not just around
the New York area. Is thatcract? Yeah, it's correct. So,
yeah, there's because it's such aunique property and it's such a destination.
It's not just for the region.People come traditionally from all over the
(18:32):
country, in the Northeast in particular. And as we were talking earlier,
you know, my ancestors were verywell connected because they had been in higher
education for so many years and hada lot of connections throughout the you know,
the Northeast. That's really how thisvisitation began. They started the property
(18:52):
and they started hosting the dignitaries anddifferent people for conferences because they wanted to
extend the type of learning that theyhad come to, you know, become
a part of through you know,Hatterford and at the Friends School. They
wanted to kind of extend that hereat their own home. So they started
inviting many people for different conferences.They were and because of their Quaker faith
(19:15):
and because they were very much peaceand consensus building uh that their intent was
to continue to teach that and toshare that with anybody that came here to
the property. They started hosting conferences, and those conferences often focused on things
that during the time that were ofof you know, debate and social challenges
(19:41):
like Native American issues, slavery,and ultimately international arbitration, which they ended
up having conference here conferences here atMall on international arbitration, which focused on
you know, issues in and aroundum trying to maintained world peace leading up
until the World Wars, and thatwas really I think the basis for a
(20:07):
lot of the dignitaries that you knowultimately started coming here. That Andrew Carnegie
was here and a friend of myancestors. We've had different presidents stay here
through the years. More recently wehad the Clintons came, so we've you
know, we've had we've had prominentfolks here. But I would I would
(20:32):
underline what you had started with,which is the importance of this maintaining this
place as a retreat for people,right, you know, that was really
and continues to be the most importantaspect of what we want people to feel
when they come through the gatehouse andapproach hbacrity, which is the sense of
arrival and retreat and wellness and connecting, connecting to nature and continuing to provide
(20:56):
that. And that's what we throughthe years now, you know, even
for those dignitaries and for even ultimatelyin the beginning the genesis, my ancestors,
dignitaries, guests and and mommies todayand that's the principal intention is to
provide a place for people to comeand feel removed from you know, what's
(21:22):
what we're all feeling even more today, which is overwhelmed with the business,
the act of the things in lifethat you know, really are the stressors.
And we and we've we've through theyears provided that and and so today
there you know, as a asa really a destination resort. We offer
(21:44):
programming. We're not hosting international arbitrationconferences that we once did, but now
we're you know, we're we're aresort and we you know, more traditionally,
through the generations of the family umIn leadership have sort of continued to
utilize those principles and begun developing programsand amenities that continue to focus on those
(22:12):
aspects of life that we believe areessential and timeless. And so that's why
we you know, we continue tomaintain the access to nature programming that is
related to wellness and hiking and theoutdoors. We built a beautiful spa that
(22:36):
is associated with wellness, and wehave a lot of spat programming. Our
culinary programs and our culinary arts hasbecome a really big part of the experience
here. We have an inclusive pricinghere at Malak, so when you come
here, the majority of what yourupfront costs is includes most is not everything
(23:00):
that you want to experience, andso that makes it easy. You know,
we want much like you know,one hundred and fifty four years ago
when a guests arrived, we wantyou to feel like you're arriving here and
then you don't have to worry anymore. Once you're here, you can experience
the things that you committed to andwithout any concern. We feel with that
(23:21):
that is an important aspect, Iguess yes, And it is great because
when you're coming with the family towant to have that all inclusive experience not
to have to worry. And youmentioned on you touched on culinary I have
to ask you because you serve somany people in a day. Your dining
room is very large and beautiful andoverlooks gorgeous scenery, and you would sometimes
(23:45):
expect that when you're serving so manypeople in a day that the food is
you know, average, but yourfood is not. It's really high quality,
good stuff that guests would want toeat at a high end resort.
Had you manage that. Yeah,thank you. UM, it's we're we
are very dedicated to the culinary arts. We have our chefs or professionally trained
(24:11):
chefs our front of the house,our captains in our dining room are all
trained and continue continually focused on trainingand service. UM. And so that's
that's first and foremost and fundamental ourfamily and our Mohawk community. You know,
we recognize when people arrive here thatthey're they want to stay here and
(24:34):
the expectations that they're not going anywhereelse. Of course, there are places
that we're in a beautiful environment areafor other experiences, but when you arrive
or we want people to be contentand have a variety of the culinary experiences.
So we offer a whole wide rangeof culinary experiences from our main dining
room as you mentioned, um toa granary in the summertime and after our
(24:57):
cookout. We have a new restaurantcalled Founders, which is based on our
our founders, Albert and some oftheir their aesthetic and what they like.
But your question about the volume andmaintaining quality it we invest a great deal
(25:17):
in that. We invest a greatdeal in our culinary programs. We have
a lot of staff that are thatare committed. We we we understand that
our customers, that our guests whocome here have a very high end the
discerning um, taste and expectation,and we don't take that for granted.
(25:40):
We we we want to deliver andthen some um and we allow our chefs
and our culinary team the latitude toto really be creative and we harness because
we are on the Hudson Valley,which is a very rich agricultural area.
We harness a lot of local andhyper products from proteins to cheeses to produce
(26:04):
and we rotate them through our menus. We have a very dynamic beverage program,
and there are once again a lotof hyperlocal and local Hudson Valley distilleries
and breweries. We integrate those intoour into our culinary profile, and we
do a lot of programming in andaround it, which which really keeps the
(26:27):
focus on the culinary arts, andthat really keeps it and helps to enhance
it. And so we we takegreat pride in maintaining the quality and the
delivery of that and making it evenmore than just routine. You know.
We want to make it a showas much as possible, and people feel
(26:48):
special when they're here because they're atour house, you know, And that's
really the the intent in the muchlike one hundred and forty plus years ago.
Excuse me a hundred what I say, yeah, yeah, and you
really and you say show, andI just it's a good transition into your
entertainment that you offer also at night. So it's really I mean, your
(27:11):
day can be as jam packed asyou'd like it. You can wake up,
you can go to a meditation class, you can go to any of
the spa classes that are offered,the fitness, the wellness classes. You
can go listen um, you know, go on a bird hike and go
spot birds and listen to all thebeautiful sounds on property. There's just so
much to do in a day.We were there over the wintertime and we
(27:33):
took advantage of the new slide thatyou have, the snow tubing and um,
the ice skating which is beautiful.Um. So there is so much
to do, and then at nightwe can unwind and you have different entertainment
each night exactly. Yeah, wehave, and that's incurated through the years
again with the focus on creating programmingand entertainment to get people together other Often
(28:02):
many of our our guest rooms don'thave televisions, and that's intentional. We
want our guests to get together atnight and experience our evening entertainment, which
ranges from you know, programming lecturesall the way through to music and dancing.
And you mentioned it, you know, much of our programming, wellness
weekend, Hiker's Holiday. We havea Toolip Festival of this spring, we
(28:23):
have public shop, We're doing anew program Latin American Celebration that all those
many of those programs we weave inour culinary arts, music and crafts that
are related to the themes birding inspring, Nature comes up in May.
So there's a lot of things thatwe continue to do to really try and
(28:44):
harness what, you know, whatour ancestors were intentions were, and provide
what we think our lasting, lastingexperiences that people really continue to want and
need. These are fundamental principles thatsustain us and we them available for people
through this unique program. Yeah,and when you talk about connecting and getting
out of the rooms, even yourbig room that you have all types of
(29:07):
games and the cozy fireplaces, mykids love nothing more than to sit around
and play chess for as long asthey could. I mean, it's just
so welcoming. And your cookies andyour hot apple cider and everything that you
offer in the afternoon. It justreally is a sense of gathering and because
of the space within the resort,it never feels crowded no matter how many
(29:29):
people are staying there. Yeah,that's intentional, you know, the way
that the building was created with lotsof nooks, and you know, when
you're here and you really feel it, you're because they're wandering through this large
sort of Victorian castle that provides spotsfor discovery and sitting areas for as you
mentioned, playing chess, of playingcards, or just sitting and reading a
(29:52):
book by a fireplace. And thatis really sort of the echoing what we
and the ancestors were pulling from theoutside, which is of creating you know,
Victorian gardens right nearby, m steppingoutside to the lake and following carriageways
in and around these unique landscapes.Um, it's really to provide that those
opportunities for connection to nature and intofamily and friends and even you know,
(30:18):
meet new people exactly, which wedid, which was so nice, and
so I think you're doing an amazingjob of it. Where can we go
for more information on what's coming upin the spring, in the summer,
how can we book our stay?Yeah, well, but certainly the first
place to go is to the mohawkwebsite mohawk dot com. There are as
(30:41):
I noted and touched on before.There are many spring programs that are coming
up. There's a there's an eventsection. Um, we have you know,
you can reserve your reserve your bookingsyour online you can and call our
call center which we have reservations.It's very easy. UM. And you
will find when you go to thewebsite is there's a lot of very interesting
(31:03):
and dynamic programming that will appeal tomany different people. UM. Certainly you
know we talk about mommies and kids. There's so much there's so many different
things to do here. And asyou experience, we have a kids program
that's open on most weekends and thenin the summertime every day and that's for
four of the twelve year olds.That program is built much like in the
(31:26):
model that was just was just expressingit's in and around the nature to the
nature that we have here. Somany of our kids program leaders take kids
out into nature. They have ajunior Naturalist program which have become several times
is with kids that can become certifiedamong certified as a junior naturalist. We
have a naturalist on our staff whomyou know provides that kind of programming and
(31:51):
easy integration into nature for education natureeducation. They you know, the kids
are often sharing their you know,they're new, you know, what they've
learned earned about the property, andour intent and our hope is is that
you know you're making a strong connection, you know, you fall in love
with this place, and they buildsome level of ownership themselves, right,
and then you could come back yearafter year and make it a family tradition.
(32:14):
Absolutely, Eric, thank you somuch for joining me today. I
really appreciate it. I look forwardto coming back to Mohank Mountain House soon.
Next up, we're going to speakwith Margaret Laura. She is the
SPA director, so you can hearall about their different spot offerings. I'm
Michelle Jerson. More coming up ata few you're listening to Passport Mommy.
(32:36):
I'm Michelle Jerson and I'm excited tohave on the show Margaret Laura. She
is the SPA director at Mohunk MountainHouse and we've been just talking about what
an incredible place it is to visitfor the entire family. Margaret, thank
you so much for joining me.Hey you, Jelle, glad to be
here yours. So if of course, had an amazing time at the SPA
when I was there, and Iknow that it wasn't until the last what
(32:58):
ten twenty years you expanded your spa. Yeah, exactly, prior to two
thousand and five, that's when theSPA was actually built. We did offer
SPA services in a dedicated wing ofthe house. Two thousand and five.
The SPA was built really to bringthat SPA experience to life and to create
(33:19):
a more cohesive experience for our guest. Yes, and you really do.
It offers so much. In additionto the variety of treatments which I would
love to hear more about, youoffered just the facilities within the spot itself.
You can spend a half a dayin or more. I'm so glad
you enjoyed it. We actually justwent through a renovation in twenty twenty two,
(33:43):
about a year ago. The renovationreally tapped into the natural palette of
our surroundings, so bringing in allthose beautiful deep green forest tones and natural
wood and stone and rocks from wherewe actually excavated and build the saw,
the fabulous lily pad carpet which isproprietary to Mohawk and the SPA, all
(34:06):
of that. We wanted to sortof bring that into our four walls and
create a space that was super relaxingand super nurturing to our SPA gas and
then of course those great amenities.So you have your outdoor mineral pool and
your steam and your sauna and allthe beautiful areas such as are verandas and
silarium to relax and curl up nextto a fire in between your spat treatments.
(34:30):
Yes, and tell me about theoutdoor mineral pool. One of my
favorites. I love anything heat.I think heat for saw treatment is so
good. It is one hundred toone hundred and one degree is outdoors.
Were surrounded by this Christine forest andit also has dead mineral salt, dead
sea mineral salts in it, soreally good for inflammation and for your skin
(34:53):
and your skin health overall. Yeah, that's great. So as far as
the treatments that are offered, let'shighlight some of them. Yes, absolutely,
So. We wanted to focus ourmenu on our founding mission statement over
one hundred and fifty years ago.The mission statement was to have Mohawk,
(35:13):
Molta and House seek to provide opportunitiesfor recreation and renewal of mind, body
and spirit in a beautiful natural setting. And we created treatments that really embrace
the outdoors using botanicals, essential oils. We don't use any equipment. We
really tap into the luxury of touchand recovery. And one of those treatments
(35:34):
you experienced, I believes the contrasttherapy massage that is sort of embracing that
hot to cold, starting out ina personalized steam room, going into a
cold plunge shower, and then sortof getting those muscles relaxed into a warm
massage bed to enjoy a full bodypersonalized massage. Our lake View Massage experience,
(35:55):
and that's something we do late springwhen it starts to warm up into
early fall, and it is thefirst SPA summerhouse that was ever built,
right in the forest on our cliffsoverlooking the lake, and that is our
star treatment. Right now. Weperform massages out there, we do meditation
(36:15):
in yoga, and it really issimplistic by design because the true relaxation is
coming from the environment and nature thatis just embracing you. I'm really just
nurturing you throughout the whole therapy.Yes, And so how far in advance
when someone is coming to stay,should they book their treatments? Great question.
(36:37):
So weekends, of course, likeevery SPA, are our busiest time.
I would probably recommend about thirty toforty five days prior for a weekend
days, I would I would goa few weeks out, maybe two or
three weeks out to get your idealtime. Great, and is it open
to locals as well as those stayingon property. Absolutely, and the local
(37:00):
experience is really what makes us sospecial. To go to a spa and
spend a day at a spa,you know people can do that anywhere,
but to go to a spat MohawkMountain House and spend a day and then
go out and enjoy the hiking inthe outdoors and what nature truly brings to
that SPA experience. I always saynature, It's truly what nurtures us.
(37:23):
Is such an enjoyment for our dayspa guests, Yes, one hundred percent.
So where can we go to bookour spat experience, whether it's a
day spot or an overnight. Yeah. So we actually personalize every spot the
spa visit through our call center.So you can go to the Mohunk website
mohunk dot com and we have ourdirect line there. You can call into
(37:45):
our call center seven days a weekand we have real experts you can guide
you through the perfect spot experience forwhat you're looking for and what you're looking
to achieve amazing. Thank you somuch, Margaret Laura, I really appreciate
you joining me today. I'm PassportMommy. I hope to see you again
soon. Thank you my pleasure.I'm Michelle Jerrison, the Passport Mommy.
(38:06):
Thank you so much for tuning inthis week, and I'll talk to you next week
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