My spouse and I had a magical time. We stayed for a month in autumn, were working remotely, and occasionally went into town (but we didn’t really do that many touristy things).
Many things were truly wonderful:
- the views are incredible, we couldn’t get enough of the sunrises or sunsets
- we loved the bird feeders and became amateur bird watchers during the month
- the kiva fireplace was really lovely and we enjoyed many nights in front of the fire
- the charcoal grill was well maintained and ready to use
- we didn’t use the ramada much, but it’s so lovely with the fire pit and large table, and would be great for groups that are bigger (we were only 2)
- Sondra, the house manager, was very responsive and helpful
- the care and placement of the outdoor seating areas is perfect, there are different places from which to see different mountain ranges, it’s so stunningly beautiful
Some challenges (there weren’t many, but...)
- in the fall, spiders and ants will try and get indoors, it’s just part of being in this area, and we had a lot of (harmless) grass spiders that are startling to us (from the northeast) because of their size, which is about 1+ inch. the owner was very kind and offered to call someone to deal with it, but we opted to catch & release instead. again, they were harmless but startling.
- the previous tenants/renters had left a good deal of dog hair where it shouldn’t have been, but once I told Sondra, she and the owners were very quick to apologize and rectify the situation.
- the coffee maker wasn’t working (we ended up getting a pour over and like it even better than the drip maker and so we’re not unhappy about this)
Overall, there are always things that are unforeseen, but we felt we were in very good hands, and all our requests were responded to quickly. And hands down, it’s one of the most beautiful properties we’ve ever rented. The various outdoor spaces where you can sit and watch the birds, the sun, the sky, and listen to the wind — they’ve done a remarkable job seeing these spaces up. They’re perfect.
We saw so many birds, and a number of coyotes and hawks, too.
We would love to come back and rent this place again. It was wonderful.