A Selkirk Snowshoe Hike To Remember

Snowshoeing was big for me at Schweitzer Mountain Resort. Did you know? Schweitzer is the largest resort in Idaho and Washington with 2900 acres of amazing terrain and renowned tree skiing located in the rugged Selkirk Mountains. It was in these these mountains where I enjoyed many days of snowshoeing enjoying the peacefulness of nature while getting a great workout. If you love to ski but are looking to switch up your days with another winter sport, snowshoeing here at Schweitzer Mountain Resort is truly a once in a lifetime experience. On guided tours you meet at the Information Center which is next to the Selkirk Lodge, get your gear and head out with your group up the chairlift and begin your hike. Want to go at it alone or with a group? No problem — enjoy the great trail system where you can hike to your hearts content. Just make sure to fuel up with a hearty breakfast that will keep you going all morning long before you head out ♥

This amazingly easy egg and ham dish is not only full of protein to give you the sustained energy you need for a day out adventuring — it is also decadent and so very simple to make. Assembly required only really. The catch to this dish is the cast iron skillet (drop biscuit) pan and the creme fraiche. The cast iron pan is important because each individual little cup gets very hot and helps to crisp up the outside of the ham. If you’ve never heard of creme fraiche, it’s almost like a french version of sour cream — but sexier. I wish I could help describe the texture — silky, rich, velvety smooth — really, it’s amazing and it gives these egg cups a rise to the top in pure perfection (steps for this recipe follows at the end of this post).

It’s a good thing we were fueled up and ready to go because stretching over 32 kilometers, Schweitzer’s Nordic trails offer spectacular views in every direction with challenging and friendly terrain for all levels of enjoyment. If your new to either Nordic (XC) skiing or snowshoeing, you can go out with your own personal coach from the Snowsports School. Nice !! Check out the detailed information covering the Nordic trails here.

Towards the end of our hike we learned that the annual 2014 Sandpoint Winter Carnival is still going strong and we could enjoy a fireworks display and laser show here at the resort in honor of the carnival. How cool!! Thank you Schweitzer Mountain Resort for sharing these pictures with me!

And after our awesome day snowshoeing and enjoy the evening events we headed back down the mountain to the Bonner County Fairgrounds where our silver ski chalet awaited our return! Fondue anyone?

What a perfect way to end our day . . .

In closing I would like to mention that during our trip(s), Instagram has really been an important extension of J5MM for me. Not sure if you follow me there? If you do, you will see that when we are active on our trips I post pretty often sharing things that I find interesting from hidden gems to great restaurants to cooking in my silver kitchen and so much more (Oliver maybe?) Kind of like a “behind the scenes,” onto what’s happening during our trips.

And since I don’t always have my big camera on the ready, my iPhone allows me to capture tiny happy glimpses of life during our trips in which I hope to inspire you . . .

Thank you for following along xoxox

~ Monica ♥

Here is a link to Schweitzer Mountain Resort’s website that has a link to the trail system map if you would like to bookmark it for your future trip :)

Cast Iron Black Forest Ham and Egg Cups

Eggs: one for each circle
Black Forest Ham: one slice for each circle
Creme Fraiche: one tablespoon for each circle
Butter: small, teeny tiny pat for each circle
Chives for garnish
Toast (to dip into the egg)
Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Set your oven to around 400 degrees.
2. In the meantime, take one teeny tiny pat of butter for each round/circle in your cast iron drop biscuit pan.
3. On top of that place a thin slice of Black Forest ham making sure it drapes well over the edges because then you will be cracking an egg into the circle and you want the ham to contain the egg. If it looks like the egg will be too much, pour off some of the egg whites.
4. Then on top — place a teaspoon of Creme Fraiche and bake for around 10 minutes at which time you will start checking to see how your eggs are coming along to your liking.
5. Top with fresh cracked pepper, salt and chives if you so like :) Serve with toast.

Note: Creme Fraiche can get pretty $$ in the store so I make my own. Take 1 cup of heavy whipping cream and 2 tablespoons of buttermilk. Mix together in a bowl and set on your counter top for 24 hours. It will thicken up beautifully and will last in your fridge for 2 weeks. Really Heavenly stuff — beware :) xoxo