My husband and I went to Gold Lake Resort for just one night to see what it was like. We are certainly planning a return trip.
Gold Lake Resort is just as it is described: a secluded mountain resort. The road it is on is a long, bumpy, dirt road. Thankfully we were in my husband's truck and not my little car. We arrived and checked in without a problem although we were informed that we would need a dinner reservation. Apparently, they encourage dinner reservations to all their guests. We weren't advised of this at the time we made our reservation and the earliest they could get us in was 8:00. Since the restaurant closed at 8:30, we were rather apprehensive about the meal as it was a buffet and we figured they would start closing it up and not refilling it when we were there (we were wrong). There was a wedding taking place and that took up most of the dinner reservations and also of several of the uses of the resort. I would definitely recommend that people check to see if a wedding is planned or not during your stay. I wouldn't go if there is. We checked into our cabin - we stayed in Victoria's - and it was nice. The bathroom is done up with slate floors, copper counter tops and shower, a shampoo and conditioner and shower gel dispenser in the shower, lotion dispenser on the counter and SPF 30 available for our use. The bedroom had two huge beds in it. The sitting area was sparse but you didn't really need much, although the couch was quite old and the springs were totally shot. There was a front porch with two rocking chairs (incredibly comfortable) so that you could overlook the lake and mountains. The kayaks and canoes are free to use if you stay overnight. So are the hot tubs (clothing is optional, so be forewarned!). We thought fishing was included in our night stay and my husband did a lot of it - catching 5 small trout. We found out later that it was $40 to fish. There is a walk around the lake that is very pleasant and we sat in the hot tubs overlooking the lake. They do have changing tee pees so that you can change clothes right there next to the 4 hot tubs. Although there is no door to the tee pee! The resort also has horses, goats, and chickens but we never saw them. We entertained ourselves throughout the day, including hanging out on the hammocks. When it was near the time for our dinner reservation, we headed over to the bar and sat down to have a drink before dinner. The bartender was very pleasant and made our drinks quick. They have a lot of Colorado liquors - whiskey, vodka and such so they might not have your favorite commercial one available. We were finally seated for dinner and they tried to seat us next to the band and underneath the speakers. We protested and they gladly moved us to the back of the restaurant. The band was pretty good but I always feel as the band should be background noise at a restaurant and not so loud that you can't talk. While the band was good, they were loud. I could only imagine how it would have been if we hadn't said anything and sat under the speaker. The servers were tearing down the wedding tables that were up and there were probably only five or six other patrons in the restaurant. The buffet is not what you would expect but it was quite good. They had two salads to choose from, pot roast or fish, two sides and a dessert. Afterward, we went outside and sat around the bonfire and chatted with other guests (most of them were from the wedding). We then went home, sat out front and watched the stars from our rocking chairs then went to bed. The beds are very comfortable and the linens felt luxurious.
We woke the next day and kayaked around the lake. My husband did some additional fishing and then we had breakfast. Breakfast is complimentary if you stay the night. It was also buffet style with mini bagels, cream cheese, buckwheat (although my husband insists it was oatmeal, I think it was buckwheat) with cranberries, yogurt, granola, banana bread and zucchini bread (I didn't think either bread had any flavor though), and fruit salad. Of course, juice, tea and coffee were also available. We left shortly thereafter.
We had a wonderful time although I will throw up some caution to those thinking of attending: lighting in the cabin is very dim. I didn't dare put on any make-up with the risk of overdoing it. The shower in our cabin was very weak - it did its job but I am glad I don't have that shower at my house. Bring some of your own drinks and snacks in case you get hungry/thirsty between meals. There isn't a convenience store nearby and the only food available is through the restaurant (that we found) and the restaurant is not always open. There is internet available (no wi-fi) in the sunroom but it does not send emails. You can only receive. I am assuming it is satellite internet. There is NO cell phone signal. Apparently there is one tiny little hotspot if you have AT&T. And bring layers for clothes. I rotated between being hot and being cold.
Other than those few caveats, it was a wonderful place to spend some time and hopefully next time we will be able to stay longer.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
