What do Horses have to do with Valentine's Day?

Well, this year, for me, they were a very big part of it.

Early this afternoon we boarded a horse drawn sleigh that carried us through a pine forest, over a wooden bridge, and into an Elk preserve

until we were arrived at a rustic cabin nestled deep within the winter wonderland.

There is no road that takes you here. You can only get here by horse and sled (or walking).

Luckily it was over 30 degrees today. The guide was telling us that last week they did a ride at -4 degrees. BRRRRRRR...Even today (with gloves on) my hands were frozen by the time we got back from the one-hour elk tour ride. They do provide a wool blanket, but just one blanket for two people. You were supposed to "snuggle" to keep warm. I was way too busy taking pictures to snuggle.

Upon arrival my valentine headed right for the big fireplace to warm up before settling in for wine tasting and a 5-course gourmet meal which was cooked on two antique wood cook stoves.

Throughout the two-hour meal we sampled wines from a local winery. The samples were served in little shot glasses I enjoyed most of the five wines I sampled, especially the pear wine served with the appetizer of three shrimp and a pear/apple crepe.
The main course was Crown Pork Roast
and it was very good.

Here's the full menu:

Shrimp Cocktail
Pear/Apple Crepe
Hearty Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
Sweet Nappa Salad & Butter Croissant
Crown Roast of Pork
Pan Roasted Red Skin Potatoes
White Chocolate Mousse Filled Pizzelles With Fresh Raspberries

In between courses, they talked about the Elk, showed craft items that were made from the antlers and even brought an antler around for us to hold up to see how heavy they were.

This one weighed about 22 lbs. Imagine carrying two of those atop your head!

Even the ladies bathroom was an experience.

Just look at how cute the decor is.

The whole event took about four hours.

This place was recently featured in an article in USA Today as one of the top 10 winter experiences (or something like that).

I loved it! It was the perfect valentine present. Before you go on about how romantic DH is to suggest this wonderful place, I must tell you that I was the one who suggested it. But he agreed almost immediately, so in my book, he scored points.

Here's me with Buster and Harley.

It was truly a Valentine's Day to remember (even if it is 5 days early).