Owner of local resort welcoming visitors with new yurts
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HEISE — Sharon and Steve Parry never planned to own a resort, but after purchasing Aspen Grove Inn at Heise Bridge, they couldn’t be happier about the decision.
Over the last eight years, the duo have invested a lot of money in restoring, improving and adding new amenities to the Heise camping area at 105 North 5050 East. Amenities include RV spaces, moonlight cottages and log cabins. The Parry’s latest addition is two yurts — the first ones in eastern Idaho (as far as they know). Though it sounds like a term out of a Dr. Seuss book, it is an actual amenity that Sharon says adds an exotic touch to the eastern Idaho “glamping” experience.
She describes it as a “semi-permanent” shelter from Mongolia that is a combination of a tent and a hotel room.
“The Mongols have been a semi-nomadic people for centuries, and these are semi-permanent (dwellings),” Sharon tells EastIdahoNews.com. “They’re unique, so they’re kind of hard to describe, but with air-conditioning and heat, we know with Kelly Canyon Ski Resort up the road that they will be a year-round experience.”
Each room is themed and furnished with beds, chairs, tables — a table in one of the yurts was converted from an old wagon wheel used by pioneers on Mormon Row, an area within the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem settled by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the late 1800s — and other items.
Sharon’s spent months curating wall decor that gives a hint of the Mongolian vibe, while also appealing to the look and feel of the native outdoor landscape.
And for the current generation, who Parry says value experiences over things, the yurts provide an experience they can’t get in a lot of places around here.
“This generation wants … adventures and memories … and yurts are very much on the radar screen of everybody who wants adventures,” says Sharon.
The yurts are now available for booking, and Sharon says those who have been to the resort this year are dying to stay in them.
Get a look inside in the video above.
The Parry’s bought Aspen Grove Inn on a whim in November 2015. Sharon was stepping down from the Idaho Falls City Council at the time, and Steve, who works as an attorney in Idaho Falls, has ancestral ties to the Ririe area.
One of Steve’s clients told him about the property. It piqued his interest enough to tell his wife about it. They went to look at it the next day.
“It had been abandoned for three or four months. It was in pretty rough shape,” Sharon explains, saying the previous owners weren’t making it work financially, and left. “There are 10.2 acres here and three of them were total junk.”
Still, Sharon recalls Steve thinking they could do much worse, and by the following Tuesday were preparing to take over the property.
Over the last eight years, Sharon says it’s been “a labor of love” to beautify and turn it into a place that people want to visit.
“It’s just something we’re having fun with,” she says.
The next amenity they’re working on is River Run. It’s a 7,500-square-foot building that will be rented out for private events year-round, including weddings, retreats and other occasions. It will include a kitchen space for food vendors, and they’re hoping to have it completed by December 1.
Sharon wants the resort to be a place where people come to connect, leave their cares behind and enjoy a peaceful environment.
“I want people to come onto our place and go, ‘Mmmmm,’ and just have a melting moment where things are touchable and real sweet,” says Sharon. “We just want a calm place.”
To learn more or reserve a yurt, visit the website or call Sharon directly at (208) 523-6339.