In Conversation with Blake Pike - Co-Founder of Eleven Experience

Blake Pike wearing her Gaucho Skirt in at the Rio Palena Lodge in Patagonia 

 

Blake and her husband Chad founded their experiential travel company Eleven Experience in 2011 and have since opened several lodges and properties around the globe from the Bahamas to New Zealand, each property offering unique experiences. Their gorgeous venues and lodges offer a variety of outdoor adventures and provide the perfect escape. We sat down with Blake to find out more about Eleven Experience. 

 

1. Where did the name “Eleven Experience” come from?  

The short answer is we launched the company in 2011 and opened our first property, Scarp Ridge Lodge in Crested Butte, Colorado on 11/11/11.  It is also a subtle nod to the scene in the cult film “Spinal Tap” where the faded rock star proudly dials the knob on his amp to the highest level labelled “11”.  He hilariously insists that the amp gives him an edge over other guitarists who are limited to a maximum volume of “10”.  We love the concept of “Taking it to Eleven”.  It is one beyond what anyone else is doing, and we have imbedded this ethos into everything we do for our guests and their experience at our lodges.  

 

Scarp Ridge Lodge in Crested Butte, Colorado - Eleven Experience's First Lodge

 

2. What items are always in your hand luggage?  

I am constantly on the road so my carry on is always packed and ready to go.  Inside you will find stuffed my latest needlepoint project, a Petzl micro headlamp (useful for emergencies and needlepoint!), a Stanley tape measure, Izipizi readers, cashmere socks and my Tata Harper Hydrating Floral Essence + Hyalauronic Gel Moisturizer.  

 

3.  What inspired you to open a lodge in Patagonia?  What is your process for choosing the next destination?  

My husband and I are passionate about fishing and skiing.  Patagonia is Narnia for people like us.  The mountains are enormous, capped with glaciers and covered with subtropical rainforest.  There is very little population, mostly gauchos on horseback, and it feels like a simpler time.  We love fishing on the Palena; it beckons anglers who want to catch a “chancho” - aka a really big brown trout on a fly.  And skiing on glacier covered volcanoes that descend 6000 feet to the Pacific is also pretty special.

The gorgeous Rio Palena Lodge in Patagonia

 

4.  If you could choose 3 Wiggy Kit pieces that would be most suited to 3 of your Eleven properties, which pieces would you attribute to which location?

Well I chased your “sold out” Gaucho Skirt pretty hard for Chile, and I love wearing it in Patagonia at Rio Palena Lodge.  It is the perfect piece for a festive riverside asado and equally chic worn about town in London.  

For Iceland, I love the Patchwork Cordy Skirt paired with the Swacket.  Our property, Deplar Farm, is just outside the Arctic Circle and even at the peak of summer, it can be chilly.  It’s the perfect outfit for a cozy dinner at the lodge or a BBQ down by the sea.  

And for Harbour Island my favourites are the Keeper Dress + Apron Dress.  They are wardrobe stables for my trips to Bahama House Inn - both chic, casual and easy to wear in a subtropical climate.  

 

5.  What’s next for Eleven Experience?  

Eleven has just acquired a beautiful period building in Revelstoke, British Columbia coincidentally built in 1911.  We are renovating it into a 12 bedroom lodge and will be operating Eleven’s Kingfisher heli-skiing product in the winter as well as guided fishing, mountain biking, climbing and hiking trips in the summers.  Revelstoke Mountain has the longest vertical drop in North America (5620 feet!) and gets incredible amounts of snow so it was a logical location for Eleven to target.  

 

 

Take a closer look at the Rio Palena Lodge Below

For more information head to Eleven Experience