Park City in Utah is best described as a vacation paradise. A place where the Sundance Film Festival is held and celebrities are regularly sighted. Robert Redford lives here and Michael Jordan has an estate near the golf course in Glenwild which is not far away.

Skiing is all the rage here during winter and the area boasts some of the most luxurious accommodation on offer in the United States.

But while most people come here to wind down and relax, the boys from the North Melbourne Football Club have come to work, and work hard.

The club’s high altitude training camp has been somewhat misleading for the boys from Arden Street.

When the players arrived at their first home-base, they walked into one of the best resorts in the country - the five star and AAA five diamond rated Stein Eriksen Lodge.

Nestled at the base of several mountains in the Deer Valley, the Stein Eriksen Lodge was built in 1982 and is regarded as one of the best mountain hotels in the world.

The picturesque Stein Eriksen Lodge provided the perfect backdrop for a morning kick.

Snow covers the rooftops of the Norwegian style chalet and rests comfortably in the garden beds while fairly lights, drizzled around the hundreds of pine trees on the pristine estate illuminate its walkways. This is a winter wonderland and Santa could quite happily live here.

However the players quickly came to learn that the right to stay at this exclusive property would not come easily - they would pay their way and earn it by completing some of the hardest training drills they’ve ever undertaken.

These torturous exercises have so far included two eight hour hikes through knee deep snow, with the squad climbing muscle burning slopes and reaching oxygen sapping heights. Some thought they wouldn’t make it, while others simply can’t believe they did. Just when the painful adventure looked to be at an end, the trail would take another cruel turn away from the warmth of the gas log fires burning constantly at the lodge.

Lachlan Hansen and Levi Greenwood running on unfamiliar terrain.

Each day, the players wake knowing that another challenge awaits them. The only safe bet on a trip like this is that breakfast will be provided somewhere between 7 and 9am. The rest of the time, they are at the mercy of North’s coaching staff.

The schedule is kept a secret and there are plenty of surprises - simply put, nothing is what it seems. Hikes are not designed to be enjoyed - they are brutally exhausting. Incline running does not afford time to see what’s at the top of the hill - it is a punishing and demanding exercise that tests event the fittest of athletes. Even a tour of the US Ski and Snowboard Association turned into a two-hour gym work out.

There is time for rest but recreation is limited - not through lack of time, but lack of energy. When the group is given time off, most players elect to stay close to home and recharge in the knowledge that the next day will bring another task which will require nothing short of maximum effort.

It’s therefore fortunate that after their stay at Stein Eriksen, the camp was relocated to a slightly lower altitude in Park City - to a place called the Newpark Resort. Surrounded by shops, restaurants and cafes, the players now don’t have to go far to get what they need.

The move down the mountain was necessary because the second phase of the camp involves more football skills training. At Stein Eriksen, the only flat ground was a small parking lot but in Park City, there are playing fields within walking distance and a large indoor facility is also available in case of poor weather. There are also plenty of trails nearby and ample mountains to scale.

The North Melbourne team hit the track at the USSA training facility.

The locals have been extremely hospitable although very few have heard of Australian Rules Football, let alone seen a game. Apparently when ESPN was a much smaller channel, it used to show AFL matches after truck pulling contests. Most of the people here think it’s another name for rugby…and the players from that code haven’t made a great impression. The courtside reporter at the Utah Jazz NBA game said he interviewed some rugby players last year and it didn’t go very well. The inebriated group wrestled the microphone from him and used the opportunity to advertise to local females that they would be at ‘Lumpy’s Bar’ after the game. They were particularly interested in getting the Jazz’s cheerleaders out for a drink or two.

With the snow beginning to fall, temperatures dropping and fatigue setting in, this camp will become increasingly difficult for the 35 or so players - but not just in a physical sense, mentally too.

The absence of captain Brent Harvey, vice-captain Drew Petrie and deputy vice-captain Brady Rawlings has also created an interesting situation. The opportunity for the next batch of leaders to stand up has presented itself.

So this cleverly designed camp will provide much more than just a physical benefit to our players. It’s hoped that it will also give our young boys an inner confidence and self-belief they have never before had and a reason to believe that they can mix it with the best in the league.

When Brad Scott came to the club he set out to provide our players with everything they would need to succeed and he declared there would be no excuses for them to not be able to reach their peak.

This camp has so far given them exactly that, and much more.