Ski Resort in Review - Snowbird

Resort #11 - Snowbird

Date -  March 4, 2017

Runs - 5

Rating - ¶¶¶¶ (out of 5 stars)

I love Snowbird.  I love the long runs and all of the different options.  Today, though, it was too windy for the tram to be running, so the lines were really long on all of the other lifts and when we got closer to the top even the chair lifts were swinging and swaying precipitously.

Because of the wind we only took one ride up to the top of the mountain and we spent the rest of the time lower down.

Sadly, due to the wind the tunnel to Mineral Basin was also closed.  I've yet to be able to ski Mineral Basin as it has been closed the last couple times I've been to Snowbird.

Up Next: Park City

Ski Resort in Review - Nordic Valley

Resort #10 - Nordic Valley

Date -  March 1, 2017

Runs - 6

Rating - ¶¶¶ (out of 5 stars)

Surprisingly, this was my first time ever at Nordic Valley.  I remember my friends coming here often, but I never made it.

Action photo.

This was also Ada's first time night skiing.  It was alright.  It was cold, the lifts are really slow and the runs are short.  On the flipside, the lines were also short and there were still some fun areas.

Up Next: Snowbird

Ski Resort in Review - Eagle Point

Resort #9 - Eagle Point

Date -  February 20, 2017

Runs - 9

Rating - ¶¶¶¶¶ (out of 5 stars)

This place surprised us.  We left La Verkin and headed to Beaver.  We didn't get on the slopes until about 11:30AM on President's Day and it was one of our best days of the year.

It's a small family-run resort, but even on the holiday it felt like we had the place to ourselves.

Found some undies.

The day was beautiful as well.  A little slushy from the warm sun.

Up Next: Nordic Valley

Ski Resort in Review - Brian Head

Resort #8 - Brian Head

Date -  February 18, 2017

Runs - 5

Rating - ¶¶¶¶ (out of 5 stars)

I wasn't sure if we would be able to make it to the Southern Utah resorts or not.  However, we found out that my parents would be staying in my grandpa's house in La Verkin and Ada and I decided to join them.

We drove down separately and stopped at Brian Head on the way down.  I had never been up to this resort and I was surprised by how big the resort area was.

Also surprising was how few of the cars were from Utah.  I would guess that 50-60% of the cars were from California, 20% from Nevada and the remaining from Utah and other states.  For people from LA it is worth the drive to pay way less than the resorts down in their area.

I should have been taking pictures of the bra trees all season.  They're at nearly every resort and Ada would always get a kick out of them.

We brought our latex heads to wear at Brian Head.

Lunch in Cedar City while on our way to La Verkin.

We went to church in La Verkin then went up to Zion National Park.  It was rainy, so we didn't do any hikes but it was amazing to see waterfalls all over the walls of Zion Canyon from the rain. 

Up Next: Eagle Point

Ski Resort in Review - Deer Valley

Resort #7 - Deer Valley

Date -  February 4, 2017

Runs - 11

Rating - ¶¶¶¶¶ (out of 5 stars)

Ahh, Deer Valley.  The nicest of the resorts in Utah.  I'm not much for celebrity spotting, but I do think that we saw Daniel Stern (Marv from Home Alone) and a couple of others who I couldn't place.

We met up at Deer Valley with the McIntyre's and we had a ton of fun canvassing the mountains with these guys.  The whole family are better skiers than me or Ada.  It was fun to try and follow them around.

Ada and Ashton - Friends since birth.

The McIntyre clan.

The ski kids.

Me and Ada.

Little Grayson following Rachel down the hill.

Up next: Brian Head

Ski Resort in Review - Snow Basin

Resort #6 - Snow Basin

Date -  January 21, 2016

Runs - 1

Rating - ¶¶ (out of 5 stars)

I know this will be blasphemy to most of the folks that grew up near me in Layton, but I've never really liked Snow Basin.  I rarely skied there growing up and every time I went it was so dang windy that it always seemed like it took a lot of extra effort to get downhill.

It took us 45 minutes to get from Trapper's Loop to the resort due to traffic, which wasn't a great start.  I dropped Ada and Kate off at their ski school lessons, then I went off on my own to ski.  It was really crowded (Saturday crowds) and I think I wasn't feeling super great.  I took one lift up the mountain and didn't enjoy fighting the wind and blowing snow so instead I took a nap in the lodge.

Next up: Deer Valley

Ski Resort in Review - Solitude

Resort #5 - Solitude

Date -  January 7, 2017

Runs - 10

Rating - ¶¶¶¶¶ (out of 5 stars)

I knew that we needed to head up the canyon early to beat the crowds heading to the resorts, but I couldn't get Ada to go with me.  I didn't want to give up a good ski day, so I decided to go on my own.

It was an excellent day, and to be perfectly honest, it was nice to be able to explore some tougher areas than Ada is comfortable skiing...

Next up: Snow Basin

Ski Resort in Review - Sundance

Resort #4 - Sundance

Date -  December 30, 2016

Runs - 5

Rating - ¶¶¶ (out of 5 stars)

We visited Sundance on the last Friday of the year and we were joined by Ada's aunt Angie.  Apparently it was the same idea that many others had, because it was super crowded.  We spent a lot more time waiting in line than skiing.

Up next: Solitude

Ski Resort in Review - Cherry Peak

Resort #3 - Cherry Peak

Date - December 26, 2017

Runs - 8

Rating - ¶ (out of 5 stars)

We visited Cherry Peak on their opening day, December 26.  We had been hit with a huge snowstorm Christmas morning and we were hoping that would translate to a good ski day.  Ada's uncle Hyrum was a good sport to join us.

Unfortunately, we were really disappointed. Only one lift was open and the run was quite short.  There wasn't enough snow, so weeds, brush and rocks were showing through.  The biggest issue of all though was that the runs had only been recently groomed.  They weren't groomed earlier in the year which allowed the snow to freeze and turn into ice.  The groomer broke up this icy crust and left it spread all over the run making it really difficult for Ada and not as fun for the rest of us.  It felt like icy spring night skiing.  Everybody who visited the Salt Lake resorts on the day after Christmas had some of the best skiing, while we suffered at Cherry Peak.

Lunch at 5 Guys.

Testing out our skills on the magic carpet.

The real highlight of the day was visiting the lone remaining Taco Maker.  My favorite restaurant.  Apparently Napoleon loves Big J Burgers.

Up Next: Sundance

Ski Resort in Review - Powder Mountain

Resort #2 - Powder Mountain

Date -  December 22, 2016

Runs - 7

Rating - ¶¶¶¶¶ (out of 5 stars)

I grew up skiing most often at Powder Mountain.  In Jr. High I would often go night skiing and once or twice a year I would be able to spend the full day up here.

Ada and I had a great day at Powder Mountain.  Our first 5 star ski day of the season.  Long runs, good weather and short lines.

We skied 11.7 miles and ascended 6.9 miles for a total distance of 18.6 miles in 3 hours.

Ada got a real kick out of the tow rope.  She told me that in French that are called ski-bum-pullers.

Look at that lovely Volt.  Sadly, she is no longer mine.

Next up: Cherry Peak