Text by Yvette Cardozo with photos by Ski Utah, Lee Cohen, Steve Lloyd, and Snowbasin Ski Resort
Vol. 11 No. 3
It’s steep and it’s deep! While hordes of skiers quickly carve the fine powder of a weekend snowfall into a trashy mess at the Utah skiing resorts of Park City and Snowbird, an hour north in Ogden, 3,000 acre Snowbasin feels as if it belongs to us.
Local Jim Forster and I hop off Strawberry Gondola shushing to a place called Dwayne’s World. Gnarled aspens, thick pines and hairy bushes speckle the slope, leaving us plenty of turning space. We weave through the trees, snow flowing over our knees then flying weightless into our faces, filling our nostrils. And then we return. Again and again. There’s still plenty of untouched snow to be had.
“Sometimes, it’s so deep,” says Forster, “you sink down until it totally covers you. You can’t see. You can’t breathe. Then you come up, grab a peek and some air and get buried again.”
Welcome to Ogden .. the OTHER Utah.
There are actually two large ski mountains here, hardly a half hour drive apart. Powder Mountain and Snowbasin… back country rustic versus ultra luxe … both without the crowds, frantic rush, and wallet crushing experience you find at the more popular Utah ski resorts.
People don’t flock to Powder Mountain and Snowbasin for several reasons. Though Ogden is only an hour’s drive north of Salt Lake City, there are eight ski resorts that are closer to the city. Skiing in Ogden is a more of a commuter affair. With the exception of five very simple motel-like rooms and a few dozen condo units on Powder Mountain, driving to the ski hills is required.
But the drive is well worth it. Once you arrived, you’ll find endless powder (an average of 500 inches a year), empty runs and staff happy to see someone … ANYone …so happy that you are treated like royalty.
Powder Mountain is like skiing used to be … simple, rustic, basic. Forget the frills. There are no tissue boxes at the lift stations, no gourmet mushroom salads, no leather sofas in front of huge stone fireplaces at the lodge. Just lots and lots and lots of powder.
Anxiety free powder. Wow! The abundance of powder on more gentle slopes sets Powder Mountain apart, making it a great place to practice and learn powder skiing. The widely spaced woods with a gentle slope allows the skier to master the mechanics of turning in snow flowing over your knees.
The lodge is a simple, well worn affair typical of backwash places in Montana circa 1980. It sits nearly at the top of the 2,000 vertical foot mountain. From here, other short lifts take you a bit higher but most of the skiing is below.
Most runs are wide open and either novice or intermediate. If you’re looking for expert stuff, there’s a hike up Lightning Ridge to probably the cheapest cat skiing in North America. But it’s not for the fainthearted. A $7.00 fee gets you a ride, not in, but on a rope BEHIND the snowcat. It involves putting your pole through a loop and riding it, T-bar style. But what you get in return is seriously untracked, challenging terrain.
For those who want more luxury, there’s Snowbasin, a Sun Valley Resort.” That’s because both places were built by billionaire Earl Holding. Close your eyes and shake your head in one of the gilt edged lodges and you’d swear you were at Sun Valley.
Prior to the 2002 Olympics, Holding sank $150 million into an “extreme makeover” which included three Sun Valley style lodges, two gondolas and much more. So today, you’ve got the architecture of Sun Valley, the luxury of Deer Valley and the prices of Montana … with Utah snow.
Yet, the crowds are still light.
After 14 inches of weightless Utah snow fell on Snowbasin, when the skies cleared, the faithful arrived in droves. Even with every powder hound in shouting distance lined up at the base gondola, the wait was barely 10 minutes. And at the top, the wait is nonexistent at Strawberry Gondola.
Officially, the area is called Seven Sisters or, sometimes WFO (Way Far Out). The locals call it Dwayne’s World. Whatever, it’s absolutely empty. Sure, there are tracks. But not many. We yo-yo the Strawberry Gondola, still finding wide chunks of untracked powder well into mid day.
At Snowbasin, there’s more accessible expert terrain than Powder Mountain. But there’s also plenty of gentle intermediate and beginner stuff. Most people ski the middle peaks where the intermediate trails group together. Off to the far left (WFO, WWFO, WWWFO) it’s emptier. And off to the far right lies the double black diamond John Paul Express run.
Want REALLY steep? Hop on Mt. Allen Tram, it’s worth a trip just for the view. This was the start of the men’s downhill race in the 2002 Olympics. The slope is an unbelievable 40 degrees. That brings you to a super expert No Name area, one where the local powder hounds head after a heavy snowfall.
The lack of on slope lodging keeps this place from turning into a Park City. There have been rumors for a decade that Holding would build a hotel here. But so far, there are no solid plans in place. But that keeps the slopes empty and the locals happy. Head north and give it a try.
If you go:
Thanks to snowmaking, Snowbasin’s season is pretty much guaranteed from Thanksgiving to Easter. Powder Mountain, which spurns snowmaking usually operates mid November to mid April.
Compared to the more popular resorts, lift rates here are a bargain … $50 at Powder Mountain, $60 at Snowbasin with both areas offering multi day discount cards.
Powder Mountain has five motel rooms and approximately three dozen condos on slope for rent at rates that range from $85 for the smallest motel room to about $300 a night for a three bedroom condo.
The nearest off mountain digs to Powder is Wolf Creek Resort (www.wolfcreekresort.com). The nearest lodging of any kind to Snowbasin is Lakeside Village (www.lakesideresortproperties.com). Both properties offer well appointed, large condos, hot tubs and other amenities.
Powder Mountain: www.powdermountain.com.
Snowbasin: www.snowbasin.com.