Has been great.
Skied Alta yesterday. Snowed in the AM. Several inches of freshies... made for a faboo day.
I REALLY like the area under Sugarloaf lift. Razorback was really nice.

We skied Brighton today. It was pretty sweet.

I think we hitting alta again tomorrow.

Wish I lived out here.

mm

Did you ever get to rent skis? Any comments on the skis?

Brighton has some surprisingly nice terrain if you look around for it. IMHO, it has some of the best tree skiing in Utah, though some of the shots don't have a lot of vertical.

Alta and Solitude are still my favorites.

JohnL,
I don't disagree with your list of Utah favorites, since all of the resorts are really special in their own way. I think Alta is the mecca of the skiing universe, Snowbird a fantastic place, and I really enjoy being pampered at Deer Valley and their near always ideal conditions due to the what has to be the best grooming on earth.
The Colonel

I wish I lived out there too. Can you imagine getting that caliber of skiing as a local day/weekend trip? That would be something.

I tend to like the trails under the Supreme chair best, but alway have some excellent runs off Sugarloaf (often in late afternoon after Supreme closes). In fact, I found several "all day" runs off Sugarloaf, which was unfortunate because I found them late in the day. Next trip I will probably concentrate more time skiing the Sugarloaf area.

I had some nice runs in Cecret Saddle, which is just above Razorback. On my last trip, it was moguls from top to bottom, which was a challenge. That's a fairly long run for me to commit to when it's bumped up. When it's powder, it's awesome.

skier219,I assume you were talking about liking the area off of the Supreme chair, and not specifically under the chair. Otherwise you really got adventuresome on you second trip.
By the way, what was your wife's reaction when she first saw what she had gotten herself into by going to Alta with you?
The Colonel

Yeah, I only did a couple runs *under* the chair and that was enough for me! Very technical skiing, right about the upper limit for me. And the snow was forgiving that day, which probably made it easier than normal. I did see one family though, a strong dad skier with two little kids and a mom in tow. The dad ripped it and the kids were champs, but poor mom must have been cursing under her breath -- she didn't look too happy (but actually skied decent). I bet that guy was in the doghouse that night.

My wife was extremely tentative when we arrived, and the sight of Alf's High Rustler didn't help (but I was quick to point out that was not the bunny hill). The transfer rope the next morning was also a new experience for her. But once we got one green run under the belt and she saw how nice it was, she relaxed pretty quick and really seemed to have a good time. I think the quality of the snow and scenery really made an impression on her. She was also amazed by the consistency of the grooming and lack of any icy spots.

.. so what' stopping u ? if i could do it anyone can. all it takes is a desire and some attention to detail. and a willingness to "let go" . that's the hard bit. simply sit down, make a list of what it would take, and go through it one by one.

Crush- I've got an interview in Co Springs on Monday. Got one here in KC too. Not sure which I'd prefer from a jobs perspective but every now and then I let my imagination run... Monarch in the backyard, the Ramparts for hiking and fishing and biking, Wolf Creek four hours away, Crested Butte for the weekends, the San Juans... egads. Egads.

What's stopping me? Well, I don't have a job offer there yet. Also, Sandra and I have invested some time (for what little time we've had together) into turning this house into our home, so that's a consideration too. And I like the neighborhood too. Honestly, the most important consideration I have right now is the job. I've had enough bad jobs, I don't want another, even if it means passing up a chance to move further west- because there will be more chances, undoubtedly.

Incidentally- would you mind sharing what your list was, or at least how you went about dealing with some of the more difficult issues on the list? Probably some folks would appreciate hearing about it!

Yeah, that is one list I have often thought about, but am afraid to actually write out! I'd be curious to see an example too. I think the "let go" part is definitely hard.

Yeh,

My wife and I are looking to move to somewhere closer to what we each love (ocean and mountains). Pacific northwest seems to be the focus right now... though Salt Lake and Denver are also prime options.

Anyhoo, back to the matter at hand. Skied Alta today. I have to agree about the Supreme lift. I WOULDN'T try that insane run right under the lift. HIGH HIGH HIGH pucker factor on the way up.

We ran the ones to the right of the lift (facing uphill) most of the morning. I totally dig this little chute by Three Bears... bouncing back and forth like a pinball down it.

Then we headed over to sugarloaf and hit Razorback a few times and then over to the Collins lift and hit the Ballroom bowl a few times. Snow was decent enough, though the predicted heavy snow didn't materialize.

I agree about the tree runs at Brighton. I DON'T like the flat run over to Millicent though.

Returning to DC tomorrow (Sunday)... but skiing morning first. Still hoping for some fresh snow....

I also have to share some disappointment about Canyon Sports. They told us they were open til 9pm, then closed at 8p.... So we got there to see employees all driving off.

They did discount our rentals though. But then they rented a buddy of mine some skis that the binding broke when he went to put them on at Alta this morning. And another friend of mine's skis NEEDED a wax badly. It was like she had sandpaper on the bottom of her skis. She spent all day poling.

MM

Ah, Three Bears is a sweet little trail, perhaps my favorite blue in that area of the mountain. When I was there in January, it was loaded with powder, and you could launch over the lip of the connector trail into the snow, make 3-4 turns down the steep part, then turn into that chute and ricochet down it. Fun run.

I'm enjoying your reports MM -- next best thing to being there!

MangyMarmot,
Hate to be the first to break this bit of news to you, but neither SLC or Denver are close to the ocean.
As for the NW, it depends what she likes about the ocean. If it is eastern type ocean swimming, wave hopping, etc. then the Pacific will disappoint, it is too cold. I remember my first trip to LA, seeing a beach well over 100 yards deep, and thinking "WOW". Ran across beach into waves, really backed out FAST, water temp 58 degrees. Beach and ski are not too far apart in the SF and Sacremento areas. And don't be mislead into thinking the Great Salt Lake is like going to the beach...it smells, UGH! But you can float in it!
The Colonel

First off... I LOATHE MY FRIENDS! They're still in Salt Lake... bumped from flight. And now there's like 14 inches of new snow in mountains.

I, on the other hand, had to fly out yesty afternoon. Skied the morning in Snowbird... snowing like mad. had 6-8 inches of freshies for us. The place was deserted. Ran totally fresh tracks around Gad 2 lift a couple times.
Then up to Little Cloud and down that crazy big bowl. Can't remember name of it.
We tried out the new tunnel from Peruvian lift back to Mineral Basin. Visibility was kinda crap, but man the snow was nice.

And as far as ocean and mountains nearby... All I need is to convince my wife we'd be near the beach, and then do a convincing acting job of surprise when I plunge into the frigid Pacific. Then I'd say, "Gee, I thought we could swim year-round here in Seattle, Vancouver or wherever.

mm

Oh,

I forgot to mention... I demo'ed a few different skis in Utah.

Used Salomon X-Wing Fury, Volkl AC-3 and K2 Recons.

They were all about 170 lengths.

I liked the Salomons most. Easy to ski. Didn't hold an edge as well as my K2 Axis. But they really liked the fresh snow. they were quite fun. I didn't like em so much on icy patches, but worked well in the trees, powder and moguls.

The volkls were a bit tougher to ski than the salomons. they were better on the icy patches (mebbe they'd been sharpened recently). They weren't quite as happy in the powder. They were noticably heavier than the other two skis. Depending on conditions, i'd rank them 2nd or 3rd.

Recons were third... or mebbe second. They seemed to be a bit squirrely. (though that could have been my leg fatigue) They didn't float on the powder as well as the Salomons.
They turned really nicely on some bumped up runs. But they couldn't compare to the volkls on icy bits.

I dunno if any of that gibes with other folks' experience.

mm

The volkls were a bit tougher to ski than the salomons. they were better on the icy patches (mebbe they'd been sharpened recently). They weren't quite as happy in the powder. They were noticably heavier than the other two skis. Depending on conditions, i'd rank them 2nd or 3rd.