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Utah Heading to Utah this weekend for 7 days. Need advice on where to ski.

Captain Furious

A ticking time bomb of fury
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About us... I'm a decent powder skier and good bump skier. I've skied Jackson Hole a number of times and love it out there. My son has skied out west twice, once in JH and once in AK. He's a level 6/7 skier. Struggles in the bumps and is learning / loving powder. Neither of us have ever skied in UT and with the weather coming in this weekend for Vermont, we decided to scrap our VT plans and are heading directly to UT instead.

Skis for him is the Rustler 9 (he's 5'9" and 145 lbs). For me...Volkl Katana (112) and either my Kastle BMX 105HP or Stockli SR95. Thoughts on ski selection? Do you think he'll be OK on the Rustler 9s (94 under foot) or does he need something with more float?

Since we've never skied out here, we're looking for challenging terrain that's also fun. Keep in mind that my son is 14yo and isn't as experienced as I am. He's a good skier but neither one of us know how to huck a cliff, nor do we have any interest in doing so. We like to ski bowls and wide open glades, bump runs and other fun, ungroomed stuff.

We want to start off a bit slow and maybe open up with Alta as I understand it's not nearly as steep as Snowbird. Suggestions? We get in Saturday night and are skiing Sunday through Friday. We're open to taking the Snow Bus all over but would also be interested in maybe renting a car. Does anyone have pros vs cons for snow bus vs car rental? One ski area over another?

Local intel would be most appreciated but so is anecdotal experience.

Thanks!

Bill
 

raytseng

Making fresh tracks
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Where are you staying? that will be the clincher for the bus versus drive question if you are not close to the bus route.
What is your pass/liftticket situation? Free or paid for should heavily guide your decision. Did you book a ski+stay package? If so then just ski your passes.

Snowbird isn't necessarily about steepness but the terrain is rougher, but you've skied jackson already so you probably already understand that. It will eat you up and tire out intermediate and lower skiers.
I'd say just stick with the 4 in the canyons, alta, snowbird brighton solitude.

Must do snowbird and alta. if you want to change it up, then you can hit the other two. Powderhounds.com has basic breakdown.

For skis, all of your skis are all big mtn allmtn skis and relatively similar, so more about you and how much ski you need for what you think you want to do. If you had demo bindings you could trade them around.

Opensnow Forecast said has unsettled storm weather coming for next week, but he didn't say he saw a HUGE storm coming.
 
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Slaverson

In the parking lot (formerly "At the base lodge")
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I live in Park City Utah and I spend most of my time skiing at the park city ski resort. I have a pair of K2 Sights 86 underfoot and a pair of K2 pon2oon 132 underfoot. You and your son should be perfectly fine skiing here. Although the forecast predicts we will be getting snow for the next 4-5 days so you might want to get something a tad wider. Although my K2 Sights have always tackled every powder on the resort when I'm not hiking out of bounds. I guess it's just whatever you feel like using. Better safe than sorry.:daffy:
 
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Captain Furious

Captain Furious

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Thanks, guys. I only booked the flight and am still looking for accommodations. Any suggestions?

Bill
 

raytseng

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First trip, if you want to splurge, just stay slopeside at Snowbird, look for ski+stay package. done. Call and sometimes they can offer better deal then website .
It will be worth it to take the uncertainty out of it all, especially with weather coming in.
Then also bundle and book your shuttle transport in and out.
If your flight out is late evening, they have gym showers, so you can leave bags at desk, organize change of clothes on top, and you can ski at least half of last day before you catch shuttle out.

Just ski snowbird and alta ( just pay the upgrade fee to get altabird pass for the days you do alta)
 
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Slaverson

In the parking lot (formerly "At the base lodge")
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If you are planning on staying In park city that will probably mean that you will be skiing Deer Valley and Park City. The drive from Park City to Alta, Snowbird, Brighton, and Solitude are about 30-45 minutes on a good day. Recently they have been getting tons of snow but there is only one way in and out of those resorts so the drive up is very backed up and can take you up to a few hours if you are coming down from Park City.

Park City ski resort is a great option but the food is obviously pricey (thanks vail) and so are the day passes. If you don't have epic passes yet I would recommend getting the 3-day epic pass giving you full access to park city ski resort.


Although it really depends where you want to stay. I would recommend some of the cheaper places around Kimball junction in park city. They have a Hilton and a few other places and you are only about 10-15 minutes away from the ski resorts. Even equipped with a free bus system that goes to all of the resorts saving you on gas money. If you are driving to skiing I do recommend leaving around half an hour before the resort opens so you can snag up some parking.
 
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Captain Furious

Captain Furious

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Thanks. I'm going to try and book something slope side at Snowbird but I have a feeling it's just not going to be feasible from a cost perspective. How's the snow at Deer Valley & Park City? Better snow at Alta & SB? Thanks.

Bill
 

raytseng

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I think your trip itinerary maybe just right to take full advantage of the Snowbird promos. If considering park city, be prepared to count in the Liftticket price for Parkcity/deer valley I think it's going to wash.

I've got a trip planned staying at crystal inn murray/midvale which is right on the bus route, but I haven't stayed there yet.
Take a look there for cheaper LCC lodging that still takes care of a lot of logistics.
 

Slaverson

In the parking lot (formerly "At the base lodge")
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I haven't skied Deer Valley in a while but recently we have been getting a lot of snow up here.

It should be snowing here for the next 3-4 days straight so I'm hoping we will get good snow. But recently we have gotten plenty of snow and there are several challenging but fun things available at the Canyons side of the Park City ski resort.

If you do stay up here stay away from main street, in old town. That place is a tourist trap and you will find yourself paying 200$ for a meal.
One place for cheap food that you can get to from Park City ski resort is davanzas. Its a great local restaurant and they have very cheap food.
 

Slaverson

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If you are going to be staying in Park City you will most definitely be paying extra for rooms due to the fact that the world championships are barely wrapping up and you are very close to the ski resorts.

I recommend the Holiday Inn express In Redstone at Kimball Junction. They are a decent hotel and they are next to all sorts of food options.
 
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Captain Furious

Captain Furious

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Thanks. We got the last on mountain room with 2 beds in Snowbird (Iron Blossom). $3700 for 7 nights but it includes 2 lift tix per day and RT shuttle to and from the airport. Seemed like the best possible deal, considering the last minute decision to go.

Bill
 

raytseng

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Good decision, although that is some stickershock, and maybe missed better pricng windows. If this is incl. presidents weekend that would explain the superpeak pricing

don't discount the value of slopeside and having that extra time to actually relax or ski till last chair if you like, cause you don't need to drive.

if a storm comes and theres an isolation event, slopes will be all yours.
there is also ski check so you dont necessarily have to lug your skis a long distance every day.

dont forget swimsuit for hottub.
 
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Captain Furious

Captain Furious

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Great! Very excited though a bit worried about the lodge as it is a timeshare, which I didn't know when I booked it. I was just desperate to find a place last minute. Read mixed reviews so I hope our experience is a good one.

Bill
 

Lofcaudio

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I was going to recommend Snowbasin, but it doesn't make much sense with you staying right there at Snowbird. I just grabbed my lodging for next week today and spent a fraction of what you did. (I am staying at the Courtyard in Sandy.) If you liked Jackson Hole, you will love Snowbird. And if the road closes (as it has numerous times this season), you will be so glad you are staying right there.
 
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Captain Furious

Captain Furious

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It actually comes out to $300 p/night plus the cost of lift tix. When you factor in the lift tix and the location, while a bit on the steep side, it wasn't unreasonable. We had previously booked a vacation in Killington b/c we wanted to lay low and save some $ this season (just remodeled entire downstairs of home, including kitchen, this past year). However, the thought of having to endure another rain event on the heels of a decent snowstorm was just too much to bear. The warm ups this season have been God awful. Figure that even if it doesn't snow after we arrive, the skiing will still be magnitudes better than anything we've ever had in the East. Worth the price of admission right there. Plus my 14yo son is going to be super stoked!

Bill
 

Gentry

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I was going to recommend Snowbasin, but it doesn't make much sense with you staying right there at Snowbird. I just grabbed my lodging for next week today and spent a fraction of what you did. (I am staying at the Courtyard in Sandy.) If you liked Jackson Hole, you will love Snowbird. And if the road closes (as it has numerous times this season), you will be so glad you are staying right there.

I'm not sure if this really compares. You're staying 30 minutes from the nearest resort (on a perfect, snowless weekday). He's staying 5. If you'are staying in Sandy then you are also, A) renting a car [$50-$100 a day] or B) taking the ski bus [$10 a day]. Apples an oranges.
 

raytseng

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Do keep in mind you will be sleeping at snowbird base at 7700', so be prepared for some acclimatization.
 

raytseng

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since you got a good number multiple days so more time then your legs will handle:
My suggestion is you take free snowbird tour day 1, and get to know mountain layout, you might as well pester the guide/ambassador about basic Alta while you're with him, he will most likely know it too. Then enjoy from there!
 

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