Utah Visiting Solitude on a Normal Tuesday, 25 Jan 2022

[Jim Kenney]

Visiting Solitude on a Normal Tuesday, 25 Jan 2022, by Jim Kenney
All photos by Jim Kenney

I had a very good day at Solitude on Tuesday, 25 Jan 2022. I was there from 9am to 215pm. This was my first visit to Solitude this winter and I expect to return several times before the season is over. I had a little pre-visit trepidation because I've heard of big crowds this season at Solitude and long walks from the free parking areas, if available at all. I'm a first time IKON pass holder (I also have a Snowbird Senior Season Pass) and wasn't that familiar with "the ropes" of Solitude logistics. I also have an aversion to paying for parking. I wanted to find out if it was feasible to visit Solitude with my IKON pass on a normal weekday and have a good experience. The short answer is YES.

I arrived at the ski area at 9am on a mini-powder day (2-3" new) and was pleased to find free parking available on Big Cottonwood Rd close to the entrance to the Moonbeam base at Solitude. In fact, I was the sixth car in the free spaces available on the shoulder of the road a short way down canyon from the entrance to the Moonbeam paid parking lot. It was about a 250 yard walk to the Moonbeam lodge. I packed my ski boots and my lunch in my boot bag and carried my skis over my shoulder for the trek. If I had a bigger load or additional passengers I'm sure I could have driven up to the Lodge and dropped stuff off before returning to park on Big Cottonwood Road, although I might have stationed someone to save my spot as there was a steady stream of traffic on the road.

A good, free parking spot was available at 9 AM on a relatively quiet/normal weekday. The entrance to the Moonbeam parking lot is about 30 yards beyond the last pedestrian on right.


I booted up in the Moonbeam Lodge cafeteria and I left my boot bag there and headed out for a fine morning of skiing. I took the Moonbeam express chair and then caught the fixed grip Powderhorn chair. Powderhorn serves a broad mountain side of single black diamond terrain and it really skied good with the few inches of new snow. Powder bumps! My tracks are to the lower right under the Powderhorn lift in this photo.



Snowboarder getting after it near the Powderhorn chair.


It was hard to leave Powderhorn because the snow was so good and not yet fully tracked out. I made about five runs there, but eventually headed for the Summit Express chair. This photo shows a steep part of the Summit liftline.


It was a beautiful day of mixed visibility, mostly clear and partly sunny. This view is from very close to the top terminal of the Summit chair. The dam at the right side of this photo is associated with the Twin Lakes Reservoir between Solitude and Brighton ski areas.


While making a bunch of runs off the Summit chair I soon found that some of the best snow on the mountain was in an area called Headwall Forest. I made several laps through there and enjoyed some very beautiful tree skiing.


Another view from Headwall Forest, the top of the Apex chair can be seen in distant right.


I went into the Moonbeam base lodge to eat lunch around noon time and was surprised to find that my boot bag had been moved by Solitude staff to the ground floor of the next building over, the building where the ski school, equipment rental, and customer lockers are located. I guess they don't want unattended bags in the Moonbeam Lodge??

Once I found my bag, I liked the new location. There weren't many people there and I had a choice of several empty tables set up for brown baggers like myself. There were also restrooms and lockers. I generally don't use ski area lockers. I don't keep much of value in my boot bag when out skiing, just an extra shirt and my old walking boots. Stowing my bag in the corner of a lodge generally works for me. After eating, I returned my bag to the corner of the room where staff had placed it among several others. My bag was kept in the nook under the stairway in the center of this blurry photo. Lockers for the public are to the right out of view:


After lunch I did several runs off the Apex, Eagle and Powderhorn chairs on the lower mountain. Around 2:15 PM I returned to the Ski School/Locker building and got my stuff, changed out of ski boots, and made the 250 yard walk to my car. The day was a nice success and now I know not to be intimidated by reports of IKON kraziness at Solitude, at least not on normal weekdays

However, if I'm hoping to get free parking that is reasonably close to the resort, I probably will choose another ski area rather than attempt to ski at Solitude on a weekend or serious powder day.

If you see me on the slopes in Utah this winter, give me a holler. I'm usually in black and green/yellow on cooler days. This photo was taken at the top of the Apex lift during some light afternoon flurries.


Parking tips from @Daniel , an expert on Big Cottonwood Canyon logistics:
When parking at free spots along Big Cottonwood Road near the Moonbeam base area make sure all four tires are inside (not touching) the white line and that you don't park where UPD have placed orange pylons or where no parking signs are located. The roadside parking between the Moonbeam base and the Solitude Village tends to fill first (many of those people are going backcountry) followed by that section of road immediately down canyon from the Moonbeam entrance (that's where I parked on Jan 25). That section may be an easier walk to/from the slopes because the canyon road is fairly flat along that section, as opposed to parking above the Moonbeam entrance, where the road begins to resume its climb.

 

[Chip]

Well this sounds easy. Would arriving around 8:30 make the parking choices better? Not that you didn't have a prime spot anyway.
That's very helpful regarding the bag drop-off area.

How was the traffic driving up the canyon?

 

[Jim Kenney]

@Chip In my case arriving at 830 AM would have only gotten me, at most, 5 spaces closer to the closest parking spot. I actually was shooting for that time, but got delayed heading up the mtn. Lifts open at 9. Traffic was fine, but steady. I presume most were using the paid lots at Solitude or continuing up to Brighton. BTW, the Moonbeam paid lot was about one-third full at 9 AM on the morning of my visit. Note that Daniel has stated that on busy days at Solitude people have been parking as far as one mile down Big Cottonwood Rd to avoid parking fees.

I should add for those who read this trip report and don't know the cost of parking at Solitude, it is:

Vehicles carrying one or two passengers will be charged the full $20 (correction $25) to park at Solitude. The charge is $10 for three passengers and $5 for four or more passengers.

Therefore, if you are on vacation and have several people in your car spending $5 or 10 is not much of an issue. But for a geezer like me who just wants to do a solo ski session for a partial weekday the $20 starts to become a deterrent, especially since I have pass privileges at other nearby resorts with plenty of free parking.

 

[Chip]

@Jim Kenney or you could pick up some of the people walking along the road to the resort and give them a lift- and before you know it- $5 parking....

But this is all really great info and the timing is perfect for my upcoming Utah trip.

 

[Daniel]

@Chip In my case arriving at 830 AM would have only gotten me, at most, 5 spaces closer to the closest parking spot. I actually was shooting for that time, but got delayed heading up the mtn. Lifts open at 9. Traffic was fine, but steady. I presume most were using the paid lots at Solitude or continuing up to Brighton. BTW, the Moonbeam paid lot was about one-third full at 9 AM on the morning of my visit. Note that Daniel has stated that on busy days at Solitude people have been parking as far as one mile down Big Cottonwood Rd to avoid parking fees.

I should add for those who read this trip report and don't know the cost of parking at Solitude, it is:

Vehicles carrying one or two passengers will be charged the full $20 to park at Solitude. The charge is $10 for three passengers and $5 for four or more passengers.

Therefore, if you are on vacation and have several people in your car spending $5 or 10 is not much of an issue. But for a geezer like me who just wants to do a solo ski session for a partial weekday the $20 starts to become a deterrent, especially since I have pass privileges at other nearby resorts with plenty of free parking.

Jim, very nice recap of a typical non-powder, non-holiday-period weekday at Solitude. Just wanted to alert you and readers that, beginning this season, the full price to park at Solitude per day with one occupant is $25. Here's the webpage with further detail regarding parking: https://www.solitudemountain.com/discover-solitude/getting-here A season parking pass is $275: I believe the season parking pass has increased by $25 each year since paid parking was implemented at Solitude; however, the price is rather minuscule when compared to the Bird's $699 season parking pass.

Also wanted to say that I'm not sure how many people are parking one mile down the canyon road to avoid parking fees. I believe they are parking there because they are determined to ski/ride and have no other place to park because (on weekends, holidays, holiday periods, and powder days) the various car parks at Solitude often fill up very fast. Last season more than this season so far, all parking was sometimes full before lifts even began loading passengers. That's pretty much been eliminated by the 8:00 a.m. partial opening on weekends and holiday periods. If you think walking up canyon for a mile or so in gridlocked traffic to get to the lifts is an ordeal, last season there were many, many weekends and holiday periods where the south side of the canyon road from just above Solitude (beginning at Redman Campground) all the way to just past the fire station almost across from the turn off to Guardsman's Pass was parked solid. As someone who frequently cycles the canyon roads, I can report that Solitude patrons who ended up parking closer to Brighton and Brighton patrons who ended up parking closer to Solitude (because those were the only spots available at that moment to them) were in for a 2 or so mile walk up or down canyon, depending upon one's destination. I can't begin to estimate the amount of times I was offered cash by exhausted skiers/boarders in the afternoon or at the end of the day if I would give them a ride from Solitude's village or thereabouts up to wherever they managed to find an available spot to park up canyon. I no longer drive that section of the canyon road every day of the weekend but one can see the entire stretch of highway from the upper part of the Sunrise chairlift and that condition existed on at least a couple days this season so far that I'm aware of (and I've mostly lost my appetite for skiing and riding on weekends so am not on the mountain at that time to witness this phenomenon often).

 

[David Chaus]

Sooooo….take the bus?

 

[Daniel]

Sooooo….take the bus?

Maybe but during busy periods don't expect to be guaranteed a spot aboard if catching the ski bus anywhere on the east bench or at the mouth of the canyon, as buses will almost certainly fill up earlier along their routes. This despite the fact that there are more buses running more frequently than ever (an upbound bus heading up BCC every 15 minutes all day long). By filled up I mean all seats occupied and people (standing shoulder to shoulder) with their gear packed in like sardines. The other problem is despite the fact that there are numerous ski bus car parks along the routes, on busy days they quickly fill up and late arrivers are forced to park legally and illegally along nearby roads, sometimes a long way away. Also once the canyon becomes gridlocked, buses can't get back down to the valley and are stuck in traffic for long periods of time, putting them way behind schedule to run their next route and causing the number of prospective riders to increase in number at each pick-up location with no relief for extended periods.

Advice: if determined to hit BCC during busy periods leave home early. If determined to ride the ski bus, catch it earlier along its route. On weekends head to less popular resorts: Alta has not been as crowded this year compared to the past. Give Sundance, Deer Valley, or one of the other resorts further away a go. Generally speaking, by mid-February many skiers/riders are weary of the frequent time-consuming commutes up and down the canyon and the parking hassles and move on to cycling, trail running, tennis, rock climbing, etc. Last season the valley was virtually snow free from around early February on. There's so many awesome outdoor activities here to engage in that once people don't see snow in the valley, many jump right into their next seasonal pursuit. To wit, visits during the second half of the season require less strategizing in regard to BCC congestion.

 

[Phelmut]

@Jim Kenney or you could pick up some of the people walking along the road to the resort and give them a lift- and before you know it- $5 parking....

But this is all really great info and the timing is perfect for my upcoming Utah trip.

There is a great episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm where Larry is going to a Dodger game and wants to use the HOV lanes so he picks up a hooker so he has 2 in the car. Many subplots and hilarious.

 

[blah]

Thanks to @Jim Kenney 's trip report, i decided to give it a go today at Solitude. I'm happy to report that the quest for free parking on Big Cottonwood Canyon Rd just outside of Solitude was a success on a Sat, arriving at 8:45am! I was able to find a spot about 10 to 15 cars further down canyon than where @Jim Kenney was able to snag parking on a weekday, at the spot where the road shoulder expands so that cars can park perpendicular, approximately 50 yards further from Moonbeam entrance. Very easy walk, and so totally worth it for free parking.

Skiing was classic spring skiing. Chaulky in the morning; soft in the afternoon (which i call "hot pow"). Really enjoyed noodling around Summit chair and Honeycomb canyon.

 

[Jim Kenney]

Thanks to @Jim Kenney 's trip report, i decided to give it a go today at Solitude. I'm happy to report that the quest for free parking on Big Cottonwood Canyon Rd just outside of Solitude was a success on a Sat, arriving at 8:45am! I was able to find a spot about 10 to 15 cars further down canyon than where @Jim Kenney was able to snag parking on a weekday, at the spot where the road shoulder expands so that cars can park perpendicular, approximately 50 yards further from Moonbeam entrance. Very easy walk, and so totally worth it for free parking.

Skiing was classic spring skiing. Chaulky in the morning; soft in the afternoon (which i call "hot pow"). Really enjoyed noodling around Summit chair and Honeycomb canyon.

Honeycomb! Something I forgot to mention in my report above, Honeycomb Canyon was unfortunately closed on the day of my visit, purportedly due to lack of patrol staff, not lack of snow coverage.

 

[snwbrdr]

My car was caked in grime from last tuesday, but I went to brighton instead for the couple inches of fresh pow.

 

[Jim Kenney]

UPDATE: I was up at Solitude again today, 3 Feb 22. Arrived at 11 am this time and still got close, free parking. Some folks had already come and gone opening up some parking spaces close to the entrance to the Moonbeam base.
There was an inch or two of new snow, but everything continues to be pretty firm. I lapped Honeycomb Canyon quite a bit. It takes about 25 minutes without racing or dawdling, requires three lift rides. It wasn't open the last time I visited.



Honeycomb still had some nice chalk and an inch of fluff in places. This was my favorite line back there:

View of Brighton from summit of Solitude


Solitude Village: