# So I'm going to Utah...



## cav0011 (Jan 4, 2009)

Its a fine idea. Depending on what type of riding you like to do which resorts are best changes. I would say that at the very least you should hit up canyons since its right next to PCMR. Most people who like doing bigger lines and off piste stuff should at least try snowbird. Solitude has no park but if you dont care about that sort of thing can be a good time.


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## deagol (Mar 26, 2014)

I would spend all my time at Alta..


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

cav0011 said:


> Its a fine idea. Depending on what type of riding you like to do which resorts are best changes. I would say that at the very least you should hit up canyons since its right next to PCMR. Most people who like doing bigger lines and off piste stuff should at least try snowbird. Solitude has no park but if you dont care about that sort of thing can be a good time.



Park is not a big concern for me. 



deagol said:


> I would spend all my time at Alta..



It's that good? I will definitely spend more than a day at certain places.. It's why I'm asking.


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## SkullAndXbones (Feb 24, 2014)

alta and deer valley are a must




if you go to park city i think you should go between january 22 - feb. 1 because that's when the sundance film festival is and i heard the mountains are pretty uncrowded during that time.


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

Smoking weed and listening to loud rap music is the shit in the Alta parking lot.


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## deagol (Mar 26, 2014)

sorry Jhucke, I guess my sarcasm didn't come through about Alta.... snowboarding isn't allowed there or Deer Valley.


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## onel0wcubn (Oct 8, 2009)

I would Def hit up canyons since it right next to park city.. lots of terrain over there with a good hike.


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

I would try and avoid public transport honestly. It'd just be easier to stick to one resort.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

deagol said:


> sorry Jhucke, I guess my sarcasm didn't come through about Alta.... snowboarding isn't allowed there or Deer Valley.



Shit man! lol you got me, I thought it was just deer valley that was skiing only.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

Bamfboardman said:


> I would try and avoid public transport honestly. It'd just be easier to stick to one resort.



Might be the easiest way. I should be spoiled enough with 2 resorts like PCMR and canyons. Heard solitude is a must see, though.


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## 70'sskater (Mar 20, 2014)

Jhucke said:


> Me and my friend are coming to Utah the first week in January. Before doing any reading, I decided on Park City and didn't realize how many other great mountain options there are. We have 4 total days to ride, thinking about going to a different resort each day via the bus system there.. Good idea or bad? Park city, solitude, snowbird, canyons?


Unless you are into park riding I would avoid Park City and stick to Brighton, Solitude and Snowbird. More snow and better terrain. January is infamous for the inversion, if you could postpone till Feb or march you have a better chance for pow and and there will be more snow overall base wise. Have fun.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

70'sskater said:


> Unless you are into park riding I would avoid Park City and stick to Brighton, Solitude and Snowbird. More snow and better terrain. January is infamous for the inversion, if you could postpone till Feb or march you have a better chance for pow and and there will be more snow overall base wise. Have fun.



College break makes a February trip impossible or I would. I'll keep this in mind.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

is there going to be any decent snow at all at canyons or PCRM? Thinking about just spending all my time at solitude and snowbird now that I look at snow reports..


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

Jhucke said:


> is there going to be any decent snow at all at canyons or PCRM? Thinking about just spending all my time at solitude and snowbird now that I look at snow reports..


There good snow everywhere. Honestly Snowbird has been shit lately and Big Cottonwood (Solitude and Brighton) haven't been much better. The resorts in PC are better purely based off of the snow not being ice because they get a lot of sun.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

Bamfboardman said:


> There good snow everywhere. Honestly Snowbird has been shit lately and Big Cottonwood (Solitude and Brighton) haven't been much better. The resorts in PC are better purely based off of the snow not being ice because they get a lot of sun.



Got it.. Me and my buddy here usually have to take these trips during spring break, just before they are shutting down mountains and we still have the time of our f'ing lives, so whatever it is, it is. We will play it by ear. Anything will be better than what we have here in Wisconsin.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

Are there a lot of places that demo boards? Looking to upgrade to something stiffer than my gnu carbon credit. Figured I could find myself a gnu dealer and check out a riders choice or maybe find a capita TFA


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## SGoldwin (Oct 10, 2011)

I went there with a couple of friends 3 years ago. 
From our rented house in Salt Lake City I remember we had 8 great resorts within 40 minute ride by car. 

Based on weather forecast we selected where to go. If it's dumping everywhere then Snowbird, Solitude and Brighton are good choices. Solitude was my personal favorite.

Last day at our stay Sundance got a dump so we went there. And what a fun place. If I remember correctly it only has 4 chair lifts and so small compared to the other resorts. The best part of it had one great big bowl and a big canyon with plenty of lines to chose. And best of all it was only us, or it felt like that. Brighton and Snowbird can get pretty crowded after a dump but as I understood it not that many people goes to Sundance. 

Here is a snowreport of Utah resorts.
Ski Utah - Utah Snowreport


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## neednsnow (Nov 30, 2007)

OP:

I travel from the east and go to Utah a few times a year. Let me answer some questions for you.

1 Staying in Park City is great from 4-midnight! 

2. If there is a chance you can rent a car, do it. Then you aren't subject to public transportation. Rentals in SLC are relatively cheap and you really don't need the 4WD. If necessary, you can park at the base of the canyons and take the bus the extra 15 mins.


I have a few questions:

Have you ridden out west before? If so, where. I saw you post something about Spring breaks. Park City is more mellow out west riding, Snowbird is more Big Mountain Shiz. Brighton/Solitude are smaller blend of both. Snowbasin is somewhere in the middle.

Having ridden the west a bunch, I (personally) rank Utah resorts in the following manner.

1. Snowbird (Real-Deal stuff. Yes crowded, but if the snow is fresh, this place is just absurd!) Gets the best snowfall of all SLC spots.

2. Snowbasin: Off the beaten-path, so crowds are rare, here. Upscale amenities, so you can feel all poshy if you're into that. Usually a little lower on the snowfall than some other Utah resorts, but when they do get snow, it doesn't get tracked-out like the other resorts. Fresh snow can be found for weeks.

3. Brighton: Locals Love it. I don't mind it, but it can get tracked-out pretty quickly. If you like the local snow-bro vibe, this is your place. Like Bird, gets big snowfalls. Much smaller than Bird.

4. Solitude: Just down the road from Brighton (seriously, you can ski both on one pass.) Family-focused resort with some pretty silly terrain. Smaller like Brighton.

(Note: realize the word Small is relative: Brighton and Solitude are great, but you can lap these places. A place like Snowbird is like Snowmass or Squaw....just huge!)

5. Canyons: Not great snow. Mellow terrain. Decent, but I've been there a few times and never overly impressed.

Follow the storms: These guys are pretty up on their forecasts.

opensnow.com


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

neednsnow said:


> OP:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Thanks this is exactly what I was looking for. 

I've snowboarded at Steamboat Springs, CO, Whister BC and Breckenridge. Really enjoyed Whister, it was absolutely enormous! First time I've ridden bowls before, it was almost overwhelming. 

I will see if a rental car is in the budget for sure.


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

Jhucke said:


> Are there a lot of places that demo boards? Looking to upgrade to something stiffer than my gnu carbon credit. Figured I could find myself a gnu dealer and check out a riders choice or maybe find a capita TFA


You might check Milo and Salty Peaks. Most of the demo days are in PC. Snowbird is however getting NS demos this Friday not that that matters for you.


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## neednsnow (Nov 30, 2007)

So you have some experience. Snowbird is like the upper half of Breck, but no town. Park City is like Breck's town but Steamboat mountain with less snow. 

Can't speak to Whistler.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

neednsnow said:


> So you have some experience. Snowbird is like the upper half of Breck, but no town. Park City is like Breck's town but Steamboat mountain with less snow.
> 
> 
> 
> Can't speak to Whistler.



Then we will HAVE to visit snowbird at least one of the days. Thank you!


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## vajohn (Jan 12, 2014)

If I only had 4 days...cheap rental car (not suv, you can take bus if it is a chains only day), stay at a cheap hotel in the valley, and hit solitude/brighton. Maybe snowbird on a weekday. The conditions were better at sol/bright the times I have been, but it is amazing how different they can be on a given day when they are so close to each other.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

vajohn said:


> If I only had 4 days...cheap rental car (not suv, you can take bus if it is a chains only day), stay at a cheap hotel in the valley, and hit solitude/brighton. Maybe snowbird on a weekday. The conditions were better at sol/bright the times I have been, but it is amazing how different they can be on a given day when they are so close to each other.



Seems to be the plan! Going to play conditions by ear when I'm there. We already have a hotel booked in park city, but I'm not too worried.


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

Jhucke said:


> Seems to be the plan! Going to play conditions by ear when I'm there. We already have a hotel booked in park city, but I'm not too worried.


I'm sure you'll have an awesome time. Check out Reefs Kitchen for some awesome food. Also Davanzas for some damn good pizza.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

Bamfboardman said:


> I'm sure you'll have an awesome time. Check out Reefs Kitchen for some awesome food. Also Davanzas for some damn good pizza.



Oh perfect. I'm a bit of a pizza connoisseur, is it woodfired pizza? Nothing better than that.


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

Jhucke said:


> Oh perfect. I'm a bit of a pizza connoisseur, is it woodfired pizza? Nothing better than that.


Ha, if only. Its more of a 2 slices for 6 bucks type of place. The best pizza is in Salt Lake at a place called Nuches but the Pie and Este are also really good places to get some pizza. Whatever you do stay away from Snowbird Pizza, It's pretty damn bad.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

Bamfboardman said:


> Ha, if only. Its more of a 2 slices for 6 bucks type of place. The best pizza is in Salt Lake at a place called Nuches but the Pie and Este are also really good places to get some pizza. Whatever you do stay away from Snowbird Pizza, It's pretty damn bad.



Can't argue with that, so excited to go. Are you from around there?


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

Jhucke said:


> Can't argue with that, so excited to go. Are you from around there?


I've lived in Salt Lake my whole life. Grown up riding at Snowbird but I've ridden all the other resorts (including Alta). I tend to stay in the cottonwoods but PC is really fun because the park is good and when it snows everyone goes inside to the lodge.


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## cav0011 (Jan 4, 2009)

If you head up to Ogden Lucky Slice Pizza is the best new york style pizza I have ever had outside of New York.

The Pie is not a pizza, it is however a delicious pizza like construct


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

Bamfboardman said:


> I've lived in Salt Lake my whole life. Grown up riding at Snowbird but I've ridden all the other resorts (including Alta). I tend to stay in the cottonwoods but PC is really fun because the park is good and when it snows everyone goes inside to the lodge.



Cool man, maybe I'll see you out there. 



cav0011 said:


> If you head up to Ogden Lucky Slice Pizza is the best new york style pizza I have ever had outside of New York.
> 
> The Pie is not a pizza, it is however a delicious pizza like construct



My favorite is Neapolitan style, but I'll check these places out if I can!


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

cav0011 said:


> If you head up to Ogden Lucky Slice Pizza is the best new york style pizza I have ever had outside of New York.
> 
> The Pie is not a pizza, it is however a delicious pizza like construct


I would have to agree. It's more a mutant spawn.


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## cav0011 (Jan 4, 2009)

The first time I went to The Pie, I ordered extra cheese (like I always do) that was a huge mistake.


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## Trabi75 (Dec 12, 2014)

*ski the beav*

If you're gonna drive north to Ogden, spend another hour and half and drive to Beaver. Small resort but fun. If it were closer I woulda got a season to there and not Basin. I hope this year can change my mind. I'm from up there and may be biased. As for SLC, Snowbird is amazing and Brighton can be fun. Only other place I've been was the Canyons, and was underwhelmed, granted it wasn't under good conditions


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## neednsnow (Nov 30, 2007)

Good work on the first post. Welcome to the forums.


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## Trabi75 (Dec 12, 2014)

Thanks. Actually went to basin today. Good first day (well its always a good day whenever and wherever you can snowboard)but needs alot of snow. Hopefully the snow today was a sign of what's to come.


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

Trabi75 said:


> Thanks. Actually went to basin today. Good first day (well its always a good day whenever and wherever you can snowboard)but needs alot of snow. Hopefully the snow today was a sign of what's to come.


Thats pretty much everywhere in Utah right now. I was at snowbird today and there are literally rocks in the middle of cat tracks. Upper Silver fox is a bare cliff band right now. We need snow.


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## neednsnow (Nov 30, 2007)

Bamfboardman said:


> Thats pretty much everywhere in Utah right now. I was at snowbird today and there are literally rocks in the middle of cat tracks. Upper Silver fox is a bare cliff band right now. We need snow.


Your wish is my command.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

neednsnow said:


> Your wish is my command.



Yeah looks like Utah was fricken pounded!!


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

Jhucke said:


> Yeah looks like Utah was fricken pounded!!


It was pounded but nobody could ride the snow.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

Bamfboardman said:


> It was pounded but nobody could ride the snow.



Mountain report said up to 75mph gusts.. Can't imagine you would actually want to be riding..


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

Jhucke said:


> Mountain report said up to 75mph gusts.. Can't imagine you would actually want to be riding..


Yeah I'd ride in 75 mph winds. Wind isn't a big deal for anything but the lifts.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

What's with snowbird and only having 1/3 of its runs open all the time? Is there seriously not enough snow?


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

By the way.... Does anyone know anything about alcohol in checked bags?


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## tw88 (Jan 4, 2015)

Public transit doesn't run from park city to the cotton wood resorts, so if you are wanting to hit up snowbird, brighton, and solitude then i would rent a car. If the snow if falling everywhere all the resorts are great, if it hasn't snowed in a while, or if its a warmer storm the cotton wood resorts will have much better conditions. Snowbird is super steep and a fun mountain that makes you feel like your in the back country. Brighton has a good intermediate park that you can ride from top to bottom and some good trees, milly and great western have great stuff on pow days. Solitude, as the name suggest, lack crowds, honeycomb canyon is great on pow days. Park city is pretty mellow, park has bigger features than what they have at brighton but its more fragmented unlike brightons park. Canyons is mellow and has some fun stuff too. Night life and off mountain activities are pretty limited/non-existent in the cottonwood resorts. Main street in Park city has lots of fun bars and night clubs to hit up, cool art galleries, and lots of (pricey) restaurants.


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

Jhucke said:


> What's with snowbird and only having 1/3 of its runs open all the time? Is there seriously not enough snow?


Avalanche danger is always high after a storm


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## Bamfboardman (Dec 11, 2012)

Jhucke said:


> By the way.... Does anyone know anything about alcohol in checked bags?


Utah has perfectly fine booze. No reason to bring it with you but its completely fine if you do.


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## Jhucke (Sep 7, 2011)

Anyone want to give us a ride from park city? We will pay. I don't think either of us want to deal with rental car stuff.


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