A lot of people ask me why we only ski in Utah every year. For close to 20 years we skied all over the Country. Initially learning to ski at Mount Snow in Vermont we eventually joined a ski group that went west for spring skiing every year. During that time we skied most resorts in Colorado as well as Lake Tahoe. My family would return to Mount Snow during the President’s birthday weekend in February staying at the Hermitage. They say if you learn to ski in the East you can ski anywhere in the world and I believe that is true. In the East, you learn how to ski in narrow and ice-covered runs which hone your skill level. Skiing on packed groomed powder out West becomes an obsession. The very first time I ever spent overnight at a high altitude I had altitude sickness necessitating me to go to a lower altitude so I initially took a drug called Diamox out west to acclimatize to the altitude but over a course of years by following common sense rules like no alcohol the first day or two and drinking lots of water I found I could do OK without medication. But what I really learned was I needed to sleep under 7000 feet elevation. It’s the old mountaineering rule, sleep low, hike high. Utah offers accommodations for the most part under 7000 feet and lots of packed groomed powder runs that are relaxing and fun. We settled into Deer Valley years ago as they have no hotdog snowboarders and the best gourmet food at any ski resort. We had friends who owned a house on top of Powder Mountain which is above Eden, Utah that offers condos at 5500 feet elevation so over the years we do a week in Powder Mountain and a week in Deer Valley. Powder Mountain has been upgraded and developed over the years and is one if not the largest ski terrain in the world and I have skied there on wide open runs with almost no one else. It does not hurt that both resorts are close to the Salt Lake City Airport with short drives and mostly interstate roads. So we now only go to Utah for easy access, pristine comfortable skiing, and gourmet food at Deer Valley.
Weather this year
The weather this year was epic. When we arrived they had already had 200% of their normal annual snowfall and by the time we were there, there were days where snow was falling 1 foot an hour and at least 2 or 3 days they could not keep the roads clear due to the heavy snowfall. On the days I skied there was an abundance of snow and those who love powder skiing(I am not one of them) were ecstatic and skied fresh 2 feet deep or more of powder every morning. It was just announced that the California ski resorts will remain open until June due to the abundance of snow.
Transportation
Uber
Transportation Options from SLC to the resorts are readily available and plentiful. Because the Public Bus system in Park City/Deer Valley is so good dependent on our circumstances we just use Uber initially taking an Uber to where we are staying in the Park City area. We use the bus most of the time and occasionally use Uber to go to dinner at times. The only problem we ever had was waiting until the last minute to get an Uber back to the airport and almost did not make it so for a future visit we reserve and book an Uber back in advance for our day of departure. Be aware Uber costs are significantly higher since Covid and basically 2X what they used to be.
Bus
I say again the Public Bus System in Park City is the best in the world. It is easy to navigate, pretty much always on time, and you can get anywhere in the immediate area in 30 minutes or less. During this last trip, the main advantage was the buses are designed to operate in deep snow and bad conditions and while riding the bus we passed many stranded cars that could not drive in the conditions. The buses are safe, clean, and comfortable and we rarely stayed outside for more than 5 minutes waiting to get on a warm cozy bus and never missed a reservation.
Rental Car
There are times you want a rental car. But to be clear here you ALWAYS need to rent an AWD/4WD SUV or pickup truck with snow tires or a snow transmission system and the ability to downshift an automatic. At Powder Mountain it is MANDATORY. The road from Eden to Powder Mountain Resort has a 16% grade, one of the steepest in the world. You cannot get up or down the mountain without the proper vehicle. Even in Park City on this trip normal cars were stranded all over the place as a regular car could not get through the snow on the roads. Also if you choose to rent a car make sure you have underground parking or you will be shoveling off snow 3 and 4 feet deep around your vehicle. At Powder Mountain, there is a shuttle bus that goes from the Eden grocery store to Powder Mountain every 30 minutes but there is no Uber there so you really need to rent. We rented an SUV this trip and at Park City/Deer Valley it was parked underground but we needed it for Powder Mountain and we only spent 4 days this year at Deer Valley so we kept it for the convenience and ability to go to the airport when we wanted.
Restaurants
Grub Steak, Park City
As stated we go to Park City/Deer Valley to ski and for the food. We have been going to Grub Steak for over 10 years at least every year. We always gave it 5-star reviews and the owner always emailed me back thanking us for our good review and patronage. This year was no exception despite the owner selling to a corporation and retiring. The food and service were outstanding. The décor is a Western Steak House as opposed to an NYC steakhouse but don’t be fooled the food is 5-star. Our entire table had Prime Rib and it was one of the best any of us had had. The servers were excellent and fun to work with and the price was one of the lowest we paid in the area. We will continue to have dinner there every time we return to the area
Golden Hirsch, Deer Valley
One of the best Scandinavian restaurants in the world is Fireside Dining at Empire Mountain at Deer Valley. For the first time ever we could not get reservations and were told all reservations had been full since October which I find hard to believe. So to enjoy rachelete and Weinerschnizel the only other opportunity was the Golden Hirsch at Silver Lake. We have eaten there many times before and the food is usually close to Fireside Dining but sadly this year it wasn’t that good. The menu selections were a lot less, a victim of Covid I assume, but everything just seemed off and not as good as years before. It didn’t help that it took twice as long to get there due to a whiteout blizzard and I suspect they were short-staffed as a result. But the place was packed with patrons so plenty of folks went. Maybe it was just an off night.
Stein Erickson, Deer Valley
Continuing to be the 5-star restaurant in the world, certainly in our opinion one of the top 10 ever is at the Stein Erickson Lodge at Silver Lake. This is a bucket list place and you will never experience this high-quality food and service anywhere else. They have an opulent skiers buffet for lunch daily but the Sunday Brunch which we attended is decadent and over the top. You name it they have it. Prime Rib carved beef, caviar, mussels, shrimp, clams, multiple salads, breakfast food, fish, and poultry, just an immense display of food with the service and wine to go along with it. We had a white Burgundy by Madame Leroy who made DRC wines until 1978, which you rarely see anywhere outside of France except maybe Blackberry Farms in Tennessee who seem to have a monopoly of her wines. Brunch was almost a spiritual experience and even if you don’t ski it is worth the trip out there just to have Sunday Brunch.
Royal Cafe, Deer Valley
Operated by Deer Valley and located at the Silver Lake ski lodge this is the only sit-down, table service restaurant at Deer Valley for lunch. Everything else is a buffet. We had a delightful lunch here with great wild game chili, prime meat sandwiches, and the other usual lunch fare. Service was excellent and not rushed and they also have a good drink and wine menu. We have had lunch here, for the most part, every year for the past 10 years and will continue to return.
Fresh Market, Park City
Fresh Market is known to most of us, we have a couple in the Jacksonville area and they are known as an upscale grocery store with unique offerings and high-grade food such as prime steaks and precooked meals. On arrival, we stop here to stock up on basics and for those nights you want to stay in and cook they have an overwhelming number of choices you can take home. The store is one of the biggest I have seen and they have most other sundry items, cosmetics, etc. It is right on the main drag in Park City.
Riverhorse on Main, Park City
We have been almost every year except years when some billionaire rents out the entire place for a week. It is hard to get into this place and despite having a reservation this year for some reason they decided to give me a hard time and briefly held up our being seated so they could “check things out”. I guess when you are overbooked every night with a hundred on the wait list you can afford to be picky but it does not set well with me. Despite this the food was exceptional. Some of the best of the trip. Innovative tasty well prepared dishes cooked perfectly. Service was friendly and knowledgeable but at times slow but it was snowing a foot an hour outside and we had nowhere else to go so what’s the rush, we could have been somewhere much worse. It is also a bucket list kind of place but you must make reservations far in advance and you need to make them the day you know you are going to the Park City area.
Edge Steakhouse, The Canyons
Without a doubt probably one of the top 10 Steakhouses in the USA. We have now gone yearly for at least 6 or 7 years and it is one of the main reasons we go to the Park City area just to eat there. What has always drawn us is as best as I can tell they have the largest selection of genuine A5 Japanese Kobe meat in the US at least. A wide selection of cuts and sizes. I had a totally decadent “Surf and Turf” with Australian Lobster and an A5 filet, pure heaven. Plenty of other selections to satisfy any palate. They are known for A5 steak caps which to my knowledge I have seen nowhere else. They have an extensive wine list with most cult wines from France and California(think Screaming Eagle, Scarecrow) and of course with the prices to match. Sometimes you need to mortgage your house to eat here and there are much more economical places to get great food, but not A5. In the end to me, this is one of only 2 or 3 places where I feel I get my money's worth for what we pay and it is always a wonderful experience. A true bucket list place to go once in your life.
