Embarking on a backcountry ski adventure in Utah’s Cottonwood Canyons now demands strategic parking planning. Long gone are the days of making last-minute decisions based on avalanche conditions or powder mornings for a dawn patrol. We now live (and ski) in a new world where advance devising is required. And in certain high-traffic areas, your…
Author: Jared Hargrave
Utah Ski Resort 2023/24 Opening Dates
Ski and snowboard season is near, which means the lifts will soon be running. After a record-breaking snow year for 2022/23, Utah snow sliders of every persuasion are chomping at the bit for more. But a relatively dry autumn has made Utah ski resort opening dates a bit fluid while we wait for epic early-season…
Elevating Utah’s Ski Scene: The Latest Resort Upgrades for the 2023/24 Season
As winter chill sets in, anticipation for Utah’s ski season reaches a fever pitch. Ski enthusiasts, both local and from afar, eagerly await the unveiling of the latest enhancements and upgrades at the Utah’s 15 ski resorts. From Snowbird to Sundance, here’s a rundown of the thrilling developments taking shape for the 2023/24 ski season….
Mountain Biking the new Butterfield Trailhead Regional Park
New trails are always welcome news, especially when they’re singletrack and mountain-bike friendly. So when Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation announced the opening of the Butterfield Trailhead Regional Park, I had to check it out. The Opening of New Trails in Butterfield Canyon Hosted by Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation, Rio Tinto Kennecott,…
The Backcountry Dad Tax
What’s best to eat in the backcountry? It’s a subject that’s long been debated among friends in the skin track. Everyone’s tastes run the food gamut. My buddy, Mike D, is a connoisseur of fine mountain eats such as potato parmesan on naan bread warmed over a backpacking stove. Then there’s my pal, Adam, whose…
Hiking Donut Falls, Now with More Trail, Less Road
I’ve lived in Salt Lake City for 21 years, and I’ve never hiked to Donut Falls in Big Cottonwood Canyon. So on a recent weekend, myself, along with my wife and son, decided to finally tick one of the most popular Wasatch hikes off the to-do list. To my surprise, hiking Donut Falls was better…
UDOT Chooses Gondola Option for Little Cottonwood Canyon
A historic and literal earth-shattering announcement came down as the Utah Department of Transportation announced they have chosen the gondola option for Little Cottonwood Canyon’s travel EIS. UDOT was considering three different options for the canyon: the gondola, enhanced bus service with road widening, or enhanced bus service without road widening. In the end, the…
New Cyn City Trail a Fun Way to Loop off Charlie’s 9k
Park City’s newest downhill trail, Cyn City, is a fun new way to ride a loop off Charlie’s 9k. Cyn City, which officially opened with a ribbon cutting in mid-July, is an intermediate, mountain biking flow trail featuring a ton of double jumps, whoop-de-dos, and large berms built within a shady, old-growth evergreen forest. Ever…
Powder Mountain goes all in on “Dirt Mountain” Downhill Bike Park
Downhill mountain bike parks are proven to draw crowds to ski resorts in the summer months, and Powder Mountain has joined in on the fun. This week, PowMow cut the ribbon on “Dirt Mountain,” the resort’s first lift-served downhill bike park. This gravity-fed trail network is part of a five-year expansion plan to extend year-round…
Bear Claw Poppy Fantastic for Mountain Bike Beginners
Southwest Utah in and around St. George is well known for its increduble variety of desert mountain bike trails. But in that web of intersecting singletrack, which routes are easy, yet challenging enough for beginners and kids? Bear Claw Poppy in St. George pretty much ticks all the boxes. Bear Claw Poppy Mountain Bike Trail…