I can’t think of a bigger, better opening weekend than the one we had over Thanksgiving Weekend. The first week of Utah’s 2019/20 ski season was definitely one to remember. According to Ski Utah, the Thanksgiving storm dumped up to 70 inches on Northern Utah’s resorts.
The Thanksgiving Storm
My memory may be shot, but I don’t recall an opening day with that much snow all at once. The numbers are impressive:
- Alta Ski Area – 69″
- Brian Head Ski Resort – 60″
- Brighton – 63″
- Park City Mountain – 50″
- Powder Mountain – 46″
- Snowbasin Resort – 51″
- Snowbird – 70″
- Solitude Mountain Resort – 50″
Both Deer Valley and Sundance saw impressive snowfall numbers as well from the Thanksgiving storm. They open on December 7th and you know all that untouched powder is just waiting for skiers to drop in.
First Day for the Short Person
Unfortunately for me, I had to miss out on all the Thanksgiving fun because I was visiting family out of state (though I’m glad I didn’t have to endure the traffic nightmare in the canyons.) However, Sunday bloomed sunny and warm so I took my son, Ridge, to Solitude for his first day of the season. We stayed on Easy Street under the Link lift to get his ski legs back under him.
The big storms gave us excellent coverage and soft snow for making those pizza/french fries and snowplow turns. The boy had a blast and didn’t want to stop skiing. I had to persuade him to go inside the Moombean Lodge with the promise of hot chocolate. Even after that break we skied at least another six or seven runs.
Groomer Heaven
Then on Wednesday, I went back to Solitude to ski for myself. Powderhorn and Eagle Express lifts are now open and there’s a good amount of terrain to ski considering December has just begun. I was very impressed with the snow coverage for this time of year as well. I skied several runs off Eagle and Powderhorn and didn’t hit a single rock. You read that right – I skied under the Powderhorn lift on December 4th and didn’t gouge my skis at all. Unprecedented! I give thanks to that Thanksgiving storm.
The skiing is excellent at Solitude right now with packed powder and small moguls forming. But I suggest you ski there first thing in the morning because all this soft, deep snow is ideal for perfect grooming conditions. Make those first corduroy turns before it gets track up… just like a powder day. The groomers today were outstanding and fast. I especially had fun getting a workout making laps down Sunshine Bowl and Sundancer.
Looks like more snow is on the way for a weekend refresher. According to the OpenSnow.com Utah forecast, A mid-week system moves through dropping a couple of inches on the Cottonwood Canyons. But the weekend will get a bigger punch as Sunday could see 10-16 inches. Better get up the canyons early to find parking and get fresh tracks.