Utah touring question.

[rfarren]

I was looking at google earth and was checking out the Wasatch range resorts. It appears that Park City is easy enough to get to from Brighton. I know that you can hit Brighton and Solitude from Alta. However I was wondering if anyone on this forum has hit all the park city, bcc, lcc, resorts in one day? Is it even possible?

 

[Marc_C]

I was looking at google earth and was checking out the Wasatch range resorts. It appears that Park City is easy enough to get to from Brighton. I know that you can hit Brighton and Solitude from Alta. However I was wondering if anyone on this forum has hit all the park city, bcc, lcc, resorts in one day? Is it even possible?

Yeah. It's called the Utah Interconnect Tour and costs $195. See: http://www.skiutah.com/interconnect/

 

[rfarren]

I really didn't have a guided tour in mind, but I guess it's cheaper than buying 7 lift tickets. Do they require you to have touring gear, or can you do this in your alpine boots?

 

[Admin]

Most Interconnect Tour skiers use alpine gear. Also, FWIW, not only is it cheaper than multiple lift tickets (the Interconnect tour, IIRC, does not include The Canyons due to time constraints for doing it in a day), but you also get the guides with priceless avi knowledge. It also includes lunch.

 

[icelanticskier]

word, very easy to access the park city side from bcc. i used to skin up between usa bowl and willow, bang a left on the crest, past the monitors and ski down to the canyons from the ridge alot. i'd ski down to the dreamscape lift where they never check tickets, cuz it's up on the mountain, do some laps at sunday river in utah thenat the top of that chair i would skin back up to the lift to the crest again then back down to bcc-solitude lot via usa bowl or willow fork. i used to do this for a morning tour before work cuz it was easy with very little if any exposure to avy terrain and exit turns were always good as you can avoid straight south exposure on way back to bcc. very straight forward touring out there if you have a clear day and any sense of direction, and a map.
hope this helps
rog

 

[rfarren]

I think the interconnect tour is a must for my next time out in Utah. According to the site, I will not need touring gear. However, one of my off-season purchases will be an avy beacon, and I will sign myself up for an avy I course early next year. Somewhere on the east coast, of course. I've seen the light when it comes to side-country and back-country and I can't turn back.

 

[rfarren]

Interestingly enough, the tour that leaves from Deer Valley is the only one that hits the PCR resorts. The tour from snowbird sticks to the cottonwood canyons.

 

[Admin]

I think the interconnect tour is a must for my next time out in Utah. According to the site, I will not need touring gear. However, one of my off-season purchases will be an avy beacon

...and shovel and probe...

and I will sign myself up for an avy I course early next year.

=D>

Somewhere on the east coast, of course.

Of course you could, but not necessarily. Avi I is three days, which would make a nice half a vacation IMO. For example Mark Renson, who's on Ski Patrol in Mt. Washington, N.H. still takes very advanced week-long avalanche courses in the Canadian Rockies pretty much every year.

 

[Admin]

Interestingly enough, the tour that leaves from Deer Valley is the only one that hits the PCR resorts. The tour from snowbird sticks to the cottonwood canyons.

Dang, here I am caught in the double-reply cycle! :lol:

The tour from Snowbird-to-Snowbird is the one that Jon, Skidog and I caught up with on Saturday. I did that tour while here on vacation in 2004 and there was barely enough time to make the loop, as they make a couple of runs within each resort. Doing the loop from DV through the Cottonwoods back to DV would be a race to finish in a day.

FWIW, there's a video shot on that day in 2004 on the http://www.skimovies.com/ page.

 

[rfarren]

Of course you could, but not necessarily. Avi I is three days, which would make a nice half a vacation IMO. For example Mark Renson, who's on Ski Patrol in Mt. Washington, N.H. still takes very advanced week-long avalanche courses in the Canadian Rockies pretty much every year.

Is there an avy course offered around SLC?

 

[Admin]

Lots here. And I mean lots. Consult the list at http://www.avalanche.org/~uac/AvyCourseSummary.htm

 

[Marc_C]

The tour from Snowbird-to-Snowbird is the one that Jon, Skidog and I caught up with on Saturday. I did that tour while here on vacation in 2004 and there was barely enough time to make the loop, as they make a couple of runs within each resort. Doing the loop from DV through the Cottonwoods back to DV would be a race to finish in a day.

I thought that the full tour was a one way affair and they took you back to DV in their van after finishing at Snowbird.

 

[Admin]

There are two Tour options. One is a Snowbird-to-Snowbird loop that encompasses the 4 Cottonwood Canyons resorts. The other is as you describe.