So, it looks like we'll be taking a skiing trip to Park City, Utah in March. Obviously, Amanda won't be skiing - she'll be hanging out and being comfortable in bed. But the parents and my sister and her fiancee will be coming and it'll be good family time.

Have others been here before? Any recommendations for things to do or places to eat?

Masaki

Park City is charming! Our visit was about six years ago so I am reluctant to make recommendations. I remember lots of good restaurants and great snow. We skiied at Deer Valley primarily and I'd love to go back.

Enjoy! Cheers, Anne

Anne - thanks for chiming in! We're looking forward to it since it'll be our first time here.

Masaki

Masaki, you don't have to travel all that way to go skiing! Can you actually ski there or are there no facilities? I imagine it's hard to ski if there are no lifts :)


Snow Atop Hawaii Peaks


HONOLULU (AP) - A winter weather warning for the summits of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the Big Island has been canceled.

The National Weather Service says that while temperatures there are still in the 20s and winds remain strong, the skies have cleared and the snow has stopped.

I have never understood rocketing down a big hill on two boards, risking being dumped into frozen stuff at any minute. That is NOT what I call being *in control* of my life.

YMMV, of course.

Masaki, fyi...avanlanche in Park City...

At least one person trapped as avalanche hits ritzy US ski resort

14 Jan 5pm


LOS ANGELES (AFP) - A massive avalanche struck a ski area in the ritzy US resort of Park City, burying at least one person under a mountain of snow, police said.




Unconfirmed media reports said that up to 15 people could have been trapped in the avalanche in the western state of Utah.


Emergency services were scrambling to rescue skiers who may have been engulfed by the 300-500 meter (yard) slide in the Canyon ski area on Friday afternoon, officials of the Summit County Sheriff's department said.


"There has just been an avalanche and there appears to be at least one person trapped," an official, who requested anonymity, told AFP.


The avalanche followed extremely heavy snowfalls across the area over the past 10 days.


Park City is a popular ski resort about 30 miles (50 kilometers) east of Salt Lake City where the world's premier independent movie showcase, the annual Sundance Film Festival (news - web sites), is due to begin in one week.


Scores of Hollywood celebrities attend the festival, organised by screen star Robert Redford, and ski on the resort's slopes.

This avalanche was, of course, in an "out of bounds" area. I can't imagine why folks would ski in those areas when so much wet, heavy snow has just fallen.

Masaki, I have been to Park City several times, (tho' not in recent years) as my neighbors have a house there right across the street from the main lift area. Be sure and ski for a day at least in Deer Valley near the beginning of the trip to see if you prefer it. Their day-time eating facilities were many cuts above the normal fare at most places where I have skiied Not sure about the restaurants in town for dinner these days. Check out with the locals to see if Stein Erikson's Lodge in Deer Valley has a nice restaurant for a really special evening with our Mom-to-be! It is a top notch property.

Top ten reasons skiing is better than sex:

10. Choice of day or night
9. You pay once to go up and down all day
8. Skis are always hard
7. You have your choice of expert or beginner
6. You always get picked up when in line
5. Lubricant lasts for days
4. Vertical is better than horizontal
3. You can ride more than 2 mounds at a time
2. Lessons are available
1. Abundance of virgin territory

Sorry, couldn't resist. <a href='http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb008_ZSXXXXXXXXUS' target='_blank'><img src='http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_1_15.gif' border=0></a>

Or, you might like this one better:

This is to remind skiers how to prepare for the ski season and to remind non-skiers why they do not ski.

10. Visit your local butcher and pay $30 to sit in the walk-in freezer for half an hour. Afterwards, burn two $50 dollar bills to warm up.

9. Go to the nearest hockey rink and walk across the ice 20 times in your ski boots carrying two pairs of skis, accessory bag and poles. Pretend you are looking for your car.

8. For ski boot simulation at home, put a pebble in your street shoes and tighten a C-clamp around your toes.

7. Buy a pair of gloves and immediately throw one away.

6. Go to McDonald's and insist on paying $6.50 for a hamburger. Be sure to wait in the longest line.

5. Clip a lift ticket to the zipper of your jacket and ride a motorcycle fast enough to make the ticket lacerate your face.

4. Drive slowly for five hours - anywhere - as long as it's in a snowstorm and you're following an 18 wheeler.

3. Fill a blender with ice, hit the pulse button and let the spray blast your face. You'd almost believe you're skiing in front of a snowmaker!

2. Dress up in as many clothes as you can and then proceed to take them off because you have to go to the bathroom.

1. Repeat all of the above every Saturday and Sunday.

<a href='http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb008_ZSXXXXXXXXUS' target='_blank'><img src='http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/18/18_6_109.gif' border=0></a>

LeeAnne, you have far too much time on your hands to entertain us! Your lists were So funny! Hope that job comes in soon, but we will miss whatever humor lacks on this board after you do!

I think I need to start skiing again instead of nothing but cruising, by the way. But it is HARD work, but so much fun, doing that thing Pam talked about above.

LeeAnne,
You are TOO funny!

Masaki,

I KNOW you will be mindful of conditions when you go, but I immediately thought of you when I saw the news tonight! (Mother & Grandmother Kathy here!)

Amanda and Masaki, considering the dangers inherent to Utah, it's obviously best that you come to Oregon instead, and ski Mt. Hood (well, okay, not Little Fish). Stay at Timberline Lodge, drink Oregon microbrews (none for Little Fish), and then wind down at our house with some grilled salmon. We'll also introduce you to some lovely Oregon pinot noirs (except for Little Fish). :)

LeeAnne, great lists, the first is a riot, the second is soooo true, thx..r/wes

LeeAnne: Those of us who have been there, done it... are all laughting over your 2 lists!

Masaki:

Andi & I did Utah a number of years ago & loved it. While I can't give you any restaurant or lodging recomendations (been too long), I can tell you to do Deer Valley. We loved it for the well kept slopes & what has been said above. Park City was a very close 2nd.
Snowbird was a more rustic & challenging site. At that time it was a wee bit above our skill set.
There was a 4th site. I cannot recall the name. It, too, was more Snowbird like than Deer Valley.

Enjoy It.

Doug

Alta is the 4th one. Hard, hard, skiing. I didn't like it at all.

Thanks for all the recommendations, guys!! I just heard about the avalanche ... yikes! But I'd never ski out-of-bounds areas so we should be OK. I've been researching places to eat as well and all the good places seem to be in Deer Valley so I'm with you all there!

MarnaLou - very tempting!

LeeAnne - your lists were hilarious :D

Masaki

Masaki...I second (or third) the recommendations for Deer Valley - the sking is great and the food as well.

Park City also has many charming restaurants. I haven't been there in ages, so perhaps things have changed, but because it's Utah, ordering drinks and/or wine has some interesting nuances. Maybe that's history now.

Masaki,

Today's Los Angeles Times Travel Section's cover article was about Park City and the Sundance Festival. It was 3 full pages including what else to do besides ski.

www.losangelestimes.com

There are 5 places to ski around Park City. Park City is about 30 minutes from Salt Lake City. About 1 mile from PC is Dear Valley.

Our favorite is Deer Valley. Many folks just lie out in the lounge chairs and sun (yes, in winter). Besides wonderful skiing, shopping and food are wonderful. There is a great seafood buffet.

Park City is a fun place too. There is usually lots to do, but it is not as glam as Deer Valley. There is the old Wolff mountain, which has been renamed. It is down the road from Park City.

Snowbird is great for watching off piste and helicopter skiing. It is a lovely resort.

Then, there is ALta, beautiful scenery....

I would like to recommend that Amanda take it easy at first...altitude sickness can occur here easily. Don't eat much the day before and drink lots of water.

Stein Erikson is a great place for nice hot chocolate and a lovely meal.

Downtown Salt Lake City is less than 30 minutes away and there is lots to do there. Good restaurants in SLC.

Park City is fun for the evenings. You won't be bored. There are good family places for dinner there.

Where are you staying?

We're actually going to be at the Canyons resort in Park City which is apparently one of 3 resorts in Park City (the others being Park City Mountain Resort and Deer Valley). It does mention being only 5 minutes away from downtown Park City and that Deer Valley is close by so I expect that we'll be doing a lot of back and forth for dining and such. We're staying at the Sundial Lodge there which is a ski in/ski out condominium at the Canyons.

Thanks for all the suggestions. Kathy - I'll have to take a look at that article. :)

Masaki

LeeAnne, those were too funny!

MarnaLou, we'd love to take you up on your suggestions. One of these days!

And Andi, I'll definitely take it easy between lectures. Maybe I'll try to lounge outside in my polartec and get some sun!

The Canyons is the old Wolff mountain. It used to be predominantly snowbording. It IS right down the road from Park City. I have never been to the Canyons, but passed it all the time. Deer Valley is equidistant to Park City Resort, in the other direction.

Canyons was recently (last 5 years) renovated and converted to be part of the Park City Resort area and I expect it is as welcoming as both Park City and Deer Valley. Park City itself is an adorable cowboy town. There are lifts to and from the town to Park City Resort.

Andi - thanks for the info. I'm getting a better feel for the geography of the area. We may have to try out Stein Erikson. And the Hotel Park City sounds wonderful as well ... might need to drop by that hotel as well. :)

Masaki

We found the Park City, Snowbird and Deer Valley resorts very lovely. They are geared for an all around vacation. If you golf, there is golfing and ice skating.

We were amazed at how good the food was....no crappy lodge food. Very healthy California cuisine...sushi, etc. and good steaks.

Park City offered good family skiing at all levels of skiing. Deer Valley controls the number of folks at the resort, so its slopes are never too crowded. It is definitely an RSSC experience with folks carrying your skis from the car to the lodge and valet parking your car for no fee. The skiing is very varied with some nice tree skiing. Snowbird is very advanced with lots of helicopter skiing.

What we found interesting is that all of the resorts, while close, can offer completely different skiing experiences due to very different weather and logistics. You can have ice at one (but rare in Utah), packed powder in another and fluffy powder in another. Deer Valley really grooms its slopes fantastically. Park City leaves more natural.

There's apparently a lift ticket that you can buy that gives you lift privileges at all 3 resorts. The Silver Passport or something like that. I think we'd want something like that to give us different options on a daily basis ... :)

Masaki

PS: I'm getting very excited for this trip!

That's what we did. Skiing is such a different experience at all the resorts.

If you have a chance, take a drive over to Alta and Snowbird. They are very, very different types of ski resorts. Alta is very basic, but has incredible talcum powder slopes. You have to try it. The chair lifts with no bar are an experience. This resort also has incredible bowls at all levels.

Snowbird is wonderful to see. Both of you should just ride the lifts for the scenery. It is a nice place for a drink. The other resorts are not very scenic. They are very nice and do have views, but they are nothing like Snowbird or Alta. I found Snowbird very advanced. Doug liked it a lot and I preferred Alta. Alta is very cheap...$25 per day?

We both enjoyed Park City and loved Deer Valley.

I don't know if Amanada wants to do this, but you could take skidoos out for the scenery.

I'm with you Pam. Of course I have the scars on my knee from skiing to make me think that way.

Masaki - taken from the Park City web page...

Additional discounts on multi-day tickets are available with lodging booked through Park City Mountain Reservations: 800-222-PARK. Kids six and under ski free (when accompanied by a full paying adult). And don't forget to book your Silver Passport through Mountain Reservations. This gives you a single lift ticket to all three resorts in the Park City Area. The Silver Passport must be booked prior to arrival.

Masaki, there may be discounts if you are staying at a Park City lodge. Do check with the hotel.

Thanks guys. I'll talk to the reservations department and see what they say ... maybe they'll have them!

Masaki