Four ski resorts powered up their chair lifts over the holiday weekend and several more are preparing to following the latest winter storm.
Brian Head, Brighton, Snowbird and Park City Mountain resorts are now open to skiers thanks to cooperation from Mother Nature.
“We can see on our valley floor right now winter is here, which is very exciting, and I think all the resorts are now ready and prepared to open,” says Paul Marshall, communications director for Ski Utah, an industry group representing the state’s 14 resorts.
“Some of the resorts did have to push their opening days, but others are on track to open as they normally do,” he says.
Marshall says skiers will benefit from a host of capital improvements made at resorts across the state — from an extra lift at Cherry Peak in northern Utah to the merger of Park City and Canyons last season. He says these upgrades keep tourists coming back.
“We have a 72 percent return rate based on studies we’ve done,” he says. “So if someone has come and skied Utah, there’s a 72 percent chance that they're going to come ski it again.”
Opening later this week on Friday is Solitude and Alta. Deer Valley will open on Saturday.
For those in the backcountry, the Utah Avalanche Center has issued a high danger bulletin for both human-triggered and natural avalanches due to heavy snowfall and strong winds.