Early Snow 10/11

Mother Nature treated us to a little early snow today. Not quite enough to open the resorts, but not bad for October. Just enough to get everyone excited. It's a sure sign that winter's on its way.




(Early snow in Park City.)

Get your skis and snowboards ready!

'til later,
- Jeff

Deer Valley #1

The readers of SKI Magazine* have once again selected Deer Valley as the #1 resort in North America. This is the second year in a row and fourth time since 2002 that Deer Valley has received this honor. Deer Valley is renowned for setting the standard of service in the ski industry and has been adding more and more expert terrain recently. As someone who skis there regularly (44 days in the last two seasons) I can vouch for the high ranking. And the excellent carrot cake. Congratulations to Deer Valley for being #1.

Deer Valley wasn't the only high ranked resort in the area -- Park City Mountain Resort was #5. Park City gets high marks for it's diverse terrain and killer terrain parks. The new Crescent high-speed quad should ease some of the congestion at the base area this year.

The Canyons was voted #13 due to it's easy access from the airport and the sheer size of the mountain. With Talisker as the new owner, expect to see many improvements in the near future.

The Park City area resorts also did well on the Top 10 Lists. Deer Valley scored #1 for SERVICE, GROOMING, ON-MOUNTAIN-FOOD, and WEATHER. Park City Mountain Resort was #1 for ACCESS. In fact, all three Park City resorts were in the top four for access thanks to being 40 minutes from a major international airport. Where else can you fly in from New York in the morning, and be skiing 350+ inches of snow in the afternoon?

In all, it make Park City a pretty great place to vacation (or live :) ). If you haven't already, now is the perfect time to plan your Utah ski trip. Hope to see you on the slopes this winter.

'til later,
- Jeff
Keller Williams Park City Real Estate

*Source: SKI Magazine, October 2008.

Mirror Lake Highway 8/9

We're lucky to have Mirror Lake Highway (Utah SR-150) just a short drive away. This scenic byway winds through miles of the Wasatch-Cache National Forest and the Uinta mountains connecting Kamas, UT to Evanston, WY. There are numerous campsites, lakes for fishing, and trails for hiking.


(The gang.)

I went up for an night in August to join some friends.


(Stoking the campfire.)

Unfortunately. Mother Nature "treated" us to some much needed rain that day, and it left the ground a little soggy. Still, we had a roaring campfire that kept us warm. And a sturdy groundcloth kept the tent from getting wet.


(Relaxing.)

In the morning, we had a campfire breakfast. Did you know you can cook waffles over a campfire? I never quite got the hang of the iron tho and mine turned out mostly well-done. But enough spray-on butter still made them taste ok. :)


(Campfires are mesmorizing.)

We're lucky to have something so nice as the Mirror Lake Highway so close to home. A day pass is $6 for 3 days and well worth it if you need to get away for a weekend.

'til later,
- Jeff