Nordic skiing close to Snowbird, Utah
Ian D. Duncan
Utah, with tracks for striding and skating? Is Solitude Nordic the best
bet and how long does it take to drive from Snowbird to Solitude?
Thanks. .. Ian Duncan.
Terje Mathisen
xc skiing above Snowbird towards Alta, and then up along the non-plowed
road that leads over the mountains towards Park City.
For groomed tracks you probably want Solitude. That means going down the
valley, driving north along the mountains for about 10 minutes then back
up again. I'd say 30-45 minutes, someone local probably remembers better
than me!
Terje
--
- <Terje.M...@hda.hydro.com>
"almost all programming can be viewed as an exercise in caching"
Jim Martin
"Ian D. Duncan" <"iddmyelin"@dun...@svm.vetmed.wisc.edu> wrote in message
news:av34qr$198$1...@news.doit.wisc.edu...
> Can anyone advise me of good cross country skiing close to Snowbird,
> Utah, with tracks for striding and skating?
Alta has a nordic center now. Its about 1 mile from Solitude.
Is Solitude Nordic the best
> bet and how long does it take to drive from Snowbird to Solitude?
> Thanks. .. Ian Duncan.
The trail system at Solidude is much more developed, fun, and challenging.
Even so it would be about a 1 hour drive. If you're willing to drive you
might want to check out White Pine, Mt. Dell, Soldier Hollow.... try:
http://www.utahnordic.com/
Cheers,
Jim
Jim Martin
"Jim Martin" <jmartinR...@xmission.com> wrote in message
news:av48dr$hs$1...@terabinaries.xmission.com...
> Alta has a nordic center now. Its about 1 mile from Solitude.
make that 1 mile from Snowbird.
Jeff Minnema
Alta has a small nordic center- about 5 km and is located 1 mile further up
the Little Cottonwood road from Snowbird (elevation 8600 ft). You can even
take a free shuttle bus between Alta and Snowbird. www.altaskiarea.com
Solitude has around 15 km (?) with lots of hills at about the same altitude
as Alta. To get to Solitude you need to drive down Little Cottonwood Canyon
and then drive up Big Cottonwood Canyon. This will take about 45 minutes.
Jeff
-----Original Message-----
From: Ian D. Duncan [mailto:"iddmyelin"@dun...@svm.vetmed.wisc.edu]
Sent: Thursday, January 02, 2003 9:56 PM
To: nordi...@piper.hamline.edu
Subject: Nordic skiing close to Snowbird, Utah
Can anyone advise me of good cross country skiing close to Snowbird,
Utah, with tracks for striding and skating? Is Solitude Nordic the best
Chris Cline
The closest set tracks to Snowbird are at Alta, up the
canyon about 1 mile. There is a shuttle that goes
between the two resorts. You buy a pass and get on
the track at the upper part of Alta (near the
Cecret/Sugarloaf lift terminals)
The track is set for striding and skating, and is
usually well-groomed for both techniques. The only
"problem" with the Alta track is that it's at about
9,000 feet, meaning that skating can be quite an
adventure in anaerobic land (since it's generally
easier to "ski easy" classic, it's not as much of a
problem unless you're trying to ski classic fast).
It's also quite hilly, since the track essentially
goes up the canyon then returns. It's a beautiful
trail though, so there are great views just about
every place you want to/have to stop.
Solitude Nordic is in Big Cottonwood Canyon, the next
canyon N. from Snowbird/Alta. You have to go down the
one canyon then over and up into Big Cot. There is a
ski bus that you can take. If you drive, it will take
about 30-40 minutes to get from Snowbird to Solitude.
Bus will take a little longer. Solitude is also at a
pretty good piece of altitude, about 7,500-8,000 feet.
However, there is a level loop around Silver Lake at
the top of the system (closer to Brighton). This is
also where the touring center is (tickets, rentals).
For more alternatives, check out the Utah Nordic
Alliance (TUNA) website at www.utahnordic.com, or I'll
be happy to give you more details off-list.
Chris Cline
SLC, UT
--- "Ian D. Duncan" <iddmyelin@duncani>,
UNEXPECTED_DATA_AFTER_ADDRESS@.SYNTAX-ERROR. wrote:
> Can anyone advise me of good cross country skiing
> close to Snowbird,
> Utah, with tracks for striding and skating? Is
> Solitude Nordic the best
> bet and how long does it take to drive from Snowbird
> to Solitude?
> Thanks. .. Ian Duncan.
>
>
>
>
>
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Ken Roberts
than a resident. Both Alta and Solitude Nordic are at pretty high altitude
by XC groomed trail standards -- ? maybe 2500 meters ?
Wasatch-style altitudes don't bother me much for lift-served downhill
skiing, but it noticeably impacts my enjoyment of XC skiing when I'm
visiting Salt Lake.
For lower altitude groomed tracks (but no equipment rental, and you need a
car to get to them), two places to consider are:
- - Mill Creek Canyon: closer by car to Snowbird than is Solitude Nordic.
Basically a place to get an uphill workout, followed by a long downhill
run. Roughly it's at the east end of 3800 South.
- - Mountain Dell: in driving time about as close to Snowbird as Solitude
Nordic. Interesting trails, more wide open, just off Interstate-80. And
wasn't it the scene of the first World Cup victories of Daehlie and Belmondo
or something?
Ken
Ken Roberts
> . . . above Snowbird towards Alta, and then up
> along the non-plowed road that leads over
> the mountains towards Park City.
Sounds like you're thinking of the Guardsman Pass road toward Park City, but
that's from Brighton (not Alta).
Which reminds me, I once did this race from Brighton to Park City. We
started by running a ways up the Guardsman Pass road carrying our skis, then
put our skis on and climbed up to Scotts Pass. Then I got to watch some
folks on skinny racing skis strip off their skiing climbing skins at the top
of the pass, and then negotiate getting down an ungroomed expert slope at
the top of the Park City downhill resort. I was on my full backcountry
skis.
(just imagine the whining from today's World Cup racers if they ever had to
do an event like that).
Ken
Chris Cline
That's the Wasatch Overland you're thinking of--
coming up in 2 weeks. 7 miles, 3 of which are up, 4
of which are down.
It's one of the funnest races of the year. There are
now ski, snowboard, snowshoe, and "other" categories
(ever seen a ski bike?). I've seen people try
roller-skis and roller-blades to deal with the first
mile (1/2 mile downhill then 1/2 mile uphill to the
snow). Good idea unless there's snow, sand and salt
on the road.
You forgot to mention the part where you have to take
your skis off and run across the road (or take one ski
off and hop) to finish on the golf course in Park City
.
I make the "skinny skins" you saw people taking off
their track skis. A couple of years ago I found some
automotive upholstry fabric that has a strong
directional nap. They're very light, and wad up like
duct tape so you can stuff them in your pocket on the
top. Come to think of it, I've also seen people use
kick wax on top of duct tape, which they strip off at
the top of the pass.
This race has always created its own technologies. So
maybe I should relax about the double pursuit! ;- )
Chris
Terje Mathisen
> Terje Mathisen wrote
>
>> . . . above Snowbird towards Alta, and then up
>>along the non-plowed road that leads over
>>the mountains towards Park City.
>
>
> Sounds like you're thinking of the Guardsman Pass road toward Park City, but
> that's from Brighton (not Alta).
Oops, you're right!
I was thinking about the access road that starts just where you drive
down into the top parking lot at Alta, and then traverses up the bowl to
the left of the ski slopes.
>
> Which reminds me, I once did this race from Brighton to Park City. We
> started by running a ways up the Guardsman Pass road carrying our skis, then
> put our skis on and climbed up to Scotts Pass. Then I got to watch some
> folks on skinny racing skis strip off their skiing climbing skins at the top
> of the pass, and then negotiate getting down an ungroomed expert slope at
> the top of the Park City downhill resort. I was on my full backcountry
> skis.
That sounds like fun!
As long as you don't have icy conditions, ungroomed vs groomed doesn't
really matter even on xc skis. I did some of my first Telemark skiing on
a day when a major dump had come down overnight, and no xc tracks were
groomed, so we simply used the same skis on the really steep slalom
slope instead. :-)
>
> (just imagine the whining from today's World Cup racers if they ever had to
> do an event like that).
Well, they didn't like the combined sprint race either, so you're
probably right. :-)
Chris Cline
It sounds like the road you're thinking of is the road
up into Albion Basin, which is the upper half of the
Alta resort. At the end of the road is a trail to
Catherine's Pass, which leads over into Brighton Ski
resort and Big Cottonwood Canyon. It's a popular
back-country tour and a beautiful hike (if you like
wildflowers) in July.
Chris
Terje Mathisen
> Terje-
> It sounds like the road you're thinking of is the road
> up into Albion Basin, which is the upper half of the
> Alta resort. At the end of the road is a trail to
> Catherine's Pass, which leads over into Brighton Ski
> resort and Big Cottonwood Canyon. It's a popular
> back-country tour and a beautiful hike (if you like
> wildflowers) in July.
Yes, that's the road I was thinking of.