April 13, 2023
I arrived in Park City last Friday, April 7th.
When I made the reservation, I was really, really hoping that there would still be snow. My two previous visits to the area were in the summer, another great time to be here. It’s a hiking and biking haven.
But Park City is also the home of the 2002 Winter Olympics. In the summer, I have watched the skiers jump into the pool at Utah Olympic Park. I’ve imagined skiers on the snowless summer slopes. And I could see myself gliding on my cross-country skis across the fields and along the trails.
I had to return to see that beautiful white blanket covering the mountains and valleys.
Last summer, I added “Park City in the Snow” to my bucket list.
With this season’s record snowfall, I got lucky. Sometime in March, I read that the ski resorts would stay open through April 23rd.
Since I was coming solo, I decided to leave my alpine ski gear in the storage unit. You might think that’s crazy. Why would I come to a World-class ski resort and not hit the slopes?
I’m a much better cross-country skier. Honestly, it’s dangerous to downhill ski solo, especially on an unfamiliar mountain. (Maybe I have become slightly more cautious after falling off a horse last summer.)
I skied four out of six days during my visit. Temperatures have been reaching the 50s and 60s, so skiing has been best in the mornings. It gets too slushy in the afternoon.
Yesterday was my best day of skiing. I drove out to Round Valley, which has an extensive network of trails. It’s also an off-leash dog area. What could be better than skiing with happy canines romping through the snow? Sure, they mess up the tracks a bit, but I got out early in the morning, and the conditions were good.
Today was another story. Temperatures dropped overnight. It was hovering around freezing this morning with light snowfall. Good ski conditions, right? It would have been great except for the 10-20 mph winds. And then there were gusts up to 30.
As the eternal optimist, I bundled up and returned to Round Valley.
It was a different world a day later. I felt like I was on an expedition to the North Pole, fighting the wind and sliding backward in the icy tracks.
Then I would get a reprieve from the wind, enough to keep me going.
When I decided to turn around, I experienced the bliss of the wind pushing me in the tracks. What fun! Suddenly, the initial effort was paying off.
Then, I reached the open field near the parking lot. The track had a barely noticeable downhill slope. It would be the perfect ride back to my car.
Clearly, one of those 30 mph gusts hit my back at just the right time. I was speeding around a curve, initially gleeful but quickly becoming fearful. The wind pushed me out of the tracks and onto the open field. There was no choice but to intentionally crash because it was going to happen anyway.
Luckily the snow was relatively soft, and I landed safely. I chose to take off my skis and walk the rest of the way to the car. Why push my luck?
It was a memorable way to end this year’s ski season.
Wandering Shannon 