Utah Powder Tour
Utah is home to some of the lightest powder in the world. It has the largest annual snowfall in North America with four of its ski areas annually receiving more than 500 inches/13m of the driest snow in the world.
Mother Nature’s pairing of the Wasatch Front and the Great Salt Lake works to create a natural snow phenomenon which consistently produces the driest and largest snowfalls in all North America. The snow has as little as 3% water content (other areas can be in the 10% range) due to the very dry desert air. Then with the Great Salt Lake not freezing over, moisture is picked up as storms sweep towards the Wasatch mountain range where they dump high volumes of the famous dry Utah champagne powder on all the resorts. And after a storm it is common to receive an additional 24-36 inches /60-90 cm of snowfall. It is a snow and ski experience you will not find anywhere else in the world. Another important factor that contributes to the great snow found in Utah and so important in today’s climate is the altitude. Most base elevations we will ski are between 8000ft / 2400m and 8500 ft / 2600m which can be the summit for many resorts. So the snow will remain dry and light throughout the season. Utah’s marketing tags of “Greatest Snow on Earth” and the “Powder Capital of the USA” seems a large claim. However, it is quite true from our experience with the volume of fluffy dry snow we have skied here. It’s not just marketing hype, its fact. With amazing skiing only 20 minutes from Salt Lake City’s population of 1.2 million, Utah skiing does not seem to qualify as off the beaten track. However Utah has had a relatively low skiing profile in the USA. This may be a result of the stereotype that you cannot get a drink in Utah due to the Mormon religion and that it is not quite a “normal” state. This is far from the truth as you will discover. We will have some great night life being in such a large metropolitan centre and you will find the slopes uncrowded as we know where off the beaten track exists within the resorts of Utah. As well we have scheduled our tour after all the vacation breaks which also coincides with the best time of year for snowfall. Also, our tour is designed to ski on the weekdays which will have all of the locals working. Add to that Utah has 13 resorts to choose from and so skiers are well spread out. The itinerary is a great one as it is designed to allow us to chase the snow and ski wherever the best snow is that day with multiple resorts to choose from. We will be ideally located on the edge of Salt Lake City that will allow us a short drive to any of the resorts. For example, the major resorts of Snowbird, Alta, Brighton and Solitude are only 20 minutes away from our hotel. Lastly, in true DreamSki tradition we have included a special place not that many people know about yet and it’s definitely off the beaten track. It’s a “not so little” place in regards to skiable area with over 5500 acres but with a small town feel. It is the most unique ski area we have every skied in regards to the terrain they provide specifically for powder skiing within a ski resort and the unique services they provide to access this powder. They offer an area called ‘Powder Country” that is untouched snow that skis down to their access road where a shuttle picks you up and returns you back to the lifts. It’s incredible! All fresh all the time. They also have an area where you pay $25/ride in a snow cat to ski virgin snow back down into the resort area. Don’t forget they still have their regular resort terrain with chairlift access which offers amazing snow and terrain where we have had face shots! We are stoked to offer this tour. The volume of snow is up there with Hokkaido, Japan with 500+ inches annually. It ‘s gonna be good!