Five Days In Utah

I spent the past five days out in Utah. The trip came about with minimal notice and I was fortunate to get the time off of work. I awoke at 5am on Friday morning and met my father in front of my building. We drove together to JFK and then set off for Salt Lake City. After arriving we rented a suburban and started driving.

By Noon we had arrived at Deer Valley and were renting equipment; not long after we were on the slopes. My father and I reflected upon the times we live in--having woken up in Manhattan we were now on top of a mountain 2500 miles away and 10,000 feet in the air wearing synthetic planks attached to plastic boots.

The trip had been organized by Richard and his father for Ben's 25th birthday (many thanks). We met the crew at lunch at the Stein Erickson lodge; Debbie, Lenny, Mia, and Dennis were in attendance. We hit the slopes after the first of many good meals.

After closing we drove to Solitude, a mountain where Ben works as a snow cat driver. We met Alyssa at the resort, showered and went to dinner.

After eating I was beat. We returned and went to sleep. The next day we woke up for a breakfast buffet. Once on the slopes Ben acted as a guide for Alyssa, Dennis and I. They are all excellent skiers and I was happy to follow along. I got to experience some deep powder and great terrain. It was a fun and exhausting day; we returned around 4pm.

The snow began coming down that afternoon. It snowed about ten inches that night. The conditions on Sunday were excellent. Dennis, Debbie, Alyssa, and Mr. F. departed that day. And that night we drove to Deer Valley.

Richard, Lenny, Bill and I spent Sunday and Monday night at the Goldner Hirsch Inn, a very nice hotel reminiscent of my days in Zermatt. On Sunday night we ate at the hotel, the food was very good.

We skied Deer Valley on Monday--the sun was out most of the morning. Deer Valley is famous for their grooming; the conditions were in line with their reputation. My father was particularly pleased with the trails. Richard visited some of the more challenging terrain. That night we headed to Park City for dinner.

We were back at it Tuesday. The weather was inconsistent (it was cloudy--and by cloudy I mean we were in a cloud, sunny, windy, snowing), but the conditions were perfect, owing to a fresh 5-6 inches of fresh snow. I knocked off at 12pm and showered then packed.

After altering my travel arrangements, Richard, Bill and I had lunch and said goodbye to Park City. We drove to the airport and chilled out. I had an easy flight back. After finishing 'Hocus Pocus' by Vonnegut I got well into Christopher Moore's 'Lamb' ("The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal") a novel Lenny had recommended.

I was home by midnight, I showered and went to bed.