Winter, winter, go away, come back in October! Woke up with another 4" of snow on the back barbecue and it has been snowing hard all day, probably close to a foot of new snow. As was said this morning, if you are surprised by this morning's snow then you are new to Park City. The big problem yet to come is going to be when it does finally warm up (and it will) and all of the snow comes down quickly. The year 1983 saw a spring like this and it resulted in severe flooding in Salt Lake City. So much so that people were canoeing on State Street (one of the main thoroughfares through Salt Lake City). In late April, the snowpack should be diminishing with warm sunny days, but instead it is at worst staying even and lately been increasing. As I said earlier, it will warm up and when it does there will be a lot of snow coming down the mountain. A week ago, the mountain snowpack was at 140% of normal. This week it has risen to 197% of normal. On Tuesday, Snowbird eclipsed it's previous season record snowfall and has now recorded over 690" of snowfall, with much more to come!
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Year In Review
This past Sunday was closing day for Park City Mountain Resort and Canyons Resort, leaving only Snowbird, Alta and Brighton resorts still open. Both Alta and Brighton will be closing in the next couple of weeks and Snowbird will stay open through June and possibly into July. If it will stop snowing here in Park City, perhaps the local golf courses can dry out and we can move on to golf season. This is the 'ugly' time of year for the mountain resorts, no skiing, golf, hiking or mountain biking. Time to head South to warm beaches!
As I've been talking about for the last couple of weeks the first quarter stats have come out and are quite interesting. Before I get into the details, here is a little background info.The Park City Board of Realtors Multiple Listing System (MLS) divides our area into 24 separate areas in and the immediate vicinity of Park City. There are more areas which include the outlying communities but for what I'm talking about these are not important. Furthermore, for this report I am only looking at areas 1-10, which includes all areas within Park City's city limits including Park City Mountain Resort and Deer Valley Resort and also includes the Canyons Resort which lies just outside the city limits.
As I've been talking about for the last couple of weeks the first quarter stats have come out and are quite interesting. Before I get into the details, here is a little background info.The Park City Board of Realtors Multiple Listing System (MLS) divides our area into 24 separate areas in and the immediate vicinity of Park City. There are more areas which include the outlying communities but for what I'm talking about these are not important. Furthermore, for this report I am only looking at areas 1-10, which includes all areas within Park City's city limits including Park City Mountain Resort and Deer Valley Resort and also includes the Canyons Resort which lies just outside the city limits.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Closing Weekend at Deer Valley Resort
Wow! What a closing weekend it was with 27 inches of new snow over the weekend, nobody here, and the most incredible ski conditions. Woke up Friday morning with 15 inches of new snow, then Sunday (closing day), 4 inches of classic Utah "cold smoke." For those of you who are not familiar with this term, it's when snow is so light and dry that you don't even feel it. It's like having smoke on the mountain. That is what Utah is known and famous for: the lightest and driest powder in the country.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Final Week
This is the final week for Deer Valley's ski season, although Park City and Canyons have extended their season one more week to April 17th.
To get the most enjoyment from spring skiing, one has to plan their day carefully. First of all, come springtime, not all days are worth even skiing. If it doesn't freeze overnight and it is warm and humid during the day you're better off finding another activity, such as snowshoeing, biking, or even going to work. However when it does freeze overnight, you wait a little bit for the snow to soften then head for the east and southerly-facing slopes where you can find good corn snow. Then, as those slopes become too soft and sticky, look for the north-facing slopes and as the afternoon progresses, move to the western slopes. By doing this, you are trying to find each aspect at the perfect time for softness. And there may be times that you just have to quit, have lunch, and call it a day. Spring skiing is for relaxing, enjoying the sunshine, and recapping a great winter.
Closing week this year looks to be very, very good as we received a foot of snow Sunday, it is supposed to snow again tonight, and it looks like more snow Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. If the forecast holds true, it will be a great way to finish the year and we will close with a base of over 120" and powder skiing. It is time for thoughts to turn to white sand beaches and warm Caribbean water. Everyone in ski towns are ready to thaw out and relax.
It's been a pleasant surprise that as we wind down the ski season real estate sales have continued to stay strong. In looking across what has sold in the last couple of weeks, I have seen several multi-million-dollar homes and condos sold including two ski-in/ski-out condos in Deer Valley priced at over $6,000,000 and another ski-in/ski-out home in The Colony at Canyons Resort also priced well over $6,000,000. On the 15th of April I will be able to get the stats for the ski season and will put together an analysis of how this season's activity was and how it compared to the previous winter. So stay tuned for that and until then, enjoy spring and plan your summer vacation to the mountains.
To get the most enjoyment from spring skiing, one has to plan their day carefully. First of all, come springtime, not all days are worth even skiing. If it doesn't freeze overnight and it is warm and humid during the day you're better off finding another activity, such as snowshoeing, biking, or even going to work. However when it does freeze overnight, you wait a little bit for the snow to soften then head for the east and southerly-facing slopes where you can find good corn snow. Then, as those slopes become too soft and sticky, look for the north-facing slopes and as the afternoon progresses, move to the western slopes. By doing this, you are trying to find each aspect at the perfect time for softness. And there may be times that you just have to quit, have lunch, and call it a day. Spring skiing is for relaxing, enjoying the sunshine, and recapping a great winter.
Closing week this year looks to be very, very good as we received a foot of snow Sunday, it is supposed to snow again tonight, and it looks like more snow Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. If the forecast holds true, it will be a great way to finish the year and we will close with a base of over 120" and powder skiing. It is time for thoughts to turn to white sand beaches and warm Caribbean water. Everyone in ski towns are ready to thaw out and relax.
It's been a pleasant surprise that as we wind down the ski season real estate sales have continued to stay strong. In looking across what has sold in the last couple of weeks, I have seen several multi-million-dollar homes and condos sold including two ski-in/ski-out condos in Deer Valley priced at over $6,000,000 and another ski-in/ski-out home in The Colony at Canyons Resort also priced well over $6,000,000. On the 15th of April I will be able to get the stats for the ski season and will put together an analysis of how this season's activity was and how it compared to the previous winter. So stay tuned for that and until then, enjoy spring and plan your summer vacation to the mountains.
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