The season has officially begun at Alta. Canyon Blog dropped into everyone’s favorite powder resort on day two of the season to assess how safety and satisfaction might intersect in this unprecedented environment. And the answer is: really well. Masks are required on lifts, indoors and anywhere that you can’t maintain a safe standoff distance from others. To help with the lines there are additional ques to keep us all apart. Also, groups not together do not have to share chairs. Dining will be limited with greater spacing and prepackaged food. For more information visit Alta’s Covid-19 Response page https://www.alta.com/winter-2020-21
Parking is going to be different in Little Cottonwood Canyon this year with Snowbird implementing a reservation system. But that doesn’t concern you because, drum roll here… you are staying with Canyon Services in one of our premier accommodations and can either shuttle to luxury or enjoy parking associated with your rental.
Of course you don’t read this space, nor does your correspondent write it, to talk about parking and chairlift lines. This space is for skiing, snowboarding, sunshine and powder. While the snowfall hasn’t been plentiful to date, the conditions at Alta were already completely enjoyable two days before Thanksgiving. A rare “halo” sun made an appearance in the afternoon and as you can see from the other professionally snapped iPhone photos, the crowds were no bother whatsoever.
Snowbird is scheduled to open November 30th with similar safety measures. The biggest change there is the tram where the capacity will be significantly curtailed.
There’s a lot of madness swirling around out there in the ether at the moment. But whenever this journalist slaps on the boots and boards and drops off Sugarloaf or Collins and feels the gravity fueled acceleration take over (though it must be said, mandatory face masking cuts down on the briskness) nothing else matters. Though sunlit rays making a 360 degree halo come pretty close.