Skiing Expedition

Interconnect allows skiers to ski several ski areas in one outing.

Skiing Expedition Nathan Rafferty: Ski Utah Interconnect is really unique in the United States. It is something that you will see in Europe a little bit where people will ski from one resort to another. It is a ski program where we ski five different ski areas in Utah all in the same day. You use the existing list system that each of the resorts to go up to the top of the mountain then you ski off the backside and down to another resort. We give you guide service and lift tickets to all five ski areas, lunch and transportation back to the point of origin. Pam Eichner: We had heard so many different things about all the different places and this gave us a sampling of each one. Male: Pam, Sue and Stephanie will follow a rigorous itinerary that begins at Park City. It goes pass the Solitude Ski Resort then continues on to Brighton, Alta and Snowbird. At the end of this ten-hour expedition, the trio will spend the night at Rustler Lodge in Alta more than 30 miles from where they started. Pam Eichner: Challenge of the back country that was something that we’re really keen to try. Patrick Reddish: The dangers are mostly concerning avalanche danger and traveling on the back country where there is not formal control worked on. So we start early in the season and watch our way carefully, what weather is doing, and what kind of snow is coming in. Female: So guide men what are you digging in there? Male: Well, I am taking a look at the -- just doing a quick little hasty —with my hand to see what the snow looks like. We have had a very unusual snow pack this year with lot of weak and unsafe layers and with this new snow that we have had on top of it. The snow is unstable. Male: After a closer look, the guide determines that it is safe to continue on to the village of Solitude. Female: They are awesome ski guides. They’ve got us through to now. Unbelievable! Rod Keller: We are going to take traverse that takes us all the way over to that saddle and we have to go down around a little rock area then side stepping up. It’s about 500 yards. Pam Eichner: Physically the most exhausting part of the trip for me was the traversing and the side stepping because it is—there’s a definite knack to it. Male: Finishing the first leg of their Interconnect adventure the women come upon an oasis of sorts. The Solitude Mountain Resort, designed to resemble an elegant European village, the peaceful enclave easily earned its name as a quiet antidote to city life. Stephanie Gruner: It was great after all the skiing that we did from Park City to Solitude to be able to stop in such a great little place and have great lunch. Chef Carl: The food that we try to bring to Solitude is a lot of fresh seafood as we can get a food in overnight. Pam Eichner: This is brilliant. Being from one hotel to another is a very civilized way to ski because you get there and everything is set up for you. They are so geared up for you. They know you are tired. They make you feel very welcome. Stephanie Gruner: After we finished lunch, we put our skis on right there and then we took off on a lift and headed over to Alta. Male: The second leg of the Interconnect journey begins peacefully with a chairlift ride to the backside of the Solitude ski area. But when they returned to the back country, they encounter a dramatic shift in the weather. Stephanie Gruner: The weather was changing constantly here, almost every half an hour. It was awesome, the wind would come through and there would be beautiful blue skies and an hour later it would be cloudy with would snow on us, it was really beautiful. Sue: We’ve got into that bowl under the side of Solitude and it just started dumping and that was just icing on the cake. Pam Eichner: Fresh powder, nobody has been back there. There are no tracks. It was just great. It was the most exhilarating thing I have ever done. Male: Exhilaration turns to elation as the weary adventurers reach their destination, the Rustler Lodge. Pam Eichner: And the valley is beautiful. Skiing in to there was great. We skied right up into the lodge. Male: Upon arrival at the lodge in Alta, the first order of business is the most therapeutic, a dip in 100 degree outdoor pool. Female: Oh, yeah! It would a warm for the first time today. Female: It is heaven here. Male: Then an in-room massage felt like the perfect way to end their action packed day. Female: After skiing today, this is better than dessert. Pam Eichner: One of the great joys of this entire experience for me was being out all day and then you come back to the lodge and it is warm and it is toasty and the food is brilliant and we had the massage. There’s a nice warm pool and the beds are comfortable. It was so welcome. It was so welcome after a tiring day.