Looking for something different to do while staying in a vacation home or condo in Park City, Utah? Check out the Alpine Coaster at Park City Mountain Resort.

When it was first being installed a friend of mine was working on the construction crew and told me they were building a roller coaster at Park City. “A roller coaster at Park City?” was my confused reply. Indeed, it was true.

Scoff if you will, but after trying the Alpine Coaster this past week I was definately sold on the fun factor. Especially if like me you share the experience with someone else as my 9 year old son and I rode on it together.

It’s open during the winter and for the summer as well, with prices increasing by $1 for the summer of 2008. Passengers need to be under 54″ tall and at 51″ my son and I were a bit crammed. But I wouldn’t have had it any other way as rocketing down the mountain on the Alpine Coaster was all the more fun with him screaming and hooting!

The ride starts down near the base of the PayDay lift and ascends straight up to the mountain to the summer time mid point station. As you ascend you pass under the turns and the spiral curves of the track. After hitting the top you’re able to control your speed with an easy to operate hand brake. We opened the throttle and rocketed down the mountain. It was an absolute blast. McKinley was thumbs up at the bottom.

At $18 for the driver and $6 for the passenger it’s a bit pricey for 10 minutes of fun. Then again, I can’t recall the last time I had the chance to ride an alpine coaster and the memories of that fun experience will stick with us for a long time.

Check out other winter activities from Park City Mountain Resort.

I had planned on skiing with my friend Brian the other day at The Canyons. When I woke there was a couple inches at most at my house near Park City. I scoffed, my powder snob attitude from this record season making me think twice about keeping my ski commitment when during any other season I would have jumped at the chance to ski fresh powder regardless of it’s depth. My thought was that they likely got little new snow overnight. The funny thing was Brian was rationalizing the same thing, considering calling off our morning ski plans.

Then I checked the SkiUtah.com snow report and this is what I saw: (image to the right)

As I scanned the report these were my thoughts:

“Alta – 7″ yea, not bad, could be scratchy underneath in spots…Brian Head, 0″, no love for the south….Brighton 10″, nice, a Big Cottonwood storm, westerly flow likely….The Canyons 10″!?, whoa, could it be true? wow, 10″, but where? 9990? hmmm….Deer Valley, 8″….Snowbasin, 6″…Snowbird, only 5″? interesting…Solitude, 10″, looking good. I guess The Canyons is the call”

I threw in my all mountain skis and left the big powder skis home. After all, it’s only 10″, not nearly enough for the fat skis.

While riding up the gondola I was with two couples who were looking over the trail map, wondering where to go. So I passed the time giving them a full run down of what to expect, where to go, what runs would suit their preferences, telling them that the long groomers with a couple inches on top of them may be the ticket today given a possible dust on crust scenario in many places.

At the top of the gondola I met Brian and we pushed off towards the Tombstone lift. Starting down Chicane I tested the sides of the run only to realize it was boot deep everywhere and deeper in select spots. Riding up Tombstone Lift with a small handful of people around only confirmed that the report was indeed wrong…there was definitely more than 10″ of new snow.

We hit runs like Diamond Ridge and Paradise which were both unbelievable. Then we tested Lightning which as a south facing slope is rarely super deep like it was for us. The day kept getting better.
It’s not like Tombstone was skied out given the handful of skiers but we headed towards Peak 5 while waiting for 9990 to open.

Peak 5 was another great call. Two quick laps in Mystic Pines had me giggling with joy and unbelief. Given the banner year we headed for the double black diamond run of “The Abyss”. It’s a tough area to ski regardless of how advanced you are as rocks and trees guard the upper section of the run. Once you make your way down the chutes you’re likely to find face shots as your reward, just like we did.

My photos weren’t the best as I only had my camera phone but skiing The Canyons with this much new snow didn’t lend itself for stopping much. Just then, 9990 opened and we headed up. What was boot high to knee deep on Tombstone was now knee deep to face shots on 9990. It was then that I regretted not bringing the fat skis.

The next hour or so of repeated laps was accompanied by an intense snowstorm that filled in tracks and kept stoke levels spiked. And we had only scratched the surface. We had only skied 3 of the 11 upper mountain lifts. I’m sure a mile to the north and nearly 3000+ acres away on the Condor Lift conditions were more of the same. Acreage at The Canyons certainly does have its privileges.

The truth of the matter is you can’t go all day skiing without getting some food in you, unless of course you’re into starvation. But the term “on mountain dining” can mean a whole slew of things to a whole slew of people.

In my younger years “on mountain dining” meant a PB&J in my pocket with a handful of snow for hydration. Later on it meant chili-cheese fries or a huge plate of nachos shared among a group of college buddies. While I can often be found eating a PROBAR while riding the lifts I rarely pass up an opportunity to enjoy an on mountain meal with friends or family.

One of my favorite places and likely one of the most scenic spots among all of Utah’s ski resorts is the Lookout Cabin at The Canyons Resort. Lookout, as it’s name implies, offers some fantastic views in all directions. Perched atop Lookout Peak its deck commands a southern view and on warm sunny days a very nice place to enjoy a meal with unbeatable vistas.

–photo credit Alfred Millikan Jr.