Utah ski areas enjoy spring surge of visitors

SALT LAKE CITY – It was another powder day in Utah’s mountains.  People are still skiing and snowboarding and enjoying fresh snow in the last week of April.

The resorts that are still open are making the most of it.

On Tuesday, Alta eclipsed 900 inches of snowfall for the season for the first time ever but it’s closed for the season.  

Solitude eclipsed 800 inches for the first time ever and it will host skiers for another four weeks.

“We are in the midst of another great late-season storm,” Travis Holland, Solitude Mountain Resort Communications Manager said.

The Big Cottonwood Canyon resort picked up 11 inches in the last 24 hours, which put its season total at 808 inches, and it was still snowing midday Tuesday.  That’s way past the resort’s previous record of 675 inches.

“There were times this year when we didn’t think we were going to make it to 675,” Holland said. “We thought if we could just break 675 or 700, that would be awesome. But, here we are, it is still snowing in late April and we are over 800 inches.“

As a result, Solitude has extended everyday skiing until it closes on May 21.  The resort averages 500 inches a winter, which is exceptional.

Statewide the snow water equivalency is still a record breaker, down from its peak at 30 inches.  But there’s still a lot of snow in the mountains.

Solitude is still attracting local skiers and out-of-town skiers who checked out ‘the greatest snow on earth’ for the first time Tuesday.

“Just trying to get some last turns in for the season before everything shuts down,” Alabama visitor Cameron Carnes said. “But I guess we’ve got a ways to go now.”

Carnes is new to Utah, and he has not been disappointed.  Before arriving, he knew the season had been extended, but he didn’t expect anything like this.

“This is fantastic,” he said. “We’ve been here the past couple days and it’s gone from being very springy to a very winter powder day.”

“Eight hundred inches is a ton of snow,” Holland said. “It’s also a ton of work for our teams, and they’ve been with us every single day this season.  They’ve been super enthusiastic. They’ve showed up. They’ve put the work in, and that’s really been the driving force that has gotten us to skiing into May.“

Spring is a good time to learn to ski or take your skills to the next level.  They have a special package with lessons if you want to check that out.