Lifestyle

Come For The Winters

With over 350″ of snow falling on the mountain each year and three world-class ski resorts – Deer Valley® Resort, Park City Mountain Resort, and The Canyons® – Park City is a great place to visit but an even more incredible place to live.

Deer Valley Resort is synonymous with luxury.
In fact, in 2006 and 2007, Deer Valley Resort took SKI Magazine’s #1 ranking for all North American ski resorts. If you want your kids to learn from the best of the best, be sure to call the Deer Valley Ski School well in advance (they begin taking reservations in August) as they always sell out early in the season. The triple groomed slopes of Deer Valley Resort make anyone look like a pro. If you are lucky you can catch a few turns with Stein Eriksen, Deer Valley’s world-renowned ambassador. Dining at Deer Valley, whether it is lunch at one of their mountain lodges or dinner at an intimate restaurant, is an artform. Ask a local which is the best place to eat in Deer Valley is and they will say “all of them”.

Park City Mountain Resort is the hip place to be.
The entertainment at Park City Mountain Resort is unending. Always some kind of competition is underway from World Cup Snowboarding in the Superpipe to Nastar on the hill. Park City is synonomous with fun and there is no shortage on the mountain. If you are not a boarder or skier, you can ride the Alpine Coaster with it’s winding twists and turns though the aspens or sit on the plaza and catch some tunes. Dining at PCMR is much more casual. You are more likely to have a burger and fries at the base while listening to a local band jam on the plaza.

The Canyons, a perfect family affair.
The Canyons mountain has been around for quite some time having gone through multiple ownership and name changes. American Skiing Company bought the Canyons Resort  and has now solidly established  the largest destination ski resort in the Western Rockies. You can stay and play all day and night at The Canyons. The sprawling mountain is famous for it’s backcountry splendor and it’s plaza is always rocking après ski. Whether you are a skier or boarder or not, take the people mover over the residential area and spend some time at the base. The Canyons is the only resort in Park City with a gondola and you can take it to the top of the mountain just to check out the views. Dining at the Canyons is improving with high end restaurants establishing themselves in the many developments around the mountain.  The Canyons was most recently bought by Talisker and has promise of becoming even better in the years ahead.

Park City Lifestyle
Skiing isn’t the only thing to do in Park City. Historic Main Street is host to hundreds of boutique shops and galleries all worth visiting. The cuisine on Main Street is arguably the best around with much diversity. There is always something going on in Park City worthy of a look. The most famous, The Sundance Film Festival.  Every January, the Sundance Film Festival draws a star-studded crowd. Catch a glimpse your favorite movie star or take-in the premier of an independent film. During the festival, the already lively shopping, dining and people watching on Park City’s historic Main Street really lights up. And if you’re in the right place at the right time you could just end up on TV!

Stay For The Summers

“I came here for the skiing and ended up staying for the summers!”
The locals know the true secret to Park City is the Summers. Consistent temperatures, no humidity and a lack of pesky bugs makes Park City a magnet for summer fun. The City Event Staff will admit to having booked an event every day of every month in the summer. From free concerts at Deer Valley, to Sundance movies in the Park, there is an abundant choice of where to go with friends and family during the Park City Summers.

Some of the more popular summer activities include:
Big Stars Bright Nights series hosted by the Eccles Center for Performing arts at the Deer Valley Ampitheatre. From Willie Nelson to Feist, The Eccles Center draws a diverse musical entorage to Park City to perform under the stars. Couple that with the Utah Symphony in the ampitheatre and you have a music packed summer of fun.

All three resorts provide lift-served mountain biking and hiking. If the altitude tries to beat you down, hop on the lift and walk or bike back to the base. Park City Mountain Resort also puts on a show with their Miners’ Park in the summer featuring the Alpine Slide, Alpine Coaster, Zip Rider and Lil’ Miners’ Park at the base. The Canyons hosts free concerts all summer at their base as well as gondola rides to Red Pine Lodge.

Need to hit the links? Park City has more championship golf courses than you can shake  your club at. Some courses are public like the Park City Municipal Course, Wasatch State Park Course, and Soldier Hollow and others are private such as Tuhaye, Glenwild and Promontory. Course designs by the masters such as Mark O’Mera, Jack Nicklaus, Tom Fazio and Pete Dye, provide endless opportunities to challenge your swing in Park City.

The Summer festivals all but take over Park City thoughout the months. Beginning with the Park Silly Market, an art festival of sorts on Main Street every Sunday to World Cup Fast Pitch Softball in July and the famous Park City Art’s Festival in August.

Finding yourself bored in Park City? Track down a local (easy to find at the Easy Street Plaza at the bottom of Main Street) and ask them what’s going on. But be prepared for some heavy opinions and rowdy debates as there is always something going on for everyone!

A Little Park City History

Park City has a rich and diverse history of mining and skiing. For those history buffs, below is an outline of Park City’s past. For more details and amazing photos, log onto www.parkcityhistory.org.

In late October of 1868, soldiers climb over the mountains from Big Cottonwood Canyon to the Park City area and find silver. As the snow is swirling and a storm brewing, they mark the outcropping with a bandanna on a stick and return in the spring. The first mine is named Flagstaff. Park City will become known not only for its silver, but for lead, zinc and gold. The Flagstaff Mine is the first to ship ore from the area.

In 1882, George and Rhoda Snyder name the area Parley’s Park City, soon shortened to Park City. Two years later, Park City was incorporated.

In June of 1898, 200 of the 350 structures, homes and businesses in Park City burn in the worst fire Park City has ever seen. Three quarters of the town is gone, 500 are homeless, $1 million in property is lost. The town was rebuilt in one and a half years featuring new buildings that are more substantial, built with brick and stone.

1931 brought the beginnings of skiing as Alf Engen sets a world record at Ecker Hill by jumping 247 feet. In all, Engen sets five world records at Ecker Hill. 15 years later, the first lift is installed at Snow Park, now Deer Valley Ski Resort.

As the mines close down in the early 50’s, Park City’s population plummets. Park City is included in a book called “Ghost Towns of the West” indicating no population. There are actually 1,150 “ghosts” in town at this time.

In 1958, United Park City Mines looks to diversify and starts a feasibility study to begin the Treasure Mountain Resort (now Park City Mountain Resort). Five years later, Park City qualifies for a federal loan from the Area Redevelopment Agency. The government gives $1.25 million and, with other contributions, a total of $2 million is used to start Treasure Mountain Resort. A gondola, a chairlift and 2 J-bars are installed. A lift pass costs $3.50 and there are almost 50,000 skier days logged that first year.

By the mid 60’s, word of the new ski area spreads, people start moving to Park City. In 1966, Sports Illustrated magazine includes Treasure Mountain Resort’s PayDay run among the finest ski runs in the country. In 1968 Park West Ski Area opens (now The Canyons) adding the third ski area to Park City.

In 1984 There are 14 lifts at Park City Ski Area and a day pass is $26, with 500,000 skier days. By 1990, The estimated year-round resident population is 5,000. Skier days for the three areas are over 850,000.

And the rest, as we say, is history!