So this year has been a little different in the local ski areas. The chair above has been my lodge as I change my boots in the parking lot and try to minimize contact except for outside skiing and rides on the chairlift. Personally, as I have posted before, I am happy to be skiing and have to hand it to the ski areas to even be operating in this era of the Pandemic. I am grateful. So how is it in other areas around the country you might ask? We all have heard about the long lines in Colorado and Tahoe and even locally the lines have been robust. I am thinking that the Pandemic has encouraged people to get outside and also the snowy, cold winter around here has brought about a renewed enthusiasm for skiing. It has also been a good winter around the country. My friends have reported huge snows in the Pacific Northwest and some longer lines in several other western areas.

Last week my wife and I ventured to Park City, Utah at the invitation of some very good friends who live there. They have been careful with social distancing and so have we, so our only unknown was the airport and plane. We were careful but the airports were reasonable and allowed for distancing. Even the planes were sanitized and we were fortunate to not have anyone in the middle seat. We wore our masks, sanitized the seats and tray tables and also our headrests. All was well and we made our way to ski at Deer Valley, Utah.

One of the first things we noticed was that Deer Valley was not really that crowded despite what we had heard about neighboring Park City Resort. They limit the lift tickets and since I had an IKON Pass, I was able to ski without a reservation and my wife was able to get a buddy pass at the ticket window each day without issue. In typical Deer Valley protocol, the slopes were impeccably groomed much to my wife’s delight, and the sun shined brightly every day, even though there were cold temperatures . I noticed that the indoor dining was restricted and a reservation system was in place for all the ski lodges. You could get “Grab and Go” meals either by ordering on the Deer Valley App or ordering at the window. Eating outside was encouraged. But there was very little indoor warming encouraged.

In the lift lines, signage was plentiful regarding social distancing and all Deer Valley employees were on alert to instruct anyone who had their facemasks down to pull them up. Even on the exit ramps on the chairlifts, there were signs to use your mask when unloading. Instructors had masks on when teaching and all of the employees had masks for every function in the area. It was expected that all guests complied and it was a small price to pay for the privilege of skiing Deer Valley.

Main Street in Park City was still pretty crowded and even though there were protocols for social distancing, the amount of people made it so that we did not shop or eat on Main Street. We dined with our friends in their beautiful home and did take out one night.

So, even though there are consistent similarities in Covid protocol in all ski areas this season, the west is doing a good job with the amount of locals skiing and also visitors who now are a little more comfortable traveling. Like the McCloskeys. The atmosphere seems a bit subdued out there as the apres and dining scene are affected by restrictions. You could actually feel it when walking around. Something was definitely different. All bets were off at the No Name Saloon as it seemed to be a haven for the ” cabin fever” crowd. We stayed away for now. I will see what Mammoth Mountain is doing at the end of this month, but if I have the experience that we had in Deer Valley, I will be comfortable and again grateful to be skiing. Thanks for reading.