SNOWBIRD — Last year it was the skier tunnel. This year the resort has set aside its Baby Thunder lift for family skiing and instruction. The area, which is mainly made up of gently flowing slopes, will be open to slow skiing only and learning. Along with that, the resort will step up grooming in the area.

Resort staff also spent the summer improving snowmaking in Peruvian Gulch, which will make it possible to make snow top-to-bottom at the resort. Also, work crews cut and groomed an area known as Middle Men's Downhill to make it more intermediate friendly

SOLITUDE — This will be the 50th anniversary for the resort. A number of special activities will be held over the season. As far as improvements, it added a new snowcat to support its objective of offering more and improved slope conditions. It also added a couple of new tower guns to expand snowmaking and did some on-mountain manicuring to improved access to popular areas.

SUNDANCE — New snow guns were placed on the hill and have made a great difference this winter in overall coverage. The resort also did work on Grizzly Bowl, which will make it possible to groom for better skiing and give the resort to place for its new Enhanced Race Program.

WOLF MOUNTAIN — Over the summer, the resort installed a new triple, fixed-grip chairlift, bringing the total number of lifts to three. This is the first new lift added since the resort first opened.

This will allow the resort to focus more on learning and the family experience. This included adding new staff members with extensive experience in teaching both young and old.

The resort also doubled the number of features in its terrain park, which can now be directly accessed from the new lift.

Once again, a lot of money and time was spent this past summer to improve conditions for skiers in the upcoming season.

Ski areas opening

Thanks to the ability to mix air and water, six of Utah's 13 ski areas are open and two more will open Friday.

A little snow on Tuesday mixed with a few light storms in early November and now lots of manmade snow. Brighton, The Canyons, Park City Mountain Resort, Snowbasin, Solitude and Wolf Mountain are open.

Friday, Alta and Snowbird will open lifts. Brian Head will open on Saturday. Sundance announced it will open Dec. 7.

Beaver Mountain and Powder Mountain will open when they receive sufficient snow.

Looking at the forecast, Monica Traphagan, meteorologist with the U.S. Weather Service, said the storm on Tuesday brought in cold temperatures and very little snow in the mountains. A second storm forecast to hit today was also not expected to leave much snow.

Both of the weather patterns appear to be "starved" for moisture.

"The best chance for good accumulations will be Saturday. It looks like this storm may connect with sub-tropical moisture. The weekend looks like the best chance for a good storm," she noted.

"We've been in a drier-type weather pattern and just have not had the ingredients for a good storm."

---

E-mail: grass@desnews.com