Solitude
Solitude in Utah is renowned for uncrowded slopes and plenty of powder, the perfect combination for powder hounds. “Solitude” describes the calm and quietness of this relatively undiscovered resort especially when compared with the crowds at nearby resorts. The resort’s mottos of “their ignorance, your bliss” and “if only you knew” pretty much sum up how quiet this ski resort is.
Solitude remains fairly unknown because it used to be a mere local ski hill. Millions of dollars have lead to a major transformation into a proper resort with a pedestrian-only European style village, but news of the makeover is only slowly spreading. Solitude has to compete with the famous ski resorts in the next canyon over, so it predominantly remains a mountain for locals. Thankfully Solitude doesn’t have the associated local attitude but rather has a culture that is completely laid-back. Others that make the most of the “solitude” are families who want a quiet ski vacation, and true powderhounds who enjoy the high likelihood of finding fresh tracks.
Ski and Snowboard Terrain
Typical for a Utah ski resort, Solitude has light dry powder and an average of 500 inches (12.7 metres) of snowfall annually. The
terrain includes open bowls, steep chutes, groomed cruisers and great fall line skiing through the trees. The resort is fairly small at only 486 hectares (1,200 acres) of skiing terrain, but the size is somewhat misleading. There is more than enough terrain to satisfy all ability levels and the best thing about Solitude is that you don’t have to share this terrain with too many others.
Another 425 hectares of skiing terrain is available at
Brighton ski resort, although the term “skiing terrain” is not fitting because Brighton is predominantly “snowboard central”. The two resorts are interconnected via the SolBright run using a joint lift ticket.
Where is Solitude?
Solitude is located in Big Cottonwood Canyon, 45 kilometres from Salt Lake City International Airport, Utah, and only 40km from
Park City. Solitude is right next door to
Brighton, and there are many other ski resorts that are an easy drive away.
Accommodation and Facilities
The village of Solitude is petite and also very pretty, especially at night time. Most
accommodation is within 1-3 bedroom condos that are either ski-in ski-out or only a short walk to the ski lifts. There is also a first-class hotel, the
Inn at Solitude, which is right next to the ski area. Another option is to stay in
Park City or
Salt Lake City where shuttles are available to get to Solitude.
Why Ski or Snowboard at Solitude?
It remains a mystery as to why Solitude is still somewhat of a secret when compared to neighbouring resorts. However the low profile tranquility of Solitude is what makes it such a great resort, especially for powder hounds, so shhhhh….. don’t tell anyone.