Downhill from Here - Park City, UT

When someone tells you they are going to Utah or a similar mountainous state, the default is to ask whether they ski. In turn, on the receiving end of this question, if you have exclusively skied on the East coast at a moderate dabbler level, I recommend your answer to be a regretful but sound no. I speak from personal experience.

The only thing I have to say is that the mountains of the Basin and Range region – they ain’t playin. A casual terminology drop from the 4^th grade US geography curriculum – and briefly we reflect on all the elementary school information that we never really needed to know.

The slopes on the West side of our country are steeper, longer, and way more beautiful, to the point that photos can’t begin to capture. But let's not gloss over the emphasis on steeper. The weekend I was there also happened to be a fairly warm and slightly slushy winter lull which translates to added challenge for the amateur skier. Or maybe that's just my excuse – you can decide.

As someone who gravitates away from rollercoasters and similar thrill-seeking activities, I can safely say that I overcame adversity those couple days on the mountains. In spite of this or maybe because of it, I regard the entire experience to be super fun and I did manage to sharpen some skiing skills when I wasn't inching down sideways trying not to fall. Final words for those with a similar threshold to mine, if you ever visit the same resort, I recommend starting on the Base Area side of Park City and save Canyons Village for day two.