It’s shaping up to be one of the biggest offseasons ever at Solitude Mountain Resort. After they reached 700″ of snow for the first time ever, the Utah ski resort has announced the capital projects for this summer and the 2023-24 season. This will include the replacement of the Eagle Express with a six-pack chairlift, snowmaking improvements, new Wyssen Tower remote avalanche control systems on Fantasy, and the addition of Gravity Logic mountain biking trails.

The Eagle Express is the first detachable chairlift to ever be built in the state of Utah, as it opened back in 1989. With it being an older lift model, finding replacement parts has become harder, meaning that a new chairlift is needed. Construction on the Doppelmayr six-pack chairlift will begin this spring, and the lift is expected to be operational by mid-December 2023.

Upgraded equipment will allow the resort to continue making snow on open runs that previously needed to remain closed during snowmaking operations. These improvements to Solitude’s snowmaking infrastructure will also create a more efficient and sustainable operation. This will also allow them to open up earlier in the season.

Three new Wyssen tower remote avalanche control systems (RACS) will be installed across Fantasy Ridge. These installations will allow Solitude’s avalanche mitigation team to detonate explosives remotely in terrain that currently requires personnel to manually deploy hand charges. With these detonations, crews will be able to move through the avalanche terrain quicker, allowing terrain to be opened sooner.

For summer operations, they’ll be adding Gravity Logic downhill mountain bike trails, which will be serviced by the Moonbeam Express. These trails will have varying difficulties, with a jump line on their advanced trail. Some examples of Gravity Logic mountain biking trails include the ones at Winter Park Resort’s Trestle bike park and Deer Valley Resort’s mountain biking  park. They hope to begin construction this spring, intending to open it in the middle of this summer.

Additional off-season improvements include modest renovations to The Inn at Solitude and signature restaurants Honeycomb Grill and St. Bernard’s. Road access to Roundhouse, Solitude’s on-mountain wedding venue, will also be improved. In addition, music and PA systems will be installed at our three main lodges.

There could be some modifications to their paid parking program. They are considering a reservation system, along with other changes. If there are any modifications, they will be announced this summer. If they were to make a parking reservation system, this would follow Brighton’s parking policy, which was announced last week.

Image Credits: Solitude Mountain Resort

Unofficial Networks Newsletter

Get the latest snow and mountain lifestyle news and entertainment delivered to your inbox.

Hidden
Newsletters
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Have any post ideas or corrections? Reach out to me: ian@unofficialnetworks.com.