Little Cottonwood Canyon — While ski season has been over for a while now in Utah, the work on making the experience better never truly slows down.
While I was on vacation last week for a wedding in Utah, I was able to travel around to check out some of the changes going on at Utah ski resorts this summer.
Alta Ski Area is having another busy offseason full of projects. The most noteworthy one is the expansion of the Albion Lodge. While there are lodges operated by outside parties, the number of base lodges for Alta is limited. One that we gravitate towards is the Goldminer’s Daughter, but that one is on the smaller side. There’s also Albion, which is more modern but was also small. Alta intends to change that.
The expanded Albion base lodge will grow the Albion Grill and Alta Java. The new lodge will also add twice the existing seating, a new indoor fireplace, more seasonal lockers, and snow-level restrooms. Other additions include more storage and employee housing. As the photos above and below show, construction is well underway. They aim to open it during the 2026-27 season. You can read about Alta’s other summer upgrades here.
Over at Snowbird, their main project is replacing the Chickadee chairlift. Previously, this fixed-grip double was one of the oldest chairlifts at Snowbird.
The new SkyTrac quad chairlift will feature a loading conveyor at the base terminal, which will make loading easier for beginners. Another noticeable change is the new location of the base terminal. The previous terminal was perched below the Snowbird Center and the bridge that connects to the Cliff Lodge. This new one is located in a central spot, a short walk from either the second or third floor of the Snowbird Center.
The new chairlift is practically complete, with the chairs already mounted on the haul rope. The speedy install was due to the need to operate it for Snowbird’s summer activities, which tend to pick up for Oktoberfest.
Both Alta and Snowbird remain open for their various activities. Neither has announced their opening dates for the 2026-27 season. Then again, it’s still July.
Image Credits: Ian Wood
