Winter Recreation

Utah Olympic Park

Built for the 2002 Olympics, this was the site of the bobsled, luge, and ski-jump competitions (near the Canyons [1] at 3000 Bear Hollow Dr., 435/658-4200, www.olyparks.com [2], 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily year-round, free general admission). It is now open to the public for guided tours of the competition sites, including visits to the top of the K120 ski jump and the bobsled run for panoramic views of the surrounding country.

The mission of the park is now to train aspiring athletes. Visitors can often watch athletes train. During the summer, freestyle skiers do acrobatic jumps and plunge into a huge swimming pool. On summer Saturday afternoons, there's a freestyle aerial show.

It's also possible to actually do something here, such as take a vigorous (some would say harrowing) bobsled run (summertime rides ages 14 and up, $60; winter rides ages 16 and up, $200, reservations highly recommended) with a professional driver or ride a zip line ($20) or alpine slide ($15 adult, $5 child with paying adult). In the winter, adults can choose from a spectrum of bobsled, skeleton, luge, and Nordic jumping classes and workshops ($75 and up).

White Pine Touring

White Pine Touring (Park Ave. and Thaynes Canyon Dr., 435/649-6249, www.whitepinetouring.com [3], mid-Nov.-early Apr., $18 adults, $8 children 6-12, 6 and under free), Park City [4]'s cross-country ski center, offers rentals, instruction, and guided snowshoe tours. It has a touring center and about 12.4 miles of groomed trails right in town. White Pine also has a yurt in the Uinta Mountains that's available year-round ($100-120). A year-round office and shop is at 1790 Bonanza Drive (435/649-8710).

Ski Utah Interconnect

If you look at the map, you'll see that Snowbird [5], Alta [6], Solitude [7], Brighton [8], and Park City Mountain Resort [9] are not that far from one another and can be linked by backcountry routes. Experienced skiers who are up for a challenging day can explore the backcountry between these ski areas in Big [10] and Little Cottonwood Canyons [11] and Park City with Ski Utah Interconnect (801/534-1907, www.skiutah.com [12], mid-Dec.-mid-Apr., $295, reservations required), which provides a guide service for extensive touring of Wasatch Front ski areas. Touring is with downhill equipment and requires legs of steel and the ability to ski ungroomed powder all day long and do a bit of hiking to reach those great bowls and chutes. Tours on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday depart from Deer Valley and move on to Park City Mountain Resort, Solitude, Brighton, Alta, and Snowbird. On Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, tours start at Snowbird and visit Alta, Brighton, and Solitude. Cost includes guide service, lunch, lift tickets, and transportation back to the point of origin.

Sleigh Rides

Riding a horse-drawn sleigh to a Western dinner or an evening of entertainment is quickly becoming a Park City tradition. One of the more elaborate activities is offered by Snowed Inn Sleigh Company (435/647-3310, www.snowedinnsleigh.com [13], $79 adults, $49 children, reservations required), which takes guests on a sleigh ride to a lodge where dinner is served; short rides without dinner are also available ($20 for ages 2 and up).