I've said it many times...I'm not a good skier. I get very intimidated when I see steep slopes and lots of people flying by me. I freeze up and go into panic mode. So, when going to Snowbird, I have to look for the "kids" slopes. The great thing is, the kids slopes are challenging and easy to get to.
If you are a very beginner, you'll want to park in Entry 4. It is the entrance to the Tram, which you will not be doing with the kids, but access to a great beginner run called Chickadee. There is a great Mountain School for the kids or you can take the kids on the Chickadee lift. It is a nice gentle slope to get enough speed on, but not too fast. When Bren was 3, I spent an entire day here doing little jumps and enjoying new powder. If this is a little too easy, you'll want to move down mountain to the Baby Thunder area.
Now, don't let the "baby" fool you. You'll have a great day with the kids in this area all day. Park in Entry 1. This is known as Gad Valley and is my favorite area. I can go up the tram and fumble my way down, but I'd rather feel a little more in control so this area is more my speed. There are 3 lifts for this area. For the little guys, take the Mid-gad lift up to the 1/2 way point. Bren likes to jump through the terrain park off to the left, I prefer to keep my knees intact. To access Baby Thunder, get off the lift and head to the right. You will see a wide track that is West 2nd south run. Keep on that and stay high following the signs to the Baby Thunder area. It is an area of challenging green slopes with fun tree runs and little hidden areas-Mini Miners Camp-that kids can pop in and out of. It gives them a variety of terrain with obstacles and groomed runs combined. If you're like me, you're fine with these runs as well. I have never seen it packed with people, and it is a fun area without a lot of people cruising by you at high speeds.
If you would like to step up again, go back to Mid-gad lift and take it to the top. You can tackle Big Emma run which is a wide, but challenging green run. There is a nice restaurant there with beautiful views for that perfect family photo. You can also tackle the Gadzoom lift which will take you to some blue runs and circle back around to Big Emma. Again, it is a bit challenging but a way to tell if you're ready to face other areas of Snowbird. Bren and I decided to be really daring. We took Little Cloud lift up and tackled some pretty steep terrain. Let's put it this way, Bren did better than I did. I was happy to get some great photos and just as happy to get down in one piece.
I feel we had a great day with fresh powder and accomplished skiing "the bird". If you want to check out other activities, there is snowmobiling, snowshoeing, a mountain coaster and more.
