*4 Area Tour - Snowbird Departure

A typical Snowbird Departure (Tue., Thur. and Sat.) begins at 8:15 a.m. at the Snowbird Activity Center of the Snowbird Center (same level as the tram) for sign-up and orientation. Our guides will talk to the group about avalanche safety, backcountry etiquette and that day's conditions. They will also fit each guest with an avalanche transceiver. We'll be among the first skiers on the Tram, take a run or two to get warmed up while the guides evaluate your skiing ability, then drop into Mineral Basin to the Baldy Express.

Then it's through the gate into Alta and a few runs making our way to the top of Supreme chair. A traverse out to the Catherine's Pass area leads to spectacular backcountry skiing down to the base of Brighton Ski Resort. After a run or two at Brighton, we'll take the lower SolBright trail to Solitude Mountain Resort where we'll stop for lunch and a well-earned break.

After lunch it's back to the top of Summit chair where we'll check in with Solitude Patrol and then make the dramatic 500-yard traverse across the "Highway to Heaven" and into Little Cottonwood Canyon via Twin Lakes Pass. Another long backcountry descent puts us at the upper base of Alta Ski Area. We ski several runs at Alta, ending up at the top of Sugarloaf chair, then pass through the Mineral Basin gate and, voila, we're at Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort, our final ski area. Don't worry, there's still plenty of great skiing as we make our way to the bottom of Mineral Basin, up the Mineral Basin Express to the top of Snowbird and then a long last run to the Tram Plaza.